What's wrong with EA?

Illuvatar

What's wrong with EA?
I don't see why people have such animosity towards them. Just because they bought the right to make all sports games. People don't like them for playing it smart, they don't like them for being a business?
Please someone tell me I'm wrong.

Goodshape

See here.

po0k

Ils sont le Nouvau Satan

Retr0gamer

Most other bad points about EA can be argued but the buying the rights to make sports games creates a monopoly on the market that is silly. What it means is less creativity, less choice (nobody will dare make a sports game without a license since it's finance suicide), increased prices on sports games and inferior quality. Just look at the Sega sports series of games. They are consistently better than EA's offerings, don't have terrible soundtracks ( ), and are priced much cheaper than the EA alternative. You can now say goodbye to that choice that the customer had. It's now EA only no matter what the price or the quality. monopolising the games market or sections of the games market is great business but is bad for gamers since it reduces competition and hence quality and raises prices. It also borderlines the illegal, I think.

Goodshape

To what extent do EA own the rights to sports games?

I mean, I take it they own the rights to something like the Premiership, but that doesn't stop Sega realeasing 'UK Top League Football' or similar, does it?

BlitzKrieg

To what extent do EA own the rights to sports games?

the answer is.

nobody will dare make a sports game without a license since it's finance suicide)

steviec

Goodshape wrote:

To what extent do EA own the rights to sports games?

I mean, I take it they own the rights to something like the Premiership, but that doesn't stop Sega realeasing 'UK Top League Football' or similar, does it?

No it doesn't, but they own the rights to the NFL, which unlike soccer which is split up into many world leagues, is the only American Football league really big enough to carry a top selling game. And NFL games have always thrived on authenticity and statistics, it is much harder for another company to make an American Football game to compete with the only NFL game, than it is for a soccer game. There are people working on American Football games without the license now, but it's a major uphill battle. They have exclusive licenses to other sports, can't remember which, I think it's either baseball or basketball, but I'm not personally interested in those sports so don't know how much of a problem it is.

In the case of football, I'm not sure what the extent of their FIFA license covers. EA certainly have the rights to official everything in the game, but it doesn't seem to be exclusive. Pro Evo has official rights to most leagues in Europe apart from England, and as far as I know Codemasters' Club Football has rights for English clubs(could be wrong, never actually played it)

Maximilian

They also don't treat their employees very well.

EA Spouse