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EA is finally improving Career Mode for 'FIFA 20'
Even though 'Street' soccer will be the biggest addition to FIFA 20, hardcore fans of the franchise know the importance of Career Mode. And this year, with the new game launching on September 27th, developer EA Sports is promising to make the feature more authentic and customizable than ever before. Not only will you be able to change the body type, skin tone, clothing, hairstyle of your managers, but in FIFA 20 you'll now have the chance to create and choose female characters. In addition to that, taking a cue from Football Manager, your coach will be able to have a direct impact on team morale based on his or her press conferences, squad rotation, chats with players and more.
EA Access game subscriptions finally go live on PS4
EA's subscription service, EA Access, finally arrives on PS4 today. For $5/month or $30/year, you'll get unlimited access to a range of games from EA's vault, including FIFA 19, Battlefield V, A Way Out, Titanfall 2, Mirror's Edge Catalyst and The Sims 4. More games will be added later, including FIFA 20 and Madden NFL 20.
'Plants vs. Zombies 3' is on the way and you can test it now
Six years after Plants vs. Zombies 2 staggered into the world, the next entry in the series is on the way. PopCap Games is hard at work on Plants vs. Zombies 3, and it's already offering you the chance to pit flora against undead fauna once again.
EA tells UK Parliament loot boxes are 'quite ethical'
With loot boxes receiving heavy scrutiny lately, EA has come up with a novel explanation for what the controversial game mechanic should be considered perfectly legal. Appearing before the UK Parliament's Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport Committee, EA's vice president of legal and government affairs Kerry Hopkins insisted that loot boxes aren't akin to gambling but are instead "surprise mechanics" like Kinder Eggs, the popular chocolate candy with toys inside.
Wattson is just what 'Apex Legends' needs
I don't remember the last time a video game had me as hooked as Apex Legends does. And when I say "hooked," I mean that I'm staying up until 4 or 5AM playing on weekdays, which probably isn't the best idea for someone with a full-time job who has no aspirations to be a professional Twitch streamer. But, as much as I love Apex, my one complaint is that developer Respawn Entertainment doesn't keep the game feeling fresh. The last time we got a new character, for instance, was back in March with that speedy dude Octane. Thankfully, at E3 2019, Respawn revealed a new Legend named Natalie "Wattson" Paquette, who is part of the Season 2 Battle Pass that will launch on July 2nd.
'FIFA 20' is a lot more than just street soccer
For the first time since 2012, street soccer is coming back to the FIFA franchise. Today, at E3 2019, EA Sports revealed a new mode called Volta that will bring small-sided play to FIFA 20, which takes a cue from the FIFA Street series that launched in 2005. While we saw a glimpse of street football in FIFA 18, as part of The Journey campaign, this year's game will feature a fully fledged mode. In Volta, you can create your own character and play in cages and futsal pitches all around the world, including London, Amsterdam and Tokyo. The teams will be made up of three-to-five players, which you can play with your custom character or professional players, and you'll have both story and league modes.
EA announces E3 livestream schedule and 'Anthem' isn't on it
Electronic Arts revealed the schedule for this year's EA Play, its annual showcase of its flagship games that takes place during E3. The roughly three-hour livestream will air on June 8 and devote a segment each to six different EA titles; Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Apex Legends, Battlefield V, FIFA 20, Madden NFL 20 and The Sims 4. But what sticks out is the agenda's exclusion of Anthem, a decision probably made in the interest of optics. The much-anticipated BioWare shooter had a disastrous, bug-filled launch in April. Multiple patches have been released since then; the game's latest update was unveiled today. BioWare plans to drop some more Anthem-related news on May 30th during a separate livestream.
EA's long-awaited 'Sea of Solitude' arrives July 5th
EA's emotional adventure game Sea of Solitude has been a long time coming, and you'll finally get to delve into its story when it arrives on July 5th. It's a third-person journey in which you'll guide a young woman named Kay through a flooded city to help her overcome her loneliness. Along the way, you'll confront creatures and monsters, and tackle challenges to remove "tainted memories" from the world and reveal more light and color.
EA Access game subscription service finally comes to PS4
After nearly five years of being available only on Microsoft platforms, subscription gaming service EA Access is finally making the move to PlayStation 4. The service offers gamers previews of new EA titles, a sizable library of popular games and discounts on purchases. PS4 owners will be able to purchase a subscription for $4.99 per month or $29.99 per year through the PlayStation Store.
'Anthem' is proof that crunch can't save AAA games
Anthem is a fiery mess. Since launching in February, BioWare's loot shooter has been plagued by game-breaking bugs, narrative and gameplay inconsistencies and an overwhelming sense of incomplete blandness. Critically, Anthem has received middling reviews, and its current Metacritic score, 55, is the lowest a BioWare title has ever received. Yes, that includes Mass Effect: Andromeda. A report out of Kotaku this week helps explain why Anthem is in disarray, and it shines a light on a consistent and increasingly public issue in AAA development: crunch.
EA is the latest game publisher to make major layoffs
Just months after Activision laid off 8 percent of its workforce, EA is the latest AAA games publisher to announce its own job cuts. The company behind FIFA and recent blockbuster Apex Legends is letting 350 people go (roughly 4 percent of its workforce) from marketing, publishing and other areas, according to an internal email obtained by Kotaku. Those affected have reportedly been aware of looming layoffs since October and will be given severance. EA boss Andrew Wilson said in the email that the move would streamline decision-making in the affected departments and improve customer support.
EA reportedly paid Ninja $1 million to stream 'Apex Legends'
It's no secret that EA paid top streamers to promote (and to some extent, influence) Apex Legends, but how much did those streamers make? In one case, it might have been quite a lot. A Reuters source claimed that EA paid Ninja (aka Tyler Blevins) a cool $1 million to play the game on February 5th. He might not have been obligated to play for long, either. An EA spokesperson told Kotaku that any streamed gameplay after "midday" on February 5th was "completely organic" -- that is, they wanted to keep playing.
EA is the latest to nix its E3 press conference
When E3 kicks off later this year, Electronic Arts will be seen but not heard. The company announced today that it will be forgoing its standard press conference at the event. Instead, EA will be focused on EA Play, its annual showcase that will kick off Friday, June 7th -- a couple of days before E3 opens its doors on June 11th.
'Anthem' is reportedly bricking and shutting down PS4s (updated)
Gamers would love to play BioWare's new loot shooter Anthem but there's one problem: the game keeps shutting off their console. A number of players have taken to Reddit and other forums to complain that Anthem appears to be plagued with an issue that at best boots them to the main menu and at worst caused affected users to need to rebuild their PS4's disk database.
Watch the 'Anthem' prequel from the director of 'District 9'
A short film set in the world of BioWare's online shooter Anthem, which highlights some of the universe's lore, dropped on Thursday morning. Conviction is directed by Neill Blomkamp, a name you might recognize from District 9, Chappie, the ill-fated Halo movie or an upcoming RoboCop reboot.
In 'Madden 17' the LA Coliseum has one tiny problem
A legacy fan of the Madden sports game franchise made a disturbing discovery: In its latest version, Madden NFL 17, the evening sun is in the east, the absolute wrong side for it to set anywhere on planet Earth. It only happens during games set in Los Angeles at the Memorial Coliseum, which is the Rams' home stadium once again. Thus, the case is either an isolated aberration or a sly dig at how upside-down crazy it is that the team came back to Southern California after leaving it for St. Louis, Missouri 21 years ago.
'FIFA 17' marks a new beginning for the soccer franchise
I've been playing FIFA since its first title launched on Super Nintendo, when characters on the screen looked like nothing more than colorful stick figures. Nowadays, thanks to the power of modern gaming consoles, the visuals and gameplay are as close to the real thing as it gets. So much so, in fact, that oftentimes when FIFA is on my TV someone asks, "What game are you watching?" FIFA 17, which arrived yesterday in the US and lands tomorrow worldwide, is no exception.
The 'Battlefield 1' Premium Pass nets you four new expansions
Battlefield 1's upcoming Premium Pass was officially announced today, and it'll run you $49.99 if you want to add all four of the planned expansion packs to your collection.
EA shows off its stable of upcoming sports blockbusters
As expected, EA took the stage at E3 2015 to showcase the next installment of its popular sports franchises. That, of course, includes FIFA 16, Madden 16, NBA Live 16, NHL 16 and Rory McIlroy PGA Tour. This year, like most others, EA Sports is focusing on evolution rather than revolution, so people familiar with these titles won't notice any major change. But that's not to say some things haven't changed. In the case of FIFA 16, for example, there are all-new defensive mechanics, which will help you defend better ground against attacking players. For NBA 16, EA Sports revealed an app that can take your picture and then use it as a custom character's face -- the most impressive part about this is how it only takes a couple of minutes.
Here's how to watch EA's event at E3 2015
Now that Microsoft's done for the day with Xbox news, it is EA's turn to give us a glimpse at some of its future products. There's no doubt we'll learn more details about the company's upcoming sports titles, including FIFA 16, Madden 16 and UFC. Beyond that, though, EA will likely share additional info on Mirror's Edge: Catalyst, Star Wars: Battlefront and Mass Effect 4. And hey, don't be shocked if there are a few surprises along the way. EA is going to kick off the event at 4PM ET, and you can watch it live on its E3 Live to Play webpage as well as Twitch or YouTube -- video embed after the break.
