The Fall of EA Sports

[tokenflipguy]

Found this vid a bit interesting and does air out a lot of the grievances with the sports game youtube community. I also like the tidbits with Trip Hawkins when he designed the original Madden and really want to make a digital football game. It has a lot of stock footage, but I think it's pretty well produced.

 

[3AM]

I know simulation fans will always be a thing but I still find it incredible the traditional sports game model has survived this long

The fact that companies like EA can still charge full price for yearly updates that typically introduce the amount of content you'd expect from a free update in any other competitive multiplayer game is nothing short of impressive.

I just wish they got more creative with the titles. Madden 20 sounds great and all but if they took the fighting game approach to annual upgrades we'd be on at least "Super Madden III Turbo: Hyper Championship Edition Xrd Ultimate Shippuden" by now.

 

[TitlePending]

I know simulation fans will always be a thing but I still find it incredible the traditional sports game model has survived this long

The fact that companies like EA can still charge full price for yearly updates that typically introduce the amount of content you'd expect from a free update in any other competitive multiplayer game is nothing short of impressive.

I just wish they got more creative with the titles. Madden 20 sounds great and all but if they took the fighting game approach to annual upgrades we'd be on at least "Super Madden III Turbo: Hyper Championship Edition Xrd Ultimate Shippuden" by now.

Click to shrink...

Yearly license fees to the leagues and players are not cheap.

Gimme a new Fight Night you cowards!!

 

[Templeusox]

I know simulation fans will always be a thing but I still find it incredible the traditional sports game model has survived this long

The fact that companies like EA can still charge full price for yearly updates that typically introduce the amount of content you'd expect from a free update in any other competitive multiplayer game is nothing short of impressive.

I just wish they got more creative with the titles. Madden 20 sounds great and all but if they took the fighting game approach to annual upgrades we'd be on at least "Super Madden III Turbo: Hyper Championship Edition Xrd Ultimate Shippuden" by now.

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Yearly sports games have just become an ingrained part of the annual sports cycle. Whether it's renewing your digital package, season tickets, or fantasy leagues, sports fans' brains are heavily trained to operate on a yearly schedule.

 

[phant0m]

Yearly sports games have just become an ingrained part of the annual sports cycle. Whether it's renewing your digital package, season tickets, or fantasy league, sports fans' brains are heavily trained to operate on a yearly schedule.

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Yep, and I also think they don't care about the price as much as the "regular" gaming community. They probably only buy 3 games a year so the fact that it's $60 is less of a point of contention. Hell, depending on the sport $60 will barely get you in the door to an actual game if at all.

 

[ElNino]

Yep, and I also think they don't care about the price as much as the "regular" gaming community. They probably only buy 3 games a year so the fact that it's $60 is less of a point of contention. Hell, depending on the sport $60 will barely get you in the door to an actual game if at all.

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That might be true in some cases, but certainly not all. I buy a lot of games, but my kids still get Madden at launch every year (2k as well, but we often wait a bit).

As for $60 getting into a sporting event, for some sports sure (baseball is one), but most sporting events are a lot more expensive than that. My son is on a mission to make it to every football stadium (covid is going to put a dent in that this year) and the average cost of tickets for us to make it to any given game is closer to $200 per ticket.

 

[Chippewa Barr]

EA Sports are the epitome of coasting.

Hasn't been a good NHL game since '14 and NFL game, I wanna say, since '05? I did hear Madden 2019 is solid.

Nevertheless if there was any game/genre most suited for GaaS, it would be sports games. Could simply improve over time; add features, update rosters, live world events, etc...but I guess those online teams make mad moolah so token yearly release it is!

 

[mnemonicj]

I used to love Fifa '98, but there's a new Fifa out every year?
Come on.

 

[DarkplaceGarth]

Yearly license fees to the leagues and players are not cheap.

Gimme a new Fight Night you cowards!!

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I'm in the same boat, would love a new Fight Night. Still have my ps3 hooked up and play FN: Champion quite a bit (probably the first good EA sports story mode too?). Don't play them, but it seems like the EA UFC games have taken their spot

 

[Templeusox]

I get the dip in quality for Madden and NHL is annoying, but EA simply giving up on franchises is their biggest sin. It's inexcusable that every year, they are unable to put out a competent NBA game despite retaining a license to do so. There's seriously no corporate leadership in this country that can be installed who can make that happen? And Live is just one of the many franchises that has disappeared this generation.

 

[MrNewVegas]

As somebody who buys Madden annually, its sad to say but they dont have to do much.

My passion for football is just as big as my passion for video games. There is no better way to immerse yourself in it like Madden.

 

[Dominic Decoco]

Ultimate team ruined everything

 

[Stat]

Ultimate team ruined everything

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QFT. This should be thread marked.

As soon as Ultimate Team was introduced, the games were designed around UT. I haven't played Fifa or Madden in a few years (NHL though), and its the ONLY game mode that gets yearly updates both gameplay + art facelift.

The entire game is built around packs (even the newest NHL online mode is now you can customize your character from opening loot boxes). Imagine create a player, but you need to open loot boxes to customize? Its nuts.

Other modes & gameplay are left in the dust. Heck, NHL has removed modes like Tournaments.

The saddest part to me is you look at something like NHL 2k10 for the 360. 10+ years old on last gen systems and the gameplay/physics is just leaps and bounds better. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sK1nmP9kL8o

Like it feels so far head of where NHL games it would be like comparing physics systems between GTAIII and GTAV.

Look, I know people will say "lol who cares about sports". But as someone who does love sport video games, the absolute desecration of the genre is somewhere between annoying and upsetting.

NBA2K is no better. These games are built around Ultimate Team modes. If its not Ultimate Team, it gets updates every 2-3 years. Gameplay is just not really looked at anymore. It's all about the loot box experience.

 

[Pop-O-Matic]

Should have just folded the division after they made their unsurpassable magnum opus: Madden 08.

 

[beat]

EA did not release an NBA game for 2011, 2012, 2013, 2017, and 2020. That's five of the last ten years.

 

[Nida]

Why hasn't there been a massive shakeup at EA? Are they profitable so no one wants to risk it?

 

[BC-2]

Ultimate team ruined everything

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Basically, this.

Card modes have completely dominated the experience for these games for pretty much this entire generation. 2K still includes a very deep and thorough team/league management mode that is 100% free of MTX, but that's one of the exceptions to the rule. With the exception of maybe the NHL series (which just overhauled its franchise mode), online play and the card modes are the money makers.

I think what needs to happen is that the card modes need to become free to play as they are on mobile. No one would have an issue with MyTeam, Ultimate Team or Diamond Dynasty if they were packaged like Apex Legends or Warzone. EA could still make their MTX money while freeing up time and resources for making their sports titles more accurate to the sports they're trying to emulate.

There's no reason someone should be paying $60 to start over with their Ultimate Team every single season, and I don't know why fans of those modes aren't advocating for moving to the F2P model.

 

[Malcolm9]

EA having a monoploy on the licences also led to less competition, meaning they don't have to improve too much.

 

[Lionheart]

Why hasn't there been a massive shakeup at EA? Are they profitable so no one wants to risk it?

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UT makes bank they don't give a damn about the gamers or the quality of their games. Maybe if reviewers were more harsh it would cause a portion of buyers to think twice and maybe that dip in sales would translate to a better effort who knows. EA don't really make good games and hasn't for a while, they just get stuck on their core gameplay and never rebuild, always slightly modifying so the games will always play like shit. Madden is the biggest offender but it applies to most.

 

[ThisIsBlitz21]

NHL 14 was the peak of EA sports, IMO. That game had tones of awesome modes.

After that... they screwed ut up.

 

[giapel]

I remember the times when PES was everything and FIFA was the laughing stock.
Then PES imploded...
EA sports can ride on FIFA alone

 

[E.T.]

Monopoly on licenses + Ultimate Team income = Stagnant progress in sports titles in a decade.

 

[Tuppen]

Monopoly on licenses + Ultimate Team income = Stagnant progress in sports titles in a decade.

Click to shrink...

This sums it up.

 

[RogerL]

What do you want?

Better AI - are you sure?

This is also a very difficult problem, LOTS of compute power will be needed. Basically for FIFA you want to run a human AI of 22 players, in a way that you can recognise the individuals play styles.

But at the same time very few are EA/FIFA world class players, will it be fun to loose most one on one?

 

[Ravelle]

I remember the times when PES was everything and FIFA was the laughing stock.
Then PES imploded...
EA sports can ride on FIFA alone

Click to shrink...

PES 2006 and 2007 were a lot of fun, played those a lot with friends at parties and such. Love that it didn't take itself so seriously with those pinguin and ostrich with hats outfits too.

 

[Detail]

Fifa doesn't even play or behave like a real football match, the ball physics are terrible, the animation system looks awkward and unrealistic, the gameplay is mundane and repetitive, the goals don't offer a sense of excitement and the graphics are mediocre when compared to other AAA titles.

The reality is that EA have no desire to truly improve them, it's just a money spinner for them because people keep buying them regardless of what they add.

 

[Nemesis121]

After EA purchased the NFL license i have never purchased another NFL game, EA can go fuck themselves, even their FIFA games suck, last one i got was 2016 and before that 2013, last 7-8 years youtubers been making videos about Madden, is it better than NFL 2K5? and every year it fails, but as a whole EA is trash, their Battlefield games get worse with every release, Anthem was a massive failure and they just contine to trend downwards..

 

[Jingo]

Fifa doesn't even play or behave like a real football match, the ball physics are terrible, the animation system looks awkward and unrealistic, the gameplay is mundane and repetitive, the goals don't offer a sense of excitement and the graphics are mediocre when compared to other AAA titles.

The reality is that EA have no desire to truly improve them, it's just a money spinner for them because people keep buying them regardless of what they add.

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True, i mean Pes is not without is faults, but its a way better football simulation, unfortunatly no one gives a chance to the game these days, besides harcore fans, kids dont even know what pes is.

 

[TechnicPuppet]

True, i mean Pes is not without is faults, but its a way better football simulation, unfortunatly no one gives a chance to the game these days, besides harcore fans, kids dont even know what pes is.

Click to shrink...

PES is shit as well. None of them are anything like football.

 

[dunkzilla]

PES is shit as well. None of them are anything like football.

Click to shrink...

PES is way more like football than fifa.

 

[ngower]

I'm hopeful that some day the sports leagues do away with exclusivity because EA's NBA and NHL offerings are weak and Madden/FIFA offer tiny changes ever since UT became the focus.

I will continue buying PES (although the most recent was frustrating and moved in the wrong direction) but I suspect it's on life support.

 

[UnderNewOwnership]

That's what happens when a single company has a stranglehold on a games market segment. Without a serious competitor, there's no desire to innovate (except in way to milk more money out of the target public).

 

[Beamerball]

PES is way more like football than fifa.

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Just got into PES Mobile on iPad and I'm shocked at how much better a game it is at mimicking football than FIFA on Switch. Genuinely fun. And it's built using Unreal. I have a feeling that their next gen PES on Unreal is going to trounce FIFA (in terms of gameplay)

 

[Jingo]

Just got into PES Mobile on iPad and I'm shocked at how much better a game it is at mimicking football than FIFA on Switch. Genuinely fun. And it's built using Unreal. I have a feeling that their next gen PES on Unreal is going to trounce FIFA (in terms of gameplay)

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This, usually people say Pes is shit without playing one like in years.

 

[StraySheep]

This is all true, but more crushing to me is the death of EA Sports BIG

 

[Scuffed]

EA NHL is a complete joke. They don't even try. The first version for the ps4 was absolute dogshit that was stripped of so much content compared to the previous one. I think the dev team does what they can but I also think it's a skeleton crew running the game because EA doesn't give a shit about Hockey.

 

[UnluckyKate]

Why hasn't there been a massive shakeup at EA? Are they profitable so no one wants to risk it?

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they are so fucking profitable and they don't need to spend anything, as its making the game better because there are no competition.

They just make the games more micro transaction heavy while reducing the content and options years after years

 

[Iron Eddie]

I know simulation fans will always be a thing but I still find it incredible the traditional sports game model has survived this long

The fact that companies like EA can still charge full price for yearly updates that typically introduce the amount of content you'd expect from a free update in any other competitive multiplayer game is nothing short of impressive.

I just wish they got more creative with the titles. Madden 20 sounds great and all but if they took the fighting game approach to annual upgrades we'd be on at least "Super Madden III Turbo: Hyper Championship Edition Xrd Ultimate Shippuden" by now.

Click to shrink...

I used to love Fifa '98, but there's a new Fifa out every year?
Come on.

Click to shrink...

The other option is to simply turn them in GaaS models, but we all know some have issues with those types of games too. EA is never going to give free updates, why would they when they have to pay license fees?

 

[Moai]

Fut is like a drug to my friends. They talk during the week about upcoming fut champions and challenges to get cards.
I despise fut because ea has neglected pro clubs (only mode that i play) and its the only thing my friends talk and play. Of course its the only mode that ea cares about.

 

[Violence Jack]

I used to buy NBA Live, Madden, and Triple Play every year during the SNES and PS1 era. Then EA fell off during the PS2 era thanks to the Dreamcast releasing the superior basketball game, and a football game on par with PS2 Madden games. PS3 is when it was all Madden as NBA Live started becoming a thing of the past losing out to NBA 2K. Now Madden is a shell of its former self being all about Ultimate Team and making people pay for features that used to be in previous versions, and NBA Live is pretty much dead. It's a shame about Live because they were the only simulation basketball game that wasn't filled with gambling mechanics and microtransactions.

 

[Deleted member 8901]

God I've been wanting to rant about how bad NHL is now. It just feels so awful to play - the physics, the skating, everything feels completely wrong and like you're moving in mud or something. The game has BARELY changed over the course of this entire generation. Career mode is a joke - it's like they finally saw 2K and did it worse in every way.

The worst part is after so long they still haven't done anything about the presentation. Where 2K looks amazingly like a broadcast game with really good commentary, replays, etc. NHL is lifeless and dull, and the replays often completely miss the buildup to the goal. Take something like a goal review; the game literally goes quiet and it's all so anti-climatic.

I wish 2K would get back into the NHL game.

 

[Legacy]

Monopoly on licenses + Ultimate Team income = Stagnant progress in sports titles in a decade.

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Yeah, you only have to look at the minimal yearly changes they make in FIFA, Pro Clubs online is barely ever touched.

 

[Outrun]

EA Sports are the epitome of coasting.

Hasn't been a good NHL game since '14 and NFL game, I wanna say, since '05? I did hear Madden 2019 is solid.

Nevertheless if there was any game/genre most suited for GaaS, it would be sports games. Could simply improve over time; add features, update rosters, live world events, etc...but I guess those online teams make mad moolah so token yearly release it is!

Click to shrink...

This is why I am happy that Forza Motorsport is taking a breather. The 2 year cycle in that case was stifling further innovation.

 

[I Wanna Be The Guy]

EA need to come out with a Fifa Street reboot and model it on Rocket League. You're not controlling a team. You control a single player at all times and build the entire game around that. Small team games arcadey pick up and play gameplay with depth in a multiplayer focused experience. And hey, lots of cosmetic microtransactions and all that modern money making garbage you need to do. Do Rocket League but with real football.

 

[Richiek]

It's amazing that the Madden games still haven't surpassed NFL 2K5.

 

[Forkball]

They peaked at MVP Baseball 2005.

Also bring back NFL Street.

 

[XaviConcept]

Ultimate team ruined everything

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I hate it too but it made it EA's most profitable frnchise by a country wide and propelled Andrew Wilson to the very top of EA

They figured out how to have a yearly $60 game with a highly profitable F2P gacha system and they can start it from scratch every year. Among AAA gamedevs, I can tell you, thats the dream scenario.

 

[rsfour]

The whole Ultimate Team, gacha card shit can fuck off.

 

[AntiMacro]

I'm hopeful that some day the sports leagues do away with exclusivity because EA's NBA and NHL offerings are weak and Madden/FIFA offer tiny changes ever since UT became the focus.

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There's no exclusivity deal on NBA or NHL though...

Anyone could make an NHL game, for example, but nobody wants to. The market's not there to justify it.

 

[Doctor_Thomas]

The fact is, a community like this isn't going to be overly impressed by EA Sports games in general but they're aimed at the fans of the sports not necessarily gaming enthusiasts. As long as the gameplay holds up, it looks flashy and the rosters are up to date, that's often all people need to keep them engaged until the next entry.