EA’s Future Looks Digital

John Riccitiello

While analysts have been pounding EA’s 2009, the company is trying to maintain a hopeful facade, saying that this year was a transitional period. EA CEO John Riccitiello believes that it’s all part of moving to a digital future. Take a look at some of the things he said to Gamasutra:

My kids are still listening to music even though Tower Records is gone.

We felt that the company we want to be had 1,500 fewer jobs dedicated to packaged goods.

We’re trying to become a company that looks more like a direct-to-consumer business.

While experts continue to debate when digital distribution will be the norm (not the Norm from Cheers), there’s no doubt that it will eventually become the standard (as the excellent Chris Taylor noted). It’s certainly something that videogame publishers will have to adjust to. I’m sure EA will still be a dominant name when that time rolls around, but I wonder if it will ever be as dominant as it once was. I also wonder which kings digital distribution will dethrone and which new kings it will crown.

What are your thoughts on how digital distribution will change the videogame publisher landscape?

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AT&T and Verizon Kiss and Make Up

Phoenix Wright slider

The legal dispute between AT&T and Verizon over the latter’s television commercials has been dropped. According to Gizmodo, AT&T has dropped the lawsuit. Here are the legal scribblings:

IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND AGREED by and between Plaintiff/Counterclaim Defendant Cellco Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless (“Verizon Wireless”) and Defendant/Counterclaim Plaintiff AT&T Mobility LLC (“AT&T”) that pursuant to Rule 41(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure: (a) Verizon Wireless’s claims against AT&T in the above- captioned action are hereby dismissed without prejudice, and (b) AT&T’s counterclaims against Verizon Wireless in the above-captioned action are hereby dismissed without prejudice.

*sigh* What a stupid waste of money. In my silly dreams, I’m begging AT&T to hit my donation button instead of spending money on its next stupid lawsuit…or maybe it can use some money to make its network not suck.

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Mega64 Pokes Fun at Final Fantasy XIII Announcement Video

The excellent people at Mega64 have made their own version of Square Enix’s Final Fantasy XIII North American release date announcement video. The original spot was hosted by a complete wanker and I’m glad somebody had the good sense to make a video that pokes fun at him. Check it out!

Xbox 360 Avatars Get Pets

Xbox Live petsHot on the heels of the Xbox Live chocobo giveaway, Major Nelson has announced that all sorts of pets will be available for Xbox 360 dollies avatars, starting tomorrow. Captain Marketing said:

We’ve just announced that Pets are coming to the Xbox LIVE Avatar Marketplace. Tomorrow, the first shipment arrives and you’ll be able to choose from the following Pets at 240 points each:

Large Dog, Pug Dog, Dog in Bag, Cat, Siamese Cat, Long Haired Cat, Goldfish, Guinea Pig, Monkey, Bird, Snake and yes….a Pony.

This must be why Microsoft was reluctant to release Black Friday numbers. It didn’t want to steal thunder from its enormous dolly avatar pets announcement. *snicker*

I’m sure plenty of people will snap up these run-of-the-mill pets, but I’m not going to waste my money on one…until a moogle comes out. Are any of you going to buy one tomorrow?

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Coffee Talk #38: Gamer Food

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Allen Iverson going back to Philly, Derek Jeter being the first Yankee to win Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Year award, or the heat Sheamus is getting for being friends with Triple H, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Gamer stereotypes are pretty amusing. If they were true, we’d all be 30-something males living in our mothers’ basements. One gaming stereotype that always amused me is that gamers are fueled by a diet of Mountain Dew and Doritos — as if that’s all we ever eat. Certainly I’ve had my share of Mountain Dew (especially Diet Code Red) and Doritos, but I wouldn’t call it gamer food by any means.

Warcraft Mountain Dew

In fact, I rarely eat when I play. I usually can’t be bothered by trivial things like sustenance when I’m saving the world, beating up the bad guys, or leveling up my latest RPG character. Often it’s hard to remember to even drink water when I play games. The one good thing about load times is that I can take a few seconds to sip some water, coffee, or iced tea.

Today I wanted to learn about your dietary habits. What do you eat and drink when you play games? Are you a Mountain Dew and Doritos guy/gal? Or can you not be bothered to eat and drink during your precious game time?

Tennis Pro Andy Murray Loses Girlfriend Over Modern Warfare 2

Andy Murray

The word on the street is that Kim Sears broke up with professional tennis player Andy Murray over his habitual videogame play. The Telegraph reported:

Andy Murray’s relationship with his girlfriend Kim Sears allegedly ended because of the British number one’s passion for computer games including Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

Brad Gilbert, Murray’s former coach, has said in the past that Murray spends “seven hours a day” playing video games.

The source told The Sun: “He would spend all his time glued to them. In the end she just got fed up with it. She wanted more out of the relationship.”

I’m kind of split on the matter. Being a top-ranked tennis-pro means millions of dollars, seeing the world, and hot women throwing themselves at you on a nightly basis. If I were Murray’s age (22) and had that kind of money, I’d be the whore of Babylon. Then again, I love games and have (unfairly) brushed girls aside so that I could sink more hours into an RPG. Murray either needs to slut it up or find a good woman that understands the importance of gaming.

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Congrats to CamiKitten!

RPad Magnet Nightshade 1

CamiKitten is the latest winner in the RPad.tv chick magnet giveaway! Here’s her winning post. Please check your email so that I can send you your prize. Congrats again!!!

Today’s pictures are from Nightshade386. He sent in some really fun ones. He snapped me with games, in front of a strip club, and sandwiched between Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. Check ’em out!

Continue reading “Congrats to CamiKitten!”

Akira Yamaoka Leaves Konami?

Silent Hill 2

Akira Yamaoka might not be a familiar name in your gaming household, but you definitely know the games he’s most famous for: the Silent Hill series. He has composed the music for all the Silent Hill games and has served as the series’ producer since SH3. According to Aeropause, Yamaoka has left the building:

After sixteen years at the company, Akira Yamaoka has left Konami.

It would appear that he has left the company entirely rather than moving to another international division. As you would expect, there has been no formal confirmation from Konami, so right now this is an unconfirmed rumour — albeit one generated from a pretty reliable source.

I’m a little stunned by this one. I always thought Yamaoka would be a lifer at Konami, similar to Kojima and Igarashi. He’s been attached to the Silent Hill series since the beginning and it’ll be weird (but cool) to see him doing something else.

The news is a bit personal for me, since Akira was the first Japanese developer to greet me with a friendly hug instead of a professional handshake. This one time (not at band camp), we ditched a GDC party to go dancing. It was cool watching a sound designer and music composer dance.

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Coffee Talk #37: Console Wars XXVIII — Black Friday

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the Saints beating up on the Patriots, banning Canadian boxing judges Alan Davis and Benoit Roussel, or the Shakespeare play you want to see in videogame form, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

As expected, it was a huge week for the “big three” console companies. All three did well during Black Friday weekend. Let’s take a look at some of the (American) results.

PS3 vs Xbox 360

  • Nintendo claimed that it sold more than 550,000 Wii systems. Adding in the DS and DSi, the company said that it sold more than 1.5-million pieces of hardware. To steal a line from Shelton Benjamin’s music, “Ain’t no stoppin’ me, now!!!”
  • Sony claimed its best week ever (not EVAR!!!) for the PlayStation 3, selling more than 440,000 units. With a recent price cut and the introduction of the PS3 Slim, Sony has a huge opportunity to gain marketshare. It looks like the company is making the most of it.
  • Microsoft hasn’t cited numbers yet, curiously. The company is putting on a positive front, claiming that it has its best week of 2009 and sold twice as many Xbox 360 systems during Thanksgiving week than it did the previous one.

Nintendo’s continued success isn’t surprising. Most people expected Sony to do well, but the company probably exceeded many expectations. Microsoft’s statements were the most curious. By not citing numbers and using the “we did better than last week” stance, the company looks lame. Maybe its number crunchers are behind and it will put out a strong press release later today, but for now MS looks like a chump.

What are your thoughts on the latest round of the console wars? Will Sony be able to continue its momentum this holiday season? I know you Wii haters out there are hoping for a sharp decline from Nintendo, but do you really think that’s going to happen? And what’s up with Microsoft’s weak-sauce statements?