Should Goonersworld boycott EA?

[Hammered Pizza]

I come here with a controversial suggestion.

So, we all know how EA have acted as a company recently - apallingly. They're attempting to kill off the second hand game industry, they're both sexist and ageist, they treat their employees terribly, and they seem to be putting less and less effort into their games (Mass Effect 3 ending anyone?). They're also in the business of buying smaller games companies and running them into the ground. They even contributed to running Gamestation into the ground by giving GAME no margins on sales whatsoever.

Add to this, they stifle competition by overpaying for licenses and refusing to share - at all. These anticompetitive practises drive down the quality of our entertainment.
An example of this comes in PES v FIFA. PES offered that FIFA could officialy license the Champions and Europa League - in exchange for Konami being able to merely use the Bundesliga. Not with real team names, or even real player names. EA saw that although it would make fans happier overall, they'd prefer for Konami to keep their minute marketshare in Germany.
Want another example? They destroyed the NFL 2K brand to the point where it was unprofitable for them to even develop another game following an exclusive licensing deal - from 2004 to 2009, then extended to 2013.

As a gamer I feel annoyed, frustrated. But we can do something about it.
Vote with your wallets. As much as we all enjoy FIFA, there is PES. For those Mass Effect lovers, there is Fallout. Battlefield, there is Call of Duty. Need for Speed fan - try Gran Turismo or Forza.



Does anyone agree that something needs to be done - and if so, will you be joining me in my mini-crusade?

[friedslice]

I'd rather Goonersworld boycott the new home kit.....

[VCC]

I'd rather Goonersworld boycott the new home kit.....

same

[Herrpoja]

Tbh it's good for the industry that game went down cause they (any gamestore) always tried to sell an used copy instead of a new one so they could take all the profit, and this is worse then piracy.

i have followed what the pes team has done since 2006 quite close and i have never heard that they have offered Ea champions&europa league so i would like some link to that. and besides you know how much money they had to spend and how much they get since their product is licensed by uefa rather then having the bundesliga? they are advertised as uefa's offical game and that is worth more money then gaining a 15% more sales in germany.

bioware are at fault for the bad ending (havent played any of the masseffect series so i have no idea)

sega could have done what konami did with pes when they had no licenses at all almost just use fake names and teams as long as it is good enough it will sell .

but i agree ea is horrible with their dlc and everything i only have bought 2 of their products in my life (fifa 11 and battlefield 1942) so im boycotting them as good as i can.

im also quite sure there is already a thread about ea

[Hammered Pizza]

Konami can't even use fake player names for the German Leagues, such is the extent of the licensing agreement they have in place.

[UFGN]

Market forces will do for them if they are as bad as you say they are. I cant see what they would have to gain by forcing one of their biggest retailers out of business though. There must be more to it than that.

I read somewhere that the games industry makes more money from retail than the film industry nowadays.

[ArsenalN5]

I bought FIFA 12, Didn't get on with the Tactical defending system and sold it....Still playing FIFA 11 UT.

I hate EA, their servers are shockingly bad.

[ThereIsBearCüm]

Market forces will do for them if they are as bad as you say they are. I cant see what they would have to gain by forcing one of their biggest retailers out of business though. There must be more to it than that.

I read somewhere that the games industry makes more money from retail than the film industry nowadays.

not true, loads of companies are far worse than EA and still going stronger than ever

[TRA Dial Square]

Quite simply put, no.

And no offence but should the poll get a majority yes, I still wouldn't.

[Leody]

Market forces will do for them if they are as bad as you say they are. I cant see what they would have to gain by forcing one of their biggest retailers out of business though. There must be more to it than that.

I read somewhere that the games industry makes more money from retail than the film industry nowadays.

Thier more channels to distribute than gamestation, and the customers will find them easily. Other lesser used distribution channels will take up the slack quickly when gamestation is gone.

And they gain lots of sales that used to be used copies... because now the used will be harder to find and will not be pushed to the customer. There's lots to gain by getting rid of Gamestation. Gamestation took the risk of biting the hand that feeds, and now they're paying the price. They wanted more profit for themselves from used games, at the cost of less to their suppliers in the form of new game sales... and when you upset the provider, this is what happens.

And on to the EA thing. I really don't buy their games, besides FIFA. And I've long thought they were a very lazy publisher, pushing out rushed and under tested products. They only reason that company is even in business today is their exclusive rights to every major sports league in the world. And in that genre, they are a monopoly, if you use the same definition used againt Microsoft in the IE case. Probably even more so, just nobody of great influence gives a rats yet... Once they do EA is in a world of hurt. Just look at Backbreaker for what a game developer with some vision and creativity can make these days. That game looked absolutely stunning, was unreal... but alas nobody took notice because they didn't have NFL teams.

And this game came out over 4 years ago... where you at with this EA? Took you just till now to come up with something "similar" in FIFA this year with your "Player Momentum" and it isn't even within shooting distance of this collision detection.

[StLGooner]

EA games are the only ones I play for the most part, so I'd have to quit playing all together, and that ain't happening.

[UFGN]

Funnily enough, after saying that about EA and Gamestation earlier, it was announced today that American Greetings is doing exactly the same to Clinton Cards. Cant say I will miss them, their shops are crap, but its another 8,000 jobs at risk.

[Reverend Gooner]

I boycotted them for years in the past. Right now I don't actively boycott them (although I am reluctant) but it happens that their games don't entice me anyway so it ends up the same result.

[CynicalGooner]

Funnily enough, after saying that about EA and Gamestation earlier, it was announced today that American Greetings is doing exactly the same to Clinton Cards. Cant say I will miss them, their shops are crap, but its another 8,000 jobs at risk.

Clinton Cards scammed me for £10 a few years ago. So good

[TartanRaven]

EA will collapse after it is snubbed by Goonersworld??? DUMB THREAD.