EA rant - (Case #99....0) - Battlefield 1942 all of a sudden cut for xbox. (1 Viewer)

[Damien]

hmmm...here we go again...http://gamespot.com/gamespot/stories...908782,00.html
If anyone thought EA has grown up and stopped being p----'s, think again. Basically since the main component of the game is online, EA was in a crux. They would really get some bad publicity if they shipped the game without xbox live support, so they decide to can the whole thing since they only go online with Playstation 2. The "work on expansion" stuff, at least come up with something good, who ever heard of that crap before. They have gotten there heads so far up there green ass's they can see out the other side. I just don't understand why they can't just function like any other successful company...or just go exclusive to sony, then people without a ps2 wouldn't have any problems with them. It's just that they state that they support xbox on there site, people bought the xbox for the advantages over the ps2, but ea seems like they enjoy aiding sony's image(two towers graphics) I think it's sad so many people buy there products so blindly, I hope we don't see any other companies like this in the future, and i bet you there employee's who put effort into the project are appaled as well.

 

[MikeH1]

The company canceled the game so the development team could focus all its efforts on the upcoming expansion for the PC version of Battlefield 1942, The Road to Rome.

And the reason why EA postponed Road to Rome a month was for the development team to get the 1.2 patch out ASAP :rolleyes

 

[Scott L]

EA's patch support on the Medal of Honor end is crappy too. We haven't seen a new level exp pack in.... ever!! Spearhead doesn't count because they charge us $30 for it and there's STILL not enough variety. Remember the good ol days when a new update for UT also included 3-5 level with it? Not to mention it was free and downloadable off their website. With 3 big branches for consoles and PCs you'd think they'd have the manpower to keep up.

 

[Jon W H]

Yet another reason for me to dislike EA. They're not a part of my XBox library. They never will get my business in the future for thumbing their nose at XBox Live in favor of trying to make profit for only themselves and benefitting few in the process.

I have a long memory as a gamer. Beware, EA.

 

[Travis Olson]

God I hate EA. The Xbox would have been the perfect platform for 1942 with ability to control the vehicles with a controller and all broadband gameplay. But no, if they can't make ALL the profits from it then they simply can't do it. They have got to be the greediest game developer on the planet. It just goes to show that they are more interested in making money then great games. Sure they have to make money, but last time I checked their stock they weren't hurting.
I won't be buying any EA titles on the Xbox again until they give it the support it deserves.

 

[James Zos]

"I won't be buying any EA titles on the Xbox again until they give it the support it deserves."

I hope people who feel this way decide to stick with it. As consumers, choosing not to buy a product is just about the only power we have.

 

[Jon W H]

I ended up sending them an email. ( [email protected] or [email protected] - their PR department, I believe? ) Only the second time I've ever contacted a game publisher to voice my opinion/complaint. (Konami was the other, I urged them to make Metal Gear Solid 2 available for the XBox.) This is what I wrote:
To whom this may concern:
I heard the news about Battlefield 1942 not being made available to the XBox Live users.
I've been gaming since my parents bought me an Atari 2600 when I was six years old in the 70's. I bought many EA products, Nintendo, Sega, PS1 and PC over the years. I own an XBox now. I was looking very forward to playing Madden 2003 online. I did not buy your product when I heard of EA's decision not to enable it for Live. I bought many incarnations of Madden. You could say I was a disciple of Madden, even.
Then I heard 1942 would not be available.
Just so you know - I have an extremely long memory as a gamer. I am quite incensed at your policy in trying to strongarm the console makers into letting you restructure online gaming pricing. This is what we call, "cutting off your nose to spite your face".
The gamers want online products. There is a demand for it. If you don't wish to work with Microsoft to deliver your product in a manner that the market is clamoring for, then your company more than deserves to fail for selling its soul.
I will NOT be buying future products from EA as a result of your practices. I will also educate everyone I know to your practices and influence them not to purchase your product. You may think I am merely one disgruntled customer, but the consumer dollar is stronger than you think.
Again, I will state that I have an extremely long memory.
Thank you for your attention.
Jon H.

 

[Craig LeBlanc]

I wish they'd put more effort into fixing problems with the PC version. It would have been my choice for GOTY for PC, but they took their sweet time fixing glaring bugs.

 

[Dave Falasco]

I've said it before, EA=no play. Not even Buffy. :frowning:
But the sad thing is, this is a self-fulfilling prophesy. EA doesn't believe in the Xbox (at least not to the extent that they believe in the PS2) so they cut corners wherever possible on their Xbox releases, which angers Xbox owners who vow not to purchase any EA releases, which just confirms EA's contentions when their Xbox sales are lower (percentage-wise) than their PS2 sales, leading to even less Xbox support, etc. etc.
Personally I could count the number of EA games I give a fig about on one hand, but they do have one of the highest profiles of all gaming companies (at least in this country), and their continued snubbing of the Xbox certainly doesn't help that platform's credibility.

 

[Oscar Saenz]

Great letter Jon! Count me as one consumer who will no longer purchase an EA title. It might be time for me to write my first ever letter to a game developer/publisher...

 

[Jeff Kleist]

Playing Devil's advocate, have you seen the numbers on third party XBox titles? They're putrid, almost as bad as GameCube

The real problem is that there is, and always has been only room for 2 consoles in the market, and XB and GC have fragmented it so much that both are in trouble

 

[BrianB]

Count me as one consumer who will no longer purchase an EA title.

And thus, Dave, your prophecy goes one step closer to coming true.

 

[Edan W]

Sometimes I wonder if EA looks at a third party game like Splinter Cell which was designed from the ground up to use the Xbox, critically and popularly acclaimed, then ported over to the PS2/GC and think "hey, we could maybe try that".

 

[Dave Falasco]

Yeah, it's a heck of a choice for Xbox owners, huh? Buy these sub-par games in hopes of convincing EA that there really is a market for their games on the Xbox, or boycott them and prove their suspicions right.

There are no easy answers, but one thing that would help would be for EA and MS to work out their differences over Xbox Live. That seems to be a cornerstone of a lot of the bitterness towards EA; at least it is for me. Although from what I read it doesn't sound like that's going to happen any time soon. Sigh.

 

[JoshF]

Playing Devil's advocate, have you seen the numbers on third party XBox titles? They're putrid, almost as bad as GameCube

Exactly. You can't blame them for wanting to make money. There are just simply many more PS2 customers, and EA wants to go after them.

 

[Jon W H]

Yeah, it's a heck of a choice for Xbox owners, huh? Buy these sub-par games in hopes of convincing EA that there really is a market for their games on the Xbox, or boycott them and prove their suspicions right.

Precisely why I wrote them a letter to let them know the reasoning behind my refusal to purchase said sub-par product from EA. My consumer dollar is standing up to this "corporate" company. They need to understand that XBox owners are not dummies.

 

[Romier S]

They need to understand that XBox owners are not dummies.

Well see, thats where you are a bit mistaken Jon. EA doesn't think Xbox owners are dummies at all. They know damn well what product they are releasing on the Xbox and the Gamecube. To be frank, I just don't think they care. As long as they are raking in the cash on the Playstation 2 all other systems will take thier place in the back seat. Boycotting EA games in general isn't going
to make a a bit of difference and will just leave the good games they do produce on the shelves to flounder (like Buffy).
What many here complain about I seriously doubt EA see's as doing anything wrong. Someone above mentioned that maybe one day EA will see the light and handle multi-console releases the way Ubi-soft is currently doing. Create Splinter Cell on the Xbox and port down from there. In an ideal world, that would be the best scenario but there is one big hurdle preventing that from happening. The Xbox is not the #1 console in the world. The Xbox's userbase is not even 1/4 of the PS2's at this point. Until that changes EA will continue to simply "throw us a bone". They do enough to continue thier presence and "leader" status as the #1 third party in the world and they concentrate thier efforts where the money is. From a business standpoint its really difficult to fault them for following a strategy that up until now has been a complete and total success for them.
I'm not suprised that Battlefield was cancelled. The minute EA announced a non-supportive stance on Xbox Live this was pretty much an inevitable conclusion. Above all else I wish EA would rethink thier stance on Xbox Live as I am sure thier online titles would flourish. Until the Xbox or the Gamecube increae thier hold on the market in either this generation or the next, you will continue to see the same practices out of this company. Its an unfortunate reality.

 

[Jon W H]

you will continue to see the same practices out of this company. Its an unfortunate reality.

I may be just one man, but I'll be damned if I'm not going to do my part to try to change that for them.

 

[Dave Falasco]

Until the Xbox or the Gamecube increae thier hold on the market in either this generation or the next, you will continue to see the same practices out of this company. Its an unfortunate reality.

Couldn't agree more. It sucks, but it's true. Makes me appreciate Sega all the more for taking chances and delivering fantastic, beautiful games on the Xbox (that no one is buying, dammit!) Although I'm sure it's not all nobility on Sega's part, as MS must have made it somewhat...attractive to publish Xbox exclusives like Jet Set, Gunvalkyrie, and now Panzer Dragoon Orta.
Then I look at how many hojillion copies of Madden 2003 sold compared to Jet Set...

 

[MikeAlletto]

"Yes, let's support only the winner, we'll switch sides later when the money's good. Hope nobody remembers this when the next generation console war comes around and someone else is the leader."

No one will care. Most people look at the box and say, "that looks cool I think I'll buy it". Most people don't look at it and think, "that looks cool, oh wait, its by EA, they didn't make cool games for my xbox 10 years ago, so I'm not buying this game."

Maybe I'm different. I look at a game and try it out and if its good I get it, if not I pass. I could care less what company made it.