Hopefully now we'll see another SMT Nocturne and Persona 5 on PS3 or PS4 soon. I won't buy hand-helds just for those games. Sega needs to talk to Sony about cross-platform marketing now, before the PS4 releases (if they haven't already).
First, a comment: salaries like that are why games cost $60 these days instead of $50 or less.
Now for the examination:
"Let me start by saying I am deeply honored and humbled to become EA's CEO. I have a profound respect and passion for this organization, as well as for our global community of fans, and I'm incredibly motivated to serve our people, our gamers and our shareholders at such an exciting time in our industry."
Good. Take SimCity 4 Deluxe and use it to make SimCity 5 the way it was supposed to be. Serve the gamers first, or you will lose money big time.
"From my start at EA in Australia back in 2000, through stops in Asia, Europe and now North America, I've worked with people in this company who have consistently amazed and inspired me. It's my passion for our people and the great products we all impact that gives me such excitement for our future. I hope you all feel the same level of energy and optimism that I do as we embark on this journey together."
I do not share your optimism, especially considering your all-online stance and how that has screwed up games like SimCity (probably forever). A lot of us gamers don't want to have to depend on sucky internet connections just to play our games, and you are forcing us to do so. So stop it now, if you really mean what you say. Make online OPTIONAL, not mandatory.
"I envision EA as the World's Greatest Games Company. This is not about what we are aiming for or what we will become. Rather, it is about an unfaltering commitment to what we will be every day. This is an attitude that must drive our culture as one team."
Games are great because they are fun and you can play them when you want. Great game companies make fun games you can play whenever you want, and don't force people to be dependent on laggy servers. Stop the always-online movement before it kills your company. I won't buy always-online games ever again. Diablo 3 showed me the worst of cloud-based gaming, and I will not buy a cloud game ever again. Note: I'm a huge Star Wars fan, but unless you take it offline, I will never buy or play Star Wars: The Old Republic. I don't play MMOs.
"I also believe EA's strategy is sound. Our focus on our talent, our brands and our platform together with our investment in next-generation consoles, mobile and PC free-to-play, as part of our ongoing transition to digital, is right. But we have plenty of work ahead to ensure our collective success."
Your "transition to digital" is what worries us gamers. Anything that makes us dependent on our internet connections (including disc checks, software checks, software patches / downloads, and cloud gaming), potentially ruins the game, and for those like me who have a crappy internet connection, they always ruin the game. If Minecraft can do offline after a failed check, you can too. So start doing it, and stop the cloud gaming BS.
"In the short term, our mission is crystal clear: We are 100 percent focused on delivering our FY14 business plan. We have made strong progress in the first half of the fiscal year, establishing financial discipline and continuing to create a slate of fantastic games for current and next-generation consoles, mobile and PC. But now we've got to finish the job--execute in Q3 and Q4 and deliver on the promises we made to our fans and our shareholders."
You can start by fixing the franchises you screwed up, like KOTOR (where's KOTOR 3?) and SimCity.
"Looking ahead, my focus will be on three things:
1. Continued transformation for our digital future;
2. Delivering amazing games and services across platforms; and
3. Instilling a culture of execution that will drive profitable growth."
Mark my words, if you force us to cloud gaming, your company will go bankrupt. Nobody wants to play a lag-ridden game or be unable to play because of your server failures. You need to go back to the single-player experiences that put you where you are today. I still play M.U.L.E. - I won't play SW:TOR. Figure it out.
"In the days and weeks ahead, I will provide a greater level of operational detail behind the plan that will make these goals a reality. I could not be more proud to lead you as CEO of EA. Thank you in advance for your support."
Choose your words VERY CAREFULLY. We are all listening. We remember what Blizzard's Diablo team leaders said - that they know what fun is and we don't. We are voting with our wallets. Blizzard won't get a dime from me until Diablo 4 comes out, and only if it's single-player offline. If your games aren't single-player offline, you won't get a dime from me, either. I'm tired of you telling me what fun is. Go shut down your SW:TOR servers and see how many people think that game is fun. It's time for EA to go back to basics and make fun games that don't require the internet in order to play.
Still not buying the expansion - no single-player offline. Paraphrasing Jay Wilson, "F*** those losers". And I laugh heartily at them doing a 180 on the auction houses. I'll wait for D4, thanks...if they ever release it after this sorry debacle.
And this is why series like "The Walking Dead" and "Doomsday Preppers" are on TV. We've seen the first zombie of the apocalypse - G4 died a long time ago. For me, when Code Monkeys got pulled, G4 died and still kept walking. Somebody just put that channel down, please. It's disrespectful to leave its corpse walking. Maybe give it a new format...like maybe a technical computer channel. Maybe I'll get to see Code Monkeys season 3 that way.
@krystyla They have a series to maintain, so shoehorning in a character has to play well with the established canon (history) of the series. This takes time, and it needs to be well-written.
@immadbro @VarietyMage That's assuming that Activision wouldn't change in the face of falling profit margins, which will be forthcoming. I sure as hell won't be buying the expansion pack, much less other console versions of D3. They will lose money and stock value over this debacle.
VarietyMage's comments