How well will EA perform in FY10? A discussion:

I don't have any links or sources on this one. Call it a rant based on a hunch. EA had a pretty piss-poor FY09, despite their coming around again in quality of software, and public relations.  Mirror's Edge, the new Need for Speed game, and the latest Guitar Hero title all fell short of their target sales projections, and on top of that, three of their FY09 titles got pushed back off the calendar, two of which actually mattered (The Sims 3, and Godfather II to be specific).

Now, normally, this would be a major problem, and something indicative of a downward spiral in a publisher. However now that EA's pulled their hands from their ass and their head from the sky, I have a feeling they'll straighten up in FY10. Those delayed titles which were expected to pad their fiscal year 09 will be dropping soon, and giving them a boost (providing they sell well, which I have some reservations about predicting). They're looking to trim their current portfolio down to about fifty or so titles, eliminating some of the riskier business, a pain for indie gamers in the short run, but a move that will benefit them as a publisher. Compounded with their FY09 delay titles, EA recently announced their latest string of sequels, all of them projected to perform well (projections with which I have to agree). We're looking at seeing some very high-performance franchises hopping back into the market.

Battlefield Bad Company 2 is slated for this year, which, despite it's rather poor online component, drew solid numbers, online and off, and had a pretty damn entertaining single player. On top of it being the nature of sequels, DICE are a strong codehouse, and will know to fix their mistakes for the sequel. I'm expecting a hit.

The Mass Effect trilogy is currently slated to go multiplatform for the first time this year. There's no doubt the game will sell well, whichever platform it hits, however I have my reservations that all ports of the game (assumedly being primarily developed for 360) will be released simultaneously. If there's to be any discrepancy in street date, I have feelings it'll be due to optimization issues with the PS3 port. The game didn't seem too keen on running at a decent 30 on it's primary development platform, and I predict that they'll have some big issues trying to port an already flawed engine to architecture as alien as the PS3's.

Dead Space [Wii] has if nothing else, a shot. I'm loathe to hope for success in a title that's getting stripped down, and ported to a same-generation console a year after it's mother title's street date, but nonetheless, the original performed very well, and if they get a solid developer behind it, they'll be sure to bolster their lackluster library of Wii titles.

My question to you: How do you feel EA's going to perform in FY10? Will their current portfolio be enough to ward off Activision's steady rise in the industry?

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I say they'll do better than this year, but the won't make profit. They're actually making good games now, but I somehow feel the economy may have effected what people spend. For example, I believe Mirrors Edge was one of the top rented games on gamefly, but yet barely managed to sell 1m.

I rented Mirror's Edge.  Partly because I was saving money, but partly also because I don't quite trust EA just yet to make a truly committed fleshed out original IP.  They have the resources to. (..bought Dead Space though.)

On the other hand EA shouldn't feel too disappointed with poorer sales.  Its inevitable when you go from your tried and true franchises/yearly updates to something genuinely interesting and original that the majority of people will be more reluctant to latch on - so they have to endure a period of poorer sales while they develop their knack for original IPs and marketing strategies. 

Its only when people feel as though EA are the only ones in the industry capable of making the biggest most ambitious most original games, with a level of finesse that some of the most repected movies in our day and age have had, that they will start to see a return in their investment.

This will be a test to see how committed they really are to their new face.  They could easily be tempted back to the wealthy dark side, beckoned by Activision.

I don't know what you mean by FY10.  2010?  What is that shit?  I hate acronyms.

Battlefield Bad Company 2 

Fuck Bad Company, EA hasn't even finished the first game.  That name will never get a cent from me.

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I don't know what you mean by FY10.  2010?  What is that shit?  I hate acronyms.

I just assumed it was fiscal year. As in from now until this time next year.

fiscal years are gay

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