EA is in a bad spot in the eyes of most gamers. Both hardcore and casual fans have become fatigued by their franchises and their greed. But is 2018 the year they can turn it around?
To say that EA has a bad image with players right now would be an understatement. After a year where they ruined franchises like Need for Speed, Star Wars: Battlefront, and Mass Effect, franchises that should be able to sell themselves, and yet underperformed in the market of what was otherwise a stellar year for many other publishers and developers. EA has garnered a lot of criticism over the past several years, and almost every piece of it is deserved, and with their image amongst gamers in a decline, many people might be wondering if EA can bounce back from their blunders in 2018. The answer to that is a strong maybe, but only if they can do a couple of key things in the next year.
Custom Controller Company HexGaming launched a Kickstarter campaign for their latest pro controller, Hex Phantom. - IS
Windows Central writes: "Many PlayStation Studios games that are ported to PC get dedicated PS5 DualSense support, which allows users to experience haptic feedback and adaptive trigger support without actually having to own a PS5.
According to Hermen Hulst, head of PlayStation Studios, it's still the company's intent to launch the bigger single-player games on PS5 first, before later bringing the games to PC. This might not be the case for multiplayer games however, which are considered okay to launch simultaneously on console and PC."
My guess is after god of war. Probably last of us 2 that's a almost 4 year old game now and by the time it's released on pc it will be more than 4 years old or close to 5.
Right. I definitely see what a headlined from a website named windows central was trying to do though. It's cute little wordplay to help out the green box
Former Activision studio Toys for Bob partners with Xbox to publish its first game as an indie. This is something of a homecoming, as Microsoft owns Activision.
I guess.
How come they didnt either let them go or sell Tango and others to another publisher? Not saying Ubisoft, EA would be any better. (Capcome would of treated them right )
At least it wouldn't be MS of all ppl destroying them.
MS really should let go Tango go like they did TFB here.
one was under Bethesda (Tango) the other under Activision (TFB). Clearly each one handled the separations of their subordinates differently.
"How come they didnt either let them go or sell Tango and others to another publisher? Not saying Ubisoft, EA would be any better. (Capcome would of treated them right )"
Perhaps because Zenimax and ABK handles such matters differently based on their own internal policies as "independent" publishers.
Whoever, chances are it´s simply because MS didn´t wanted Tango or Austin to be acquired by competitors and develop new bangers for them, giving MS a bad rep in a possible future. Which could also be the reason why they ensured an exclusive partnership with TFB and its new game, before anyone else.
Sad and disgusting. But it is what it is.
"Whoever, chances are it´s simply because MS didn´t wanted Tango or Austin to be acquired by competitors and develop new bangers for them, giving MS a bad rep in a possible future."
MS has a bad rep now because those studios are no more. I rather them sell the studio continue to make multiplatform releases, while MS continues to focus on whatever they're doing. If they didn't want Tango around they should separated from them or sell them to, like they did TFB.
It's inexcusable, they have options on how to handle studios they don't want anymore with killing jobs. Not just MS but the rest of the industry also.
Sad and disgusting sure how many will get shut down next year or this year even?
I don't trust MS decisions and motivations at this point. You have to admit they make one dumb move after another.
"MS has a bad rep now because those studios are no more. I rather them sell the studio continue to make multiplatform releases, while MS continues to focus on whatever they're doing. If they didn't want Tango around they should separated from them or sell them to, like they did TFB."
Imo, MS separated from TFB because they didn´t had a game associated with Xbox yet, unlike Tango.
"I don't trust MS decisions and motivations at this point. You have to admit they make one dumb move after another."
Fair enough. It was indeed an epic dumb move from them to close Tango.
Still, all to be forgotten, like always have. This is not the first time a big publisher shuts down a beloved and/or successful studio out of nowhere and certainly won´t be the last. Do you remember Lionhead? Do you remember Evolution Studios? Yeah... both were beloved studios and yet, those companies kill those studios in q blink of an eye and got away with it.
The studio boss made some money from this transaction. Once the game releases, the studio will get chopped up.
Manages to buy their freedom especially after all the shit Microsoft has been doing with its studios lately
...
Goes right back to them as partners.
Okaaaaaay...
Id venture a guess that TFB working directly with MS was a better outcome than working through Activision to get to MS.
From the article...
"Toys for Bob spun out as an indie back in February after Microsoft instituted sweeping layoffs that impacted 86 employees, which was more than half of the staff"
I doubt those 86 employees enjoyed the Microsoft experience over Activisions.
MS shuts down studios because of lack of resources and then helps these guys by giving em resources. Also MS is what forced them to buy their freedom in the first place? What kind of logic 😂
The best thing is that the company that is worth $3 trillion and owns the company instead of Xbox lacks resources. How the hell does a company worth $3 trillion making a measly $70 billion purchase they 'can't' support. Lol
The reason they would need to "partner with Microsoft" is simply to make a game that's part of a franchise that Microsoft owns. Meaning they're probably going to make a new Spyro game - they're still an independent studio, but are making a game in a franchise that Microsoft owns. It's kind of like Remedy partnering with Rockstar to be able to make the Max Payne remakes.
Xbox’s gaming division seems to still function as 3 semi-autonomous sub-divisions, Xbox Studios, Bethesda and ABK. The three main sub-divisions can seemingly shut down or build studios and set up partnerships independently. This would explain why Bethesda can recently shutdown studios, while ABK spins off one studio, while building a new one. Plus, Toys for Bob could be spun off by ABK, only to immediately re-partner with Microsoft.
That's absolutely 💯 BS. Any sane 'autonomous' company would NOT put their games on Gamepass day 1 like COD will lose probably billions.
Also they're all under Xbox game studios so any autonomy is an illusion.
No, I'm sure MS can and does step in when they want something done specifically but I'm also sure they let them also work independently
I highly highly doubt this. Ms controls all. The guys aren't gonna be allowed to just shut something down like that without approval. No way
Don´t worry. You won´t be playing it anyway since their next game will possible be a next gen Xbox console game.
Hey you said that about SOT and looks like many ppl on PS is playing it. You also found bugsnax interesting ffs your opinion hold no weight lol.
Bugsnax is BS, tried it & quickly deleted it. It's a game that fits right on Gamepass. PS5 owners that are probably playing the boring SOT you could count on one hand. LMAO!!...don't try to come for me.
They can't and they won't. They will always be a rotten company. F*** EA.
Easy. Make decent games and give players a full experience without the introduction of microtransactions unless they are just cosmetic. No more pay to win or grinding, that has to go first and foremost. If dlc is coming then make it something extra like Horizon or Witcher III, not something that was held back.
With sports games like Madden which only get marginal updates per year, charge less. Make them $40 not $60.
EA will never learn. I can say the same thing to Activision. They are both disgusting.
You are giving them far too much credit by making it sound like this happened all at once. In my opinion, EA has been on a downward spiral since, at least, 2005.
This cycle of a topic about making them better is probably eleven years old now, so welcome to the thunderdome.
EA needs to give more creative freedom to their developers, stop marginalizing players, and start thinking with their gut as opposed to the checkbook.
Not sure about anyone else these days, but if these three things were to happen I would consider coming back.
Clearly, we've all got an idea about what Electronic "Arts" should do, whether it is going bankrupt or just making finished products, but they aren't going to do anything until we stop buying and start speaking up.
The community may be mainstream now, but our numbers of the ones who care are larger. You want a better company? Prove it.
Let's see here. We have about 35 years of EA to look back on.
They were a genuinely good and well likely game developer and publisher for about 10 of those years, as they were trying to build themselves up. That leaves about 25 years now, of them getting progressively worse, and worse, and worse.
So, I'm inclined to say, no, they will not "Win Back Gamers in 2018", nor any other year in the foreseeable future. I also genuinely hope to see this company tank and be driven straight into the dirt. Yes, sounds harsh, no more harsh than what EA continues to do to people's wallets by exploiting them in a manner that really, should be illegal. This is the world we live in though.