Yesterday, I shared with you the thoughts of Andrew Wilson, EA’s CEO, about the setback faced by Dragon Age: The Veilguard. He highlighted that the predicament stemmed from a lack of live-service features. Now, some fellow game enthusiasts and developers have weighed in on this topic.
Developers’ reactions to EA’s words
David Gaider, who worked at BioWare from 1999 to 2016, shared a comprehensive explanation on Bluesky. He attempted to empathize with the perspective of Electronic Arts (EA) executives in understanding their decision-making process.
If you’re not well-versed in the world of games and find yourself in an office filled with executives who share the same lack of expertise, what might their conversation revolve around?
They could be discussing general aspects such as market trends, business strategies, or even the overall gaming industry landscape. However, they likely won’t delve into specifics like game mechanics, design elements, or character backstories. Instead, their focus would be on broader topics that don’t require extensive knowledge of games themselves.
“Live games do big numbers!” “Action games are hot!”
A more casual rephrasing could be: “Let’s focus on creating more action games and ensure they come with ongoing support services!
Gaider contends that while developers may highlight the limitation of their approach across various games, profit is the only concern for a company. If standalone games don’t generate revenue, then their creation seems unnecessary according to this viewpoint. However, he argues this perspective as narrow-minded and self-centered, an assessment one finds hard to dispute. A counterexample might be the success of single-player titles like Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 in the market.
My suggestion for EA (even though they might not listen): Your intellectual property has a strong connection with many people. They adore it deeply. During its peak, it was selling sufficiently to bring joy, correct? Consider what it excelled at when it was selling the most. Take a cue from Larian Studios and focus more on that strength. The fanbase is still present. And eagerly anticipating.
EA, even if they don’t listen: Your game has a devoted following who love it deeply. At its best, it sold well enough to make you happy. Look at what made it great when it was selling the most and continue to improve on that strength. The fans are still there, eagerly waiting for more.
A different ex-BioWare employee, Mike Laidlaw – previously involved in projects like Mass Effect and Dragon Age: Origins – weighed in again, using language that was disparaging once more.
If someone suggested to me that “the secret to this popular single-player intellectual property’s success lies in transforming it into an exclusively multiplayer game – not a spin-off, but rather altering the very essence of what made the original game appealing,” I would likely consider leaving my position over such a drastic change.
Chris Avellone, who has previously worked on games like Fallout 2 and KotOR 2, added a quick remark. He suggested that Wilson’s comment about The Veilguard’s failure aligns with the company’s usual reasoning, and he wasn’t surprised by it.
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2025-02-06 18:32