EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

EA loses $310 million in Q209, 6% of employees being let go

by Alexander Sliwinski { Oct 30th 2008 at 6:00PM }
<!-- sphereit start --> Electronic Arts has revealed its second quarter fiscal results (ending Sept. 30) ... and things aren't pretty. The company lost $310 million in the quarter, another big hit following Q1's $95 million loss. Highlights from the quarter were the sales of Madden NFL 09 (4.5 million sold), Spore (2 million sold) and Warhammer Online (1.2 million sold).

Unfortunately, EA's continuing hard times will impact its employees. The company plans to let go of 6% of its work force, which amounts to about 600 jobs. The next two quarters are when EA normally really starts bringing in the cash -- not that it'll mean much to those who'll be unemployed soon.

[Via GameDaily]<!-- sphereit end -->

Tags: ea, ea-sports, electronic-arts, madden-09, q209, spore, warhammer-online


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I hope Madden 10 lives up to the hype that Ian and team is trying to do because another major let down with Madden and EA will lose more than this in the coming years.


I feel very bad for the employees who are losing there jobs and it is part the fault of the economy and part EA. In an economy where the dollar is more important than ever it will be hard for the consumers to trust someone who does not live up to there own hype.



If you go to the store now days you are going to buy 1 game instead of a few and therefore if a game developer wants your dollar there should be hands down the best on the market. Considering that Madden is the only up to date football game because of the license you would think it would be an easy sale. I bet half of the Madden 10 games that will be purchased will be from trade in's.



With the news of another football game getting ready for release it could be a huge hit on EA and Madden sales. Back Breaker is supposed to reveal a game trailer at E3 and a is published by a very well known publisher.



Here is a blurry pic of Back Breaker....


http://twitpic.com/3gde4

I for one have been burned by Madden more than once and this year I will be getting this through Gamefly which will take 3-4 days to get here. That is plenty of time to hear the feedback before I ever get Madden 10 in my hands. If Madden 10 does not live up to the $60 investment I will save my money for the new game soon to come out :)

I do feel sorry for the EA employees who are losing there jobs and I Hope and Pray you will land on your feet soon! :y220::y220::y220::y220::y220::y220::y220::y220:

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Damn I feel sorry for the people who lost there jobs its not easy losing one especially now. EA better pick it up with the new game realeases like M10 and Fight Night.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

This is old hat.

Every industry in both sectors have been hit hard by the exploitation of the marketplace by some, and the irresponsible policies of the previous administration. The impact of the current status of the U.S. economy reaches arcoss the globe, EA Sports is no execption to that rule. Nor am I, and nor are you.

I don't mean to be short, or rude. I'm extremely tired...please forgive me if I offend you.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

New Back Breaker pics.....



<hr style="color: rgb(214, 211, 214);" size="1"> <!-- / icon and title --> <!-- message -->And this one:


And this one:

<hr style="color: rgb(214, 211, 214);" size="1"> <!-- / icon and title --> <!-- message -->

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

I'm going to hold my 60 bucks this year till I get a good look at both games. I really don't care about the NFL license I just care about a good quality football game. If Backbreaker has great customization and gameplay I will probably buy it and wait and buy Madden used.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

if i had to guess, i'd say this (aside from the obvious pride ian and co. take in their work) is one of the reason's we finally see EA trying so hard to improve their product. they realize that in this economy you have to have a great product or people won't be willing to buy it.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

This was a while ago and they have tweaked it even more. Look for the E3 game trailer!!!!!

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Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

This video alone shows the game play and animations you don't see in Madden 10. GREAT VIDEO!

BTW I am not part of Madden, 2K, or Back Breaker. I just want a GREAT Football game!

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Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Yeah I've seen these. I've been following Backbreaker since 2007. I just want recent gameplay footage before making up my mind.

Thanks for the videos though, I haven't seen these in awhile.:)

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Yea I posted these for others who might not know what Back Breaker is. E3 will have new game play and hopefully it will BLOW OUR MINDS!

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Hitman you know that article is over 6 months old... :google:

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Yes I understand this but it doesn't hurt to remind EA that this Madden 10 needs to live up to the hype or it will finally get even the most loyal Madden fans to turn away.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

The Loyal Fans will come no matter what gets put-out because it's MADDEN. Also with Fight Night, NCAA & Madden hitting all in a row, I doubt EA will get hit as hard as they did last year

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Thanks for posting that video...I don't see how Madden with it's STALE old engine can compete with that, other than with it's excusive NFL license. I can't wait to finallyhave my jaw drop with a football game again. It's been WAY too long since that happened.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Amen man, we have all gotten too used to mediocrity IMO. Time for a change!

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Backbreaker is an over the top arcadey football game. The tackles in no way represent real football. They may look nice and dynamic but they aren't realistic at all. Good luck waiting for a "real" football game because that won't be one unless you considered Blitz to be real as well.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

You sir are missing the point, the point isn't what game Backbreaker is, it's what can be done with technology that isn't being done by EA.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

I'm not knocking at backbreaker, but there's soooo much more that is needed to make a good football game outside of just tackles.

So yeah... I'll wait for the gameplay vids and/or more news since there really hasn't been that much said about the game yet.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

I am not missing the point. The technology as it stands now is not optimal for a sports game. Unless it's refined it's better left for shooters and over the top arcade games.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Someone's been drinking too much EA Kool-aid. Anyone with 2 eyes can see that this looks promising. I guess we'll have to wait and see how the final game turns out, but personally, this is what I imagined next gen football would look like when I put my money down on a PS3 5 years ago.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Maybe it's not optimal but does that mean it should be ignored???

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

It has nothing to do with EA. Look at the tackles. If you think they look like tackles in real football then you have no idea what a realistic football game should entail. The players become lifeless ragdolls when they're hit. That's not football.

Edit: I don't think it should be ignored...when did I say that? I will say EA's approach is leagues better. They should work with it slowly but keep their current method

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

You said the technology now is not optimal for sports. That implies it should not be input to current games. Why are you apologizing and excusing EA for their incompetence in their football games?

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

You're kidding right? Are you doing this as a joke or are you being dense on purpose?

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Lets take a look at what resembles the real NFL player movement the most :wink:

Madden 09.......

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Back Breaker........

<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/iyobHf3C3mo&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/iyobHf3C3mo&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

Until Madden fixes there robotic player movement any football game is better when it comes to gameplay. I didn't even post ESPN 2K5 or APF 2K8 and those games are better than both and how old are they?

Be honest with your assessment......

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Not to mention Backbreaker looks like the Killzone 2 of Football games. I mean, it's incredibly detailed.

Madden does have better graphics every year, but it has never looked "realistic" like Backbreaker. I'm just blown away by the details put into the graphics.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

I will agree that Backbreaker's Euphoria engine is VERY promising, and it would to wonders to improve the physics in EA's football games. I will not deny that fact.

That being said, I have to agree with NYyankz225. The tackles themselves aren't very realistic. You don't see players flying around like lifeless dolls when hit in the NFL. Backbreaker as standalone game, does not really appeal to me. The game of football is more than just how realistic tackles look. Would I like to see that kind of technology used in Madden? Absolutely without a doubt. But I hate hearing people hype up Backbreaker as the second coming of 2K5.

So once again, so that people don't call me a "Maddenite" or EA fanboy. I believe the euphoria engine would DEFINITELY improve the quality of the physics in Madden. I believe the player motion and animations (if they are truly in game) are more realistic than Madden's. But that's as far as I'm willing to go. Otherwise, all I see is just a bunch of guys flying around like ragdolls. I'll wait for actual gameplay footage and more information on A.I. etc. before making a fair assessment.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

I honestly think BB will go beyond what 2K5 did for football. VC made a great football game using tried-and-true methods, but BackBreaker is bringing truly next gen football; graphic/animation/control-wise.

In short, there's never been anything like BackBreaker.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

I'm curious to know. What else do we know about BB other than the fact that it's powered by the euphoria engine? Ok, we've seen a couple trailers using "in game assets". Sure the animations look better than Madden's. But hey, we don't have to look that far to find another game that did that (2K5). We also know about the crowd A.I, which I will admit is awesome thing to see.

I'm not very high on BB's graphics tbh....The players all look like they're on steroids. The tackle animations annoy the hell out of me because you don't see guys flying around like that IRL. Like I said, we don't have enough information on BB to crown it as the next best thing yet. It's a very promising game, granted. The technology behind it could change sports gaming forever. But that's it.....

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Go look at the new unofficial pictures. The player models look more realistic than any Madden.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Here is basically all the info up to date on Backbreaker. They are really interesting reads:

http://forum.backbreakergame.com/showthread.php?t=1733

This game is so much more than Euphoria. There's innovation in all the aspects of a football game.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

When looking up Madden 09 for a comparison I couldn't believe what I was seeing. How many tackles can a CB break in a game? Did you see the CB get the Int and run it back and break how many tackles? That top 10 video should tell you a lot in the way Madden's graphics look, game play looks, every player on the field including side judges breaking tackles and more.

Look at the Devin Hester punt return LOL. Hester is turning on a dime without ever having to plant his foot, The defense just is robotic and just flow back and fourth either way he goes with out planting a foot.

Honestly those Madden 09 top 10 plays make me want to rethink exactly how they could improve That game in 1 year.

I would rather not play any football game if I had to only play Madden.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

It says that it's focus will be arcade gameplay right in the IGN article. Unless they go for a sim feel and have a sandbox/editing tool like PES, I fail to see how this game will challenge Madden. I really had no use for APF based on the lack of customization and no franchise mode. All the tech is great, but it's just another APF/NFL Blitz to me, so far...

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Back Breaker does look very interesting.

I'm certainly interested enough to want to find out more about this game. However...if Back Breaker is more geared as an arcade like football game, my interest will fade fast. But if it's goal is to be a realistic representation of football...and ends up having a franchise mode, my interest level will be high.

After all these years...it would be great to play a football game that was TRULY different.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

There's a good chance Madden 10 will improve significantly from Madden 09. The problem is, If NaturalMotion plays their cards right, (which they have been so far) Madden will still get blown away because BB is just a technically superior game. People will see the videos and think "this is next-gen."

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

The real question is, what is arcade and what is simulation to you? To me, Madden's gameplay IS arcade. And I think the gameplay defines the game more than anything.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

I love how people use the lifeless dolls thing to discout the physics in this game... That being said, the "rag doll" effects were mainly present in the first of the released Backbreaker videos, this video in particular doesn't show any kind more of rag doll animations then we already see in Madden 09 where a 250lbs running back gets dropped backwards by a DB using the hit stick, or a 250lbs LB getting dropped by an insanely fake looking stiff arm.

Cases in point (tackles):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1Xdc...om=PL&index=21

Case in point (stiff arm):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywzTs...eature=related

These aren't isolated things either... They're all over the place and they always have been. The tackle where the guy stands up and kind of chest bumps the guy right off his feet...

And for the record, the rag doll tackles are the result of unblocked, unobstructed, full tilt and squarely ligned up hits, which pretty much equal this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRkiouh5NEI

This:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FhCgLeuO0I

This:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBnm6...om=PL&index=41

How anyone can say that the animations in Madden appear to be more like real life, or resemble the NFL more in ANY way, must simply be trying to get a rise out of people... As the denial required to think this, must be complete in every way... It must be total.

Here's a little something for you guys to look over:

Watch the tackles... Watch for the chest bump animations...

Madden 2001:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GIkfiLr56M

Madden 2003:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWF9_gIJCkw

Madden 2004:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Y1KO0oeLxE

If all of these things are in these game... Why are they still in Madden '09...? Don't be fooled by the shinny new smooth sprites on the screen... They're all animated using the same animations!

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

From what I understand about Back Breaker is that it intended on being a 4 on 4 game that would have been a little arcady. With no other football game on the market they will have 11 on 11 and it will be a SIM football game. Go look at the Back Breaker forum for your answers or wait until E3.

I am with the other guy when he said Madden is arcady.

How could anyone looking at next gen games not think Madden is Arcady? If any game is it is Madden. Hell even Blitz had better game play and movement LOL.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

How about you wake up to reality my friend? Then you can see whether i'm joking or whether your argument is a joke.

Re: EA struggles with another $310 million in lost revenue...
 

Nicely Done!!!!!