What's the problem with EA?

[edubbs]

Quote: Originally Posted by sportsdude

I think my biggest gripe is the refusal to make any major changes to the gameplay engine. I wonder why gameplay goes unchanged when I see EA do it with other games like NHL and FIFA/UEFA Euro. I know those are different development teams but on the whole EA is responsible for that.

That's on the developers and their studio, which is Tiborun.

Tiborun, is a average to poor developer IMO.

The decision to bring this last generation gameplay engine over to these NextGen consoles, was a horribble one IMO.

EA is happy with them (Tiborun) so, until we see a significant drop in sales there will be no new gameplay engine OR a switch in developers.

They really need better talent on their Dev. team.

The Live series has been horrible on NextGen. However, EA Canada has acquired talent from the NBA2K team. And I'm almost willing to bet, that in 2 years that game will be back on track because of the acquisition of better developers for that franchise.

If EA is going to continue to use Tiborun, they will need an upgrade in developer talent AND a brand new gameplay engine.

[spankdatazz22]

Quote: Originally Posted by countryboy

Madden was pretty successful on last gen

Financially, yes I agree wholeheartedly. But from a creative standpoint I don't think it was. The "wait until next gen" mantra was being thrown around dating back to '05. I know some say they'd be satisfied with a prettier version of the PS2 '05 version, I think people really want a lot more than that. That's part of the reason why there's so much dissatisfaction imo

[countryboy]

Quote: Originally Posted by spankdatazz22

Financially, yes I agree wholeheartedly. But from a creative standpoint I don't think it was. The "wait until next gen" mantra was being thrown around dating back to '05. I know some say they'd be satisfied with a prettier version of the PS2 '05 version, I think people really want a lot more than that. That's part of the reason why there's so much dissatisfaction imo

All I did was give my opinion on the series and its current state and the approach that I am taking towards the series, especially since Frazier is the producer.

I really don't want this to turn into another debate on how innovative LG Madden's were and how they compare to now or anything along those lines. I was just voicing an opinion.

[bears5122]

Quote: Originally Posted by countryboy

I am going other. I am going to continue to believe that the main problem behind Madden was David Ortiz. The man had no motivation and seemingly didn't care about the game. Personally, I am viewing Madden in the same manner as MLB 2K.Brinkman had previous success with the MVP series, but said that its going to take 3 development cycles to get the MLB 2K to where it should be and I think thats the same mentallity that we should take with Madden. Not saying that I like having to wait either, but I think that we should give Frazier a couple of years and see where he takes this franchise. He's had success before with the LG Madden series, lets see what he does this go round.

Perhaps Ortiz played a role, but this isn't just one game. EA has a history in almost every sport of making pure crap. The only game that they make which is superior is FIFA, which they needed to after taking a beating by the competition for years. There is no competition in football. Ortiz doesn't make their other crappy games, this would seem to be a company wide issue.

But I also don't think it's just one thing that's the problem, I think it's a mix. Here are the problems I see:

1) EA Personnel - This inculdes Ortiz and others. They just don't have their pulse on the gaming community and don't understand what football fans want. This is clear in their ridiculous additions of features like "Create a ring" and "Create a fan". They seem to put more time into the soundtrack then actual gameplay.

2) Competition - Whether you believe it or not, competition always brings out the best in companies. Basic economics at work here. This goes beyond video games. If EA had viable competition, they'd put more money and more pressure to build a better game. Look at Microsoft that just put out a pile of garbage OS.

3) Market - There are just more casual gamers and 13 year olds buying these games than older sim oriented guys. Building a game where you can't run around 30 yards behind the line of scrimmage and throw a 50 yard bullet with your back turned to the LOS doesn't cater toward kids. It also doesn't bode well for tournament guys who rely on glitches. The minute you give the advantage to football intelligent people, you lose a chunk of your base.

I don't see how you can blame the downfall of a franchise on one guy. The other games suck too and aren't selling well. EA has a lot bigger problems than one guy.

[countryboy]

Quote: Originally Posted by bears5122

Perhaps Ortiz played a role, but this isn't just one game. I don't see how you can blame the downfall of a franchise on one guy. The other games suck too and aren't selling well. EA has a lot bigger problems than one guy.

I was speaking in terms of Madden.

And Ortiz played a major role because he was the Lead Producer of Madden on the next-gen and Madden has been average at best on the 360/PS3 consoles. Now that Ortiz is gone, I am excited to see if Frazier can return the series back to its glory days on the PS2/Xbox. I believe he will, but it will take a few development cycles to get the game to that plateau.

As for the other games in EA's lineup, maybe they should think about a "change of the guards" as well. I know that Nascar should, that producer wouldn't know racing if he was standing in the pits and Danica Patrick ran him over.

[K_GUN]

Quote: Originally Posted by bears5122

Perhaps Ortiz played a role, but this isn't just one game. EA has a history in almost every sport of making pure crap. The only game that they make which is superior is FIFA, which they needed to after taking a beating by the competition for years. There is no competition in football. Ortiz doesn't make their other crappy games, this would seem to be a company wide issue. But I also don't think it's just one thing that's the problem, I think it's a mix. Here are the problems I see: 1) EA Personnel - This inculdes Ortiz and others. They just don't have their pulse on the gaming community and don't understand what football fans want. This is clear in their ridiculous additions of features like "Create a ring" and "Create a fan". They seem to put more time into the soundtrack then actual gameplay. 2) Competition - Whether you believe it or not, competition always brings out the best in companies. Basic economics at work here. This goes beyond video games. If EA had viable competition, they'd put more money and more pressure to build a better game. Look at Microsoft that just put out a pile of garbage OS. 3) Market - There are just more casual gamers and 13 year olds buying these games than older sim oriented guys. Building a game where you can't run around 30 yards behind the line of scrimmage and throw a 50 yard bullet with your back turned to the LOS doesn't cater toward kids. It also doesn't bode well for tournament guys who rely on glitches. The minute you give the advantage to football intelligent people, you lose a chunk of your base. I don't see how you can blame the downfall of a franchise on one guy. The other games suck too and aren't selling well. EA has a lot bigger problems than one guy.

not to ticky-tack but

MVP 05 was a top notch baseball sim

[spankdatazz22]

Quote: Originally Posted by countryboy

Now that Ortiz is gone, I am excited to see if Frazier can return the series back to its glory days on the PS2/Xbox.

I wasn't trying to change your opinion earlier; I was questioning the whether EA should be shooting for the PS2/Xbox "glory days". The game was hugely popular, and I think Madden made big strides between 2000 and 2003. Around 2004 things began to get questionable though w/the game focusing on themes. Vick in '04, Defense in '05, etc. Each overdone to the detriment of some other game aspect. The complaints about Madden not improving fast enough now were the same complaints we had then (people kept saying EA was "waiting until next gen" to make huge improvements).

I'm not saying EA should be making Madden into some super simulation or anything like that. I just see them making the same mistakes this generation as they did last generation. I think if they focused on making a fundamentally sound game then build it out from there, instead of a flashy game with a shaky foundation, the game would be able to appeal to a wider range of gamers.

[countryboy]

Quote: Originally Posted by spankdatazz22

I wasn't trying to change your opinion earlier; I was questioning the whether EA should be shooting for the PS2/Xbox "glory days". The game was hugely popular, and I think Madden made big strides between 2000 and 2003. Around 2004 things began to get questionable though w/the game focusing on themes. Vick in '04, Defense in '05, etc. Each overdone to the detriment of some other game aspect. The complaints about Madden not improving fast enough now were the same complaints we had then (people kept saying EA was "waiting until next gen" to make huge improvements). I'm not saying EA should be making Madden into some super simulation or anything like that. I just see them making the same mistakes this generation as they did last generation. I think if they focused on making a fundamentally sound game then build it out from there, instead of a flashy game with a shaky foundation, the game would be able to appeal to a wider range of gamers.

I wasn't implying that you were trying to change my opinion, I really didn't want to get into a discussion as to whether or not its a "valid opinion" or something along those lines.

I am not saying that I want them to only strive for what they've already done. What I am implying is that on the PS2 they made significant strides from one year to the next.