To Phil: Message For EA Higher Ups...

[Phil_Frazier]

Appreciate the note but it isn't this simple. Keep in mind that the Sports label is basically run like a separate company from the Games label. Decisions on how much to invest in one project vs. another haven't traditionally crossed label lines. In most cases, decisions on how much to invest in a particular project are made based on that projects business situation.

Throwing more money (i.e. people) at the game doesn't yield great results either. As Notorious BIG once said... Mo Money Mo Problems. This is 100% true in game development. If you don't believe me, you should read "The Mythical Man Month". The theory is that as N increases (number of people), their actual output decreases due to communication and management issues. Nerdy management stuff I know but that's my job.

To me it's a matter of focus. We need to focus on football. That's it. I feel like we have the right team for that.

Phil

[roadman]

Quote: Originally Posted by GTheorenHobbes

EA's stock is down to $16.98 today. Sooner or later, the boneheads who decided to over pay for the NFL and ESPN licenses will have to be shown the door.

Great time to buy. Buy low, sell high.

[thudias]

I have nothing to say to Phil's excellent explanation.

[Cryolemon]

Quote: Originally Posted by Phil_Frazier_EA

Throwing more money (i.e. people) at the game doesn't yield great results either. As Notorious BIG once said... Mo Money Mo Problems. This is 100% true in game development. If you don't believe me, you should read "The Mythical Man Month". The theory is that as N increases (number of people), their actual output decreases due to communication and management issues. Nerdy management stuff I know but that's my job.

It might be "Nerdy management stuff" but it makes sense to me.

[BezO]

Quote: Originally Posted by Phil_Frazier_EA

Appreciate the note but it isn't this simple. Keep in mind that the Sports label is basically run like a separate company from the Games label. Decisions on how much to invest in one project vs. another haven't traditionally crossed label lines. In most cases, decisions on how much to invest in a particular project are made based on that projects business situation. Throwing more money (i.e. people) at the game doesn't yield great results either. As Notorious BIG once said... Mo Money Mo Problems. This is 100% true in game development. If you don't believe me, you should read "The Mythical Man Month". The theory is that as N increases (number of people), their actual output decreases due to communication and management issues. Nerdy management stuff I know but that's my job. To me it's a matter of focus. We need to focus on football. That's it. I feel like we have the right team for that. Phil

How many folks on the Madden staff? And how is it broken down? How many work on animations, gameplay, art... however you all break it down?

[Boucher]

Gotta love the input these guys put in

[cdon2k]

Much appreciated Phil, and I expected that it wasn't quite that simple... It's just frustrating that EA has built this empire off it's sports games, but many of them have been subpar as of late.

I do have faith in the team and hope '10 will be a Madden for the ages...

[Phil_Frazier]

Quote: Originally Posted by BezO

How many folks on the Madden staff? And how is it broken down? How many work on animations, gameplay, art... however you all break it down?

I'm not sure if I'm allowed to give specifics but let's just say we have a healthy team. It's also tricky to answer because we have folks that work on both NCAA and Madden. These are folks that work on assets that are basically shared between the two like animation or art. For example, if we have a guy that can build really cool stadiums, there's no difference betwen college or pro stadiums other than the geometry.

I will break down our basic structure. All of these make up the 'Madden Team.'

Core Team - Focus on UI, features, and online. Thsi team owns the overall design. Myself and Ian are on this team.
Gameplay - Separate group of dudes that focus 100% of their time on gameplay features
Central Art - Artists that work on animations, models, lighting, etc...
QA - duh
Marketing - duh
PR - duh

If you imagine 20 to 30 people per group here outside of marketing and PR, you would be in the ballpark.

Phil