Karooo Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 Remember the bad old EA so many of us gamers spent oodles of time criticising? EA was the big time publisher that made huge amounts of cash off only releasing games from their pre-existing IPs (Intellectual Properties) like Medal Of Honor, Battlefield, and Burnout, their yearly sports 'updates', and off movie licenses like James Bond and Lord Of The Rings. Most of the games were good, and some of them were bad, but what annoyed many of us the most was that they were being safe and not bothering to try and bring creative new gaming experiences, especially to consoles. They had the money and the clout to try and be fresh and innovative, but they were just sitting back because they could. Then they changed. But now huge financial losses and a layoff of 1,500 staff may herald the end of their positive experiment into new IPs and innovation and a return to the old EA business model. And it's our fault. While EA Games were changing their attitude and creating new IP games like Dead Space, Mirror's Edge, Brutal Legend, and The Saboteur, the other big publishers like Microsoft (Gears of War 2, Fable 2, Halo 3, Halo: ODST), Ubisoft (Rainbow Six, Ghost Recon, Assassin's Creed 2, Splinter Cell: Conviction, Avatar), and Activision (Wolfenstein, Modern Warfare 2, Shrek, Spider Man, X-Men) seem to have adopted EA's previous philosophy particularly this year after the financial crisis. Sure there are exceptions like Endwar by Ubisoft and Prototype by Activision, but on the whole the games have been sequels or film tie-ins. But this problem is not just due to the financial crisis. As I wrote last year, EA didn't sell enough of either Dead Space or Mirror's Edge, despite both games being critically acclaimed by the gaming media. At the time I argued that their releasing the games during the busy end of year rush was to blame, with new IPs not getting a look in next to the better known titles. While I still agree with that statement, with some exceptions like the original Assassin's Creed, a lot of new IPs haven't done so well this generation next to their sequel or movie tie-in counterparts. And it hasn't always been a question of quality. The top selling Xbox 360 games so far are: 1. Halo 3 (8.1 million) Big name sequels sell 2. Gears of War (5 million) 3. Gears of War 2 (5 million) 4. Grand Theft Auto IV (4 million) 5. Call Of Duty 4 (3.77 million) 6. Call Of Duty: World At War (3.35 million) 7. Forza 2 (2.6 million) 8. Fable 2 (2.6 million) 9. Halo: ODST (2.5 million) 10. Assassin's Creed (2.28 million) Of those titles, only the original Gears of War and Assassin's Creed were new IPs. The story is only slightly different for the 360's major competitor, Sony's PS3, which has Motorstorm, the original Uncharted, the original Resistance, and Heavenly Sword in their top 1o. While many gamers demand innovation and new IPs, the reality is that it is a hit or miss risk for the publishers. Ubisoft last generation released the wacky but highly praised Beyond Good & Evil, only to see the gamers shun it. And this is why I say it is our fault. We will happily fork out extra cash over usual retail price for Modern Warfare 2, but Dead Space, despite great reviews and price cuts soon after, was not attractive enough. Mirror's Edge, despite giving us the innovation many craved, scared off many gamers who instead forked out for Gears of War 2. What chance has Brutal Legend got against MW 2? Brutal Legend, also highly regarded by most critics, as of October 24 apparently has sold 370,710 copies on both consoles. EA went out on a limb and tried to change its image and corporate strategy to expand its gaming philosophy beyond sequels, sports title rehashes, and movie tie-ins, and did we support that after all our winging? No. The situation is that the average gamer has limited funds and may not play as many games as the hardcore. The casual gamer will buy whatever they know will give them the fix of fun they are after and don't follow the updates and innovations of new IPs. They see Mirror's Edge or Dead Space and think- never heard of it. The Call of Duty or Halo series on the other hand is not only well known, but is in a genre that is easy to identify and play and their friends are likely to also have it. This gives big publishers who have the funds to create strong new innovative games less incentive to do so. Creatively, I'm sure their staff would love to try new things, but the risk outweighs the potential benefits, especially now. They are more likely to try mini new things within an existing franchise, like the upcoming Splinter Cell: Conviction is. Which brings me back to EA going back to what they were before. In January EA CEO John Riccitiello said: I also believe that there is no inherent conflict between great creativity and achieving strong profitability – I believe they go hand in hand. This is a business and much of our success will be measured with a calculator – sales, revenue, profit and improving shareholder value. There is also a qualitative aspect of our industry. Making games we can be proud of. Pushing boundaries. I believe the quantitative and the qualitative measures go well together. However, he now looks to be saying that EA will be concentrating on known franchises, some to be released twice a year: Electronic Arts has a core slate of games label and sports franchises that we will iterate on a either annual or bi-annual basis. And I think you know what those major titles are – all of them are selling or have sold in their most recent edition 2m units or more. What does this mean for innovation in the gaming industry? Well to me it looks like innovation will now be mostly focused within existing franchises and, increasingly, in the casual market where the big publishers expect bigger returns for less cost. Innovation Future? So for example Microsoft's Project Natal and Sony's motion controller will seem to publishers as a safer investment in finding ways to innovate for a larger gamer and casual market. Innovation will also come to gamers in smaller form like downloaded Xbox Live Arcade or Sony PSN games, and the even portable gaming like the Iphone and DSi. Some of these might make a big enough name for themselves to get a bigger budget version for the consoles, but they would be sequels. If it turns out to be true that EA and the other publishers shy away from new IPs in the future and we are still playing Call of Duty 15, really we only have ourselves to blame. But then it seems most gamers are quite happy with their sequels, and so perhaps that's fair enough. For me, though, new upcoming IP games like Alan Wake and Heavy Rain seem more interesting, even if I'm still staying fairly cautious about them. http://oxcgn.com/2009/11/12/gamers-forcing...rn-to-old-ways/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnackChap Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 4. Grand Theft Auto IV (4 million) 5. Call Of Duty 4 (3.77 million) 6. Call Of Duty: World At War (3.35 million) FOCK NO!! all these 3 titles have sold well over 5 mill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buzz Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 It's true. Now a days every new IP has a tough time to establish themselves. But it's only their sequel which gets the gamers interested. For example Uncharted, Assassins Creed, etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starcraft2 Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 Nice article Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noctis Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 FOCK NO!! all these 3 titles have sold well over 5 mill The article is only about x360 games. Those does not include PC/PS3 sales. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ne0 Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 Dead Space was a brilliant game, sad to see it didn't do well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAPT0R Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 FOCK NO!! all these 3 titles have sold well over 5 mill more than 5mil on the 360 alone?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemo Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 i will be sad it that happens. EA were finally looking great with dead space (everything that RE 5 was not) and mirrors edge and now dantes inferno. Even FIFA looked a lot better. Seriously, hope that article is BS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnackChap Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 The article is only about x360 games. Those does not include PC/PS3 sales. more than 5mil on the 360 alone?? yes 5M on 360 only. all the 3 titles have sold well over 10-12 mill units on all platforms combined. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ne0 Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 i will be sad it that happens. EA were finally looking great with dead space (everything that RE 5 was not) and mirrors edge and now dantes inferno. Even FIFA looked a lot better. Seriously, hope that article is BS Yo man, don't diss RE 5. It had its moments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HundredProofSam Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 That's a good article and makes many valid points. Mirror's Edge and Dead Space were great games and deserved to sell more. We need more new IP, and we need more people to buy them. peace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DevilsOwn Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 the good thing that EA has done is now it has more possible annual franchises. they are already doing that (DeadSpace for Wii, AC2, etc).. WItha couple of years of new developments, i guess they shall now try to reap in the benefits. maybe not many new games, but sequels of the recenetly established ones. Not a bad strategy mind you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ne0 Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 not every sequel will work. Mirror's Edge 2 might even not be that much of a success. It might turn out to be another skate 2. And Mirror's Edge was a very niche title , even Brutal Legend, they were liked only by a certain minority of gamers. Games like FIFA and COD are more mass-market oriented. Anybody can take it and play it. If you make games for a niche market, its always a risk, whether its a new IP or a sequel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HundredProofSam Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 not every sequel will work. Mirror's Edge 2 might even not be that much of a success. It might turn out to be another skate 2. Mirrors Edge 2 might not do well or may not even materialise because the first one didn't. Even if a sequel comes, EA probably won't push it as much. Publishers go after sequels when the first game does well. For someone like EA, the idea behind a new IP is to turn it into a franchise, but when the first one doesn't do well, they drop the idea. And when many new IPs don't do well, they may just drop any new IPs they have planned and build on well-selling franchises they already have. That's the whole point of the article. As for Skate 2, it didn't do well because it wasn't that great. And the reason they made Skate 2 was because the first one did well and damn near killed the Tony Hawk franchise. peace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
achilles Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 i dunno.. im of the opinion that if the game is good it'll sell. better marketing helps but only to a certain extent. anywway it doesn't help matters that americans only wanna shoot stuff. 7 of those top 10 games mentioned are shooters. another point : POP sold less than Assassin's creed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HundredProofSam Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 i dunno.. im of the opinion that if the game is good it'll sell. better marketing helps but only to a certain extent. anywway it doesn't help matters that americans only wanna shoot stuff. 7 of those top 10 games mentioned are shooters. Mirror's Edge and Dead Space were bad games? Smackdown vs Raw and Need for Speed outsold them. And how do you explain the fact that UC2 is already at the bottom of the Top 20 sales chart in the UK? another point : POP sold less than Assassin's creed. Because it wasn't a whole lot better, if at all. Plus, AC had the hype and the Jade. peace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
achilles Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 Mirror's Edge and Dead Space were bad games? Smackdown vs Raw and Need for Speed outsold them. And how do you explain the fact that UC2 is already at the bottom of the Top 20 sales chart in the UK?peace neither of mirror's edge or dead space were very good. they were good. mirror's edge did not even get great reviews. i liked it and so i picked it up but if people have other games which they think would be beter.. (kinda the whole point of the article) they'd instead spend money on those games. also, sports/racing games always have a market. with UC2 not selling a lot, none of the ps3 exclusives have sold too much, except for mgs4 and gt5p (again franchises). plus EA decided to create a lot of new IPs in a short span. one risk too many. and the studios they are shutting down have franchise games too on which they could not capitalize.. mercs, C&C etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HundredProofSam Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 Mirror's Edge has a Metacritic of 79. Dead Space is at 88. By contrast, NFS Undercover is at 59. Undercover probably outsold both those games combined. So it's not about reviews or how good either game is. People just don't give new IPs a chance; they'd rather spend their money on a bad game from a well-known franchise peace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aftrunner Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 Its a pity. I have been saying for a while that EA have been the good guys for some time now. Some very good new IPs and they have done decent work on existing IPs but they have nothing to show for it. Look at Dead Space extraction on the Wii, from all accounts a very good game and it tanked without a trace. On the other hand you have games like Halo ODST and MW 2 which take about 1-2 years to make with very little resources and almost no innovation and end up selling billions. I feel for EA. They deserve better than that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Karnage Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 It had to happen, the entertainment industry must always cater to the lowest common denominator to maximize its profits regardless of critic's reviews. So if franchise sequels do better than new IPs then that's the way to go for the publishers (a la PC games fading away in favour of consoles). BTW UC2 = Unreal Championship 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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