PK gets a new homepage - Some more EA wisdom

bdoughty · Post by **bdoughty** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 5:25 pm

<A HREF="http://www.easucks.com/" TARGET="_blank">http://www.easucks.com/</A>
 
 I never knew such a site existed until I saw the IGN thread below. It covers EA games and issues with them. He looks to at least buy each game from the details he gives. Though it is funny how he leaves out a game like NBA Street Vol 2. <IMG SRC="images/forum/icons/icon_cool.gif"> Maybe that game does not suck?
 
 
 I found this on IGN and the original post hit then nail on the head regarding EA and some of their business making decisions.
 
 Close your eyes Dreamcast and XBL fans as you will feel that pounding sensation in your hindquarters once again.
 
 ---------------
 From IGN MB
 
 Topic: EA Hypocrisy 101: Admits that NGage Is a Flop...Yet Still Supports the Head Taco!!
 Mr_Controversial
 
 
 Electronic Arts president and COO John Riccitiello has described Nokia´s N-Gage system as a "dog" and further stated that software shipments on it have been "non-meaningful".
 
 "When I picked that thing up I knew it was a dog - it just feels stupid," Riccitiello told news agency Reuters in an interview last week, before reportedly mimicking the difficulties presented in using the awkwardly-shaped system as a phone.
 
 The criticism is all the more damaging for Nokia because EA is actually a key supporter of the N-Gage on the software front, with the Finnish mobile giant hoping that games such as FIFA 2004 will help to improve the game deck´s fortunes.
 
 Riccitiello said that unit shipments of EA´s titles on the N-Gage have been "non-meaningful" to date - suggesting that regardless of hardware sales, software sales for the device are extremely weak.
 
 However, he was adamant that Nokia should not be counted out of the games industry just because of the problems with the N-Gage system - which Nokia CEO Jorma Ollila admitted last week was not living up to sales expectations.
 
 "Nokia will figure it out," Riccitiello commented, "it´s just that they haven´t figured it out yet." He described Nokia as one of the best design engineering companies he knew, and stated his belief that it will eventually succeed in the games industry.
 
 (comments from poster)
 
 Yes folks, this is the same company that dissed the Dreamcast and predicted it´s failure. This is the same company that refuses to commit to Xbox Live and it´s immenent one million subscribers. Yet this same company is willing to stand behind a blatant and major failure, the Nokia with it´s Ngage head taco.
 
 <A HREF="http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/54/35955.html" TARGET="_blank">Link to article...</A>
 
 End of message
 
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 Ah comments like that make you feel all warm and cozy that EA is at the top of the food chain. <IMG SRC="images/forum/icons/icon_eek.gif"> [ This message was edited by: bdoughty on 02-03-2004 13:29 ]

stolf1 · Post by **stolf1** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 6:31 pm

I wouldn´t call EA dumb. EA is the biggest video game maker in the US and they have completly dominated the sports market for years. They were right the Dreamcast did fail and Sega is failing now with the ESPN Games. EA is number 1 because they stick with PS2 who is also number 1. EA and Sony are buddies and are the clear winners in this market. Should EA support X-Box Live yes no doubt, should they have supported Dreamcast no doubt but the decsion not to has not hurt the company bottom line at all. Like EA are not sayiong they make business moves I think not.

bdoughty · Post by **bdoughty** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 6:51 pm

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD>Quote:<HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><BLOCKQUOTE> I wouldn´t call EA dumb. </BLOCKQUOTE></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>
 
 <TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD>Quote:<HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><BLOCKQUOTE>EA is number 1 because they stick with PS2 who is also number 1.</BLOCKQUOTE></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>
 
 What prey tell does the PS2 have to do with the N-Gage?
 
 Let´s try this one more time since you missed the main crux of the argument...
 
 EA supports N-Gage which they in turn rip on in the press calling it a "dog´. Not exactly the kind of support NGage needs in selling more........
 
 <IMG SRC="http://zaurus.zefamily.org/files/images/Taco.jpg">
 
 
 and in turn helping EA sell more software.
 
 
 
 Yet they fail to support the Dreamcast and XBL. You figure that fuzzy math out and get back to me with some reasoning.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 6:56 pm

The Dreamcast failed because of a lack of EA support, not because it was a bad system. That system was badass for it´s time...it still graphically beats out the PS2 in a lot of areas.
 
 Had EA jumped on the bandwagon, the quality of sports games would have went up with the competition from VC and the DC would still be alive today...but then again it´s all heresay at this point.
 
 I just think the DC would have lasted a hellova lot longer, and we´d have 4 consoles right now, not just three. [ This message was edited by: dbdynsty25 on 02-03-2004 14:57 ]

bdoughty · Post by **bdoughty** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 7:03 pm

Ding Ding Ding
 
 We have a winner.
 
 I mean the Dreamcast had a chance. Does anyone here even own an N-Gage? Has anyone played one? Have you seen what you have to do just to get a game loaded?
 
 Trust me if you have not they are crap. Crap might be too kind a word for it. All of the managers from EB and Gamestop got a free N-Gage and the two managers here in town sold theirs once they got them. Gamestop cut out half of the stores that carried the N-Gage. They one I part time at no longer offers is (only the mall store).
 
 Emphasis on the Dreamcast had a chance which is not something I give N-Gage. With EA´s support it probably would still be around or surely lasted longer then it did. For all we know Sony could have paid for EA to stay away from the system.

matthewk · Post by **matthewk** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 7:04 pm

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD>Quote:<HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><BLOCKQUOTE>
 On 2004-03-02 14:31, stolf1 wrote:
 I wouldn´t call EA dumb. EA is the biggest video game maker in the US and they have completly dominated the sports market for years. </BLOCKQUOTE></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>
 
 Just because they are #1 does not mean they are not stupid.
 
 -Matt

Boom · Post by **Boom** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 7:31 pm

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD>Quote:<HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><BLOCKQUOTE>
 On 2004-03-02 15:04, matthewk wrote:

On 2004-03-02 14:31, stolf1 wrote:
 I wouldn´t call EA dumb. EA is the biggest video game maker in the US and they have completly dominated the sports market for years. </BLOCKQUOTE></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>
 
 Just because they are #1 does not mean they are not stupid.
 
 -Matt

No, but it does build a pretty strong case in their favor... as not being stupid. <IMG SRC="images/forum/icons/icon_wink.gif">

wco81 · Post by **wco81** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 7:51 pm

We don´t know what kind of licensing arrangements EA has with Nokia or what they were offered for the DC and for XBL.
 
 They have games that people want so they´re going to exercise that leverage. That may not have resulted in support for particular systems but it´s their business.
 
 If people want EA to change, organize a boycott or at least avoid their products if their practices are offensive. Or better yet, buy some shares, show up at shareholder meetings and demand to know why they made the decisions.
 
 Of course, given their recent successes, not too many other shareholders are going to question the current management´s performance.
 
 But people need to stop taking the actions of EA or any other corporation so personally. If EA supported one system while not supporting another, they didn´t do it to piss certain people off. They did it because in their judgement, it was the best thing to do for their business.
 
 However, some people are never going to be pleased so you´ll have sites like the one the guy created and a lot of discussions about what EA should have done or should be doing or not doing.

davet010 · Post by **davet010** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 8:54 pm

So ´Mr Controversial´ is writing for a fairly tedious game site and EA Sports are coining millions upon millions of dollars, now having the power (according to him) to make or break consoles ?
 
 Based on the economic and factual coherence of his arguments, one of the parties is stupid, that much is for certain.
 
 What is giving the PS2 its lead over the Xbox is its lead in production (about 18 months?), plus the fact that in most non-US markets, the PS2 is still pasting the X on sales (I saw one month´s Japanese sales figures for Jan 04 as PS2 60,000 units, Xbox 900), and for say 90% of non-hardcore gamers, online console play is not what they are interested in, so EA´s failure to adopt XBL is not a big killer.
 
 And FYI, I prefer my XBox to my PS2, and couldn´t care less if Madden 05 doesn´t support XBL - I´ll still buy it.

bdoughty · Post by **bdoughty** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 9:00 pm

Don´t get me wrong I am still buying Madden and NCAA for the Xbox. I just find the whole N-Gage thing odd to say the last.

XXXIV · Post by **XXXIV** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 10:23 pm

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD>Quote:<HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><BLOCKQUOTE>
 On 2004-03-02 17:00, bdoughty wrote:
 Don´t get me wrong I am still buying Madden and NCAA for the Xbox. I just find the whole N-Gage thing odd to say the last.
 </BLOCKQUOTE></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>
 
 <IMG SRC="images/forum/icons/icon_smile.gif">
 
 Im right there with you.
 I will also continue to buy some of the quality EA titles(MAdden,NCAA, NHL,NFSU,LOFTR, etc..).
 
 Im over the disgraceful treatment of the Dreamcast and expect EA to be turning up on LIve eventually.
 
 The NGage support is just an example of how most big companies are full of crap.

wco81 · Post by **wco81** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 10:52 pm

More wisdom from the EA CEO:
 
 EA plans aggressive spending for new hardware
 Friday February 27, 5:56 pm ET
 By Ben Berkowitz
 
 LOS ANGELES, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Electronic Arts Inc. (NasdaqNM:ERTS -
 News), the world´s largest video game publisher, intends to outspend
 its competitors to prepare for the next generation of video game
 hardware coming in the next two years, its president and chief
 operating officer said on Friday.
 
 John Riccitiello, speaking at the Reuters Technology, Media and
 Telecommunications Summit, also said the company was more likely to
 make acquisitions of smaller publishers while their valuable
 development teams were still intact, rather than looking for cheap
 intellectual property in bankruptcy.
 
 EA holds a dominant position in the games industry - it generates more
 revenue in the December quarter than its closest competitor does in a
 full year, and its annual revenue is greater than that of its three
 closest competitors combined.
 
 In January, the company´s U.S. market share was more than three times
 that of its closest competitor -- and EA has used that leverage of
 late to sign a number of publishing deals with smaller developers. The
 company grabbed up the "Burnout" franchise that had been published by
 Acclaim Entertainment Inc. (NasdaqSC:AKLM - News), and
 "TimeSplitters," which had been published by Eidos Plc (London:EID.L -
 News).
 
 Those deals, Riccitiello said, were in part intended to keep the
 company from repeating the mistake it made the last time new hardware
 was about to come on the market, which was to cut its focus on games
 for existing hardware while it dumped resources into the coming
 generation.
 
 "Part of what you´re seeing really is EA is at scale now, so we think
 we´re capable of doing two things simultaneously," Riccitiello said.
 "We do spend more money on technology than our competitors do. We do
 it on purpose."
 
 The next generation of the dominant PlayStation 2 from Sony Corp.
 (Tokyo:6758.T - News) is expected in 2006, but the next version of the
 Xbox from Microsoft Corp. (NasdaqNM:MSFT - News) is believed to be on
 track for a late 2005 launch.
 
 HIRING ACTIVELY
 
 While smaller competitors struggle, Riccitiello said, EA is hiring
 actively.
 
 "We´re hiring a couple hundred people a quarter in this space -- and
 they´re usually coming from the companies that are falling apart," he
 said. "Usually by the time a company gets into bankruptcy ... we´ve
 already hired everybody out of there we needed."
 
 Among the places EA has been hiring is a new hub in Los Angeles.
 Riccitiello revealed that EA´s Los Angeles studio is working on
 "GoldenEye 2," the sequel to the "Bond" title widely regarded as one
 of the finest video games of all time.
 
 "We´ve been working kind of in secret for over a year to try and build
 a product that meets the expectations consumers have," he said of the
 new game. "It´s a violent story-driven shooter. This isn´t the same
 debonair kind of ´Bond´ we´ve been building for the last couple of
 years."
 
 EA´s newly-released "James Bond" video game, "James Bond 007:
 Everything or Nothing," has topped sales charts worldwide in less than
 two weeks of release.
 
 "It outdid ´Passion of Christ,´" Riccitiello said, referring to the
 sales of the game as compared to the opening day of the new,
 controversial Mel Gibson film, released last Wednesday to strong
 box-office receipts.
 
 But while Riccitiello said the violence in the new "Bond" game was not
 anything he would call objectionable, he acknowledged that with
 traditional notions about the games industry and the recent focus on
 indecency in media, video games were likely to be election-year
 fodder.
 
 "It´s not exactly gay marriage but it´s going to be out there," he
 said.
 
 HARDWARE PRICING
 
 Another issue on the horizon for the games industry is hardware
 pricing. Both the PS2 and the Xbox sell for $179. Publishers and
 retailers are clamoring for a price cut this year, to either $149 or
 $129.
 
 Financial analysts have begun to speculate in recent days that
 Microsoft may make the first move, as soon as next month.
 
 "If I were Sony and Microsoft lowered the price on the hardware, I´d
 follow," he said. "It would be surprising if Microsoft lowered pricing
 and Sony didn´t follow."

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 11:51 pm

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD>Quote:<HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><BLOCKQUOTE>EA holds a dominant position in the games industry - it generates more revenue in the December quarter than its closest competitor does in a full year, and its annual revenue is greater than that of its three closest competitors combined.</BLOCKQUOTE></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>
 
 If that´s true, that´s staggering.

DivotMaker · Post by **DivotMaker** » Wed Mar 03, 2004 12:13 am

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD>Quote:<HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><BLOCKQUOTE>
 If that´s true, that´s staggering.
 </BLOCKQUOTE></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>
 
 It is true...

bdoughty · Post by **bdoughty** » Wed Mar 03, 2004 12:50 am

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD>Quote:<HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><BLOCKQUOTE>
 On 2004-03-02 19:51, dbdynsty25 wrote:

EA holds a dominant position in the games industry - it generates more revenue in the December quarter than its closest competitor does in a full year, and its annual revenue is greater than that of its three closest competitors combined.</BLOCKQUOTE></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>
 
 If that´s true, that´s staggering.

Yep it was covered in one of the gaming magazines I read. I think they went as far as calling EA Canada the top development team for last years games. I think it was Gameinformer.
 
 
 Now as far as Goldeneye 2, EA better bring it´s big guns because Goldeneye was Halo before Halo was a twinkle in Bungies eyes. EA has made Bond FPS before with the license and have not blown people away.
 
 I think they are betting that the name alone will sell a ton of copies. They are probably right. [ This message was edited by: bdoughty on 02-03-2004 20:51 ]