Topic: Wii U to miss out on 15 EA Games

[Mannypon]

Given the current state of EA, if I were the NFL I'd be looking for a way out of the exclusivity deal. That company is a mess, and seems to be falling apart.

One can only dream, I've been waiting for years for this to happen so I can get my NFL 2k fix again, years.  So much so that I've still played NFL 2k5 with updated rosters from OperationSports (those guys do amazing work, I can't how long it must take to update the rosters of all teams every year)

[NWR_insanolord]

I actually like Madden, and prefer it to the 2K games, which I really liked as well. I just think EA is slowly imploding, and I worry about the properties that I'm a fan of that they have either legal or de facto exclusivity over.

[ShyGuy]

I wonder if Nintendo slipped them a sweet deal for some key titles, or a license holder insisted they release their title on the Wii U, or it was just misinformation at the start.

[smallsharkbigbite]

Now that EA is building Wii U games....

Seems to me that EA is acknowledging that the PS4 and Xbox ONE used game lockout and game delivery method may negatively affect consumer perception.  They want to leave the door open to go back to the Wii U which uses a traditional game delivery method.

I'm sure third parties will push their big games to PS4, XboxOne to try and make this more lucrative delivery model work.  I've been surprised before so I don't want to say it'll fail, but I think this is a big deal and makes me feel alot better about my decision to get on the Wii U train.  Last generation I was a PS3/Wii gamer.  This gen I'll probably be a Wii U/PC gamer to make up for the games that miss the Nintendo console.

[Adrock]

Given the current state of EA, if I were the NFL I'd be looking for a way out of the exclusivity deal. That company is a mess, and seems to be falling apart.

Isn't this year or next the final year of the current exclusivity contract that EA extended in 2011?

[cubist]

EA is a little shifty...from not making any Wii U games to we're only making four.  WTF on running a company.  No wonder Riccitello left. 

[TJ Spyke]

Given the current state of EA, if I were the NFL I'd be looking for a way out of the exclusivity deal. That company is a mess, and seems to be falling apart.

Isn't this year or next the final year of the current exclusivity contract that EA extended in 2011?

Yes, I believe it is. But the Madden games sell so well (even though they have decline a little), that I think the NFL would be fine extending it again.

[Ceric]

Given the current state of EA, if I were the NFL I'd be looking for a way out of the exclusivity deal. That company is a mess, and seems to be falling apart.

Isn't this year or next the final year of the current exclusivity contract that EA extended in 2011?

Yes, I believe it is. But the Madden games sell so well (even though they have decline a little), that I think the NFL would be fine extending it again.

I don't think they'll keep it exclusive unless made a very good deal.

[TJ Spyke]

Why wouldn't the NFL want to keep it exclusive? I think that unless another company managed to convince the NFL that they would do a good job for the NFL brand and make the NFL a lot of money, then EA will be able to keep it exclusive.

[Ceric]

Why wouldn't the NFL want to keep it exclusive? I think that unless another company managed to convince the NFL that they would do a good job for the NFL brand and make the NFL a lot of money, then EA will be able to keep it exclusive.

Easy,  EA will not drop Madden just because they don't have the Exclusive deal anymore.  They will continue to make the NFL a lot of money because, they still have to license the IP from the NFL.  This allows the NFL to have more leverage over EA and to fill the gaps in its IP.  If EA not producing for the Wii U then someelse could.

[Kytim89]

Any chance that Battlefield 4 could make it the Wii U?

[Fatty The Hutt]

I wonder if Nintendo slipped them a sweet deal for some key titles, or a license holder insisted they release their title on the Wii U, or it was just misinformation at the start.

and hopefully that license holder is Lucasfilm (Disney)!

[TJ Spyke]

I don't think a license holder could do anything about it. As long as the publisher is fulfilling the legal aspects of the contract, the license holder can't do anything. Don't you think most license holders would want a publisher to release a game on every platform possible?

[Ceric]

You be very surprised how powerful a license holder can be if they have a good license regardless of what the publisher could technically get away with.

[Kytim89]

You be very surprised how powerful a license holder can be if they have a good license regardless of what the publisher could technically get away with.

The NFL license is probably so sought after in the gaming community that if the NFL wanted to auction it off to other developers/publishers then EA would fight tooth and nail to keep it under their control.

[Ceric]

You be very surprised how powerful a license holder can be if they have a good license regardless of what the publisher could technically get away with.

The NFL license is probably so sought after in the gaming community that if the NFL wanted to auction it off to other developers/publishers then EA would fight tooth and nail to keep it under their control.

Very much so.  Which puts the NFL in a strong bargaining position.

[nickmitch]

Madden is a name brand. A lot of companies would have a hard time selling a football game that ISN'T Madden. Hell, if EA could work a roster update just before the license expires, they could sell a $20+ "expansion" and still outsell any other game that would come out.

I know a lot of people would want the license, but who else has been working on a football game? There's no way they could match the quality standard (yes, it's there) that Madden has set.

[Retro Deckades]

Apparently, NHL 14 will not be headed to the XBOX One or the PS4. Instead, EA said that they were focusing on making the game as good as they could for the 360 and PS3.


With the recent news that EA is actually developing games for the Wii U, I'm really hoping that they're developing a Wii U version.

[NWR_insanolord]

Apparently, NHL 14 will not be headed to the XBOX One or the PS4.

That actually significantly hurt my chances of buying a new console this year.

[oohhboy]

We need a thread for all the EA embarrassments.

EA Vice President says PS4 and Xbox One are a generation ahead of the current fastest gaming PC on the market.

In a comment on LinkedIn, Electronic Art's Vice President and CTO Rajat Teneja said that Xbox One and PlayStation 4 are "a generation ahead of the highest end PC on the market." He went on to say "The compute capabilities of these platforms and the data transfer speeds we can now bank on, essentially removes any notion of rationing of systems resources for our game engines. Our benchmarks on just the video and audio performance are 8-10 times superior to the current gen. gaming pc systems."

Clearly the only requirement to become a VP at EA is to talk out of one's ass. Technology? the **** is that?

[Adrock]

Madden is a name brand. A lot of companies would have a hard time selling a football game that ISN'T Madden.

I disagree. NFL is a brand and a powerful one. If the box just says NFL on it, some people would buy it thinking it was Madden. I wish I was joking. If 2K got their hands on the NFL license again and released $20 game like they did back in 2004, I don't think most people would mind as long as it wasn't a mess.

[TJ Spyke]

People don't ask for the new NFL game, they ask for the new Madden game. The Madden brand has built up loyalty among gamers, and the only way a NFL 2K game could do anywhere near as good in sales would be to do $20 again.

As for the box, look at it and you will see that "NFL" is very small. "MADDEN" is much larger font size, even the EA Sports logo at the year number are much larger than the NFL logo.

Another NFL game might be OK, but Madden has built up a fanbase and even with competition the Madden series would sell better (it's one reason the NFL gave EA the exclusive license).

[Adrock]

My experience in customer service has left me with very little confidence in people. Many don't read the box. They see the logo and a guy holding a football... "Well, must be Madden."

And I wasn't saying another NFL game would outsell Madden, just that they wouldn't have a hard time selling a football game especially 2K if they launched at $20 as I previously mentioned.

[Pixelated Pixies]

My experience in customer service has left me with very little confidence in people.

My experience of working in customer service has left me with very little confidence that people in customer service know what they're talking about either, lol.

[nickmitch]

I gotta disagree. People set their calendars to the Madden release. People care about who's on the cover, midnight launches, and everything surrounding the franchise. If those gamers went to stores and saw 2K, most would ask "Where the **** is Madden?"