Arnie In Gaming Payback

EA’s vocal CEO John Riccitiello has assured the industry that his employer is doing its best to avoid making lazy licenses, instead putting an emphasis on original IP and quality.

As is so often the case with being one of the largest, most successful companies, EA have faced a lot of criticism over the years, much of which has focussed on the organisation's liking for producing and publishing sequels and licences.

Speaking with MTV Multiplayer, Riccitiello spoke of his desire to move EA’s focus to releasing quality original IP, a strategy that has paid dividends for Ubisoft in recent months. “I think what redeems our industry is quality, and I think we take a step back every time we take a license and exploit it with a crappy game. That’s not what we’re about,” explained Riccitiello.

While some will argue that is what EA has been about at certain points over its lengthy existence, the news should be reassuring for retailers. Although, referring to the production of low quality licensed games Riccitiello admits “we’ve been there”, there are reassuring signs EA is now concentrating on originality and quality.

Mirror’s Edge, Spore, Left4Dead, Dragon Age and Rage are all eagerly awaited title's from EA, and recent releases like Boom Blox met with critical acclaim on hitting the shelves. Of course, the money EA To Avpmaking sequels will continue, but again an emphasis on quality should help to reinstate EA’s reputation as a leading publisher.

“Frankly I think that a lot of the intellectual property we create are better than the licenses. That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for great licenses. We’ve had a 20-year partnership with the NFL. We’re incredibly proud of that. A 15-ish year partnership with the NBA,” said Riccitiello, defending the companies right to push its sequels.

Contact: Will Freeman