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The Game Archaeologist: EA's Majestic
"This is not a game. Or is it?" Conspiracy theories and paranoia were hot with pop culture in the 1990s, largely thanks to movies like The Net and TV shows like the X-Files, which had the tagline of "I want to believe." With the rise of the internet during the decade and the fantastic leaps and bounds technology had been making, people were not only experiencing new ways to play games but also growing suspicious that these tools could have a sinister side. It was into this niche that EA stepped to create an ambitious $20 million project that would fuse massively multiplayer interactivity, the growing variety of technological mediums, and conspiracy theories together. The project was Majestic, an alternate reality game (ARG) that would be the most expensive and highest profile attempt to date. It generated great amounts of interest and publicity, had a promising start, and then flared out hard by the end of 2001. Considering how ARGs and MMOs have crossed paths since, most recently with The Secret World, I wanted to take a closer look at an attempt to develop a game that would run parallel in many ways with the industry that we love today.
EA planning upcoming layoffs, 'completed by September 30, 2012'
EA today confirmed plans to enact a "restructuring" among its employees, resulting in an unnamed number of layoffs companywide. The restructuring is part of EA CEO John Riccitiello's move toward digital – an initiative that aims to alter the composition of EA's staff from one in eight engineers to one in two.The California-based publisher will incur a variety of expenses related to its upcoming plans, to the tune of "approximately $40 million in total costs." Ouch! Making things more painful is the fact that $23 million of that total is planned for "severance and other employee-related costs" – a number that'll be (conveniently) reflected in next year's financials.As recently as a few weeks ago, EA outright denied reports of upcoming layoffs. Those reports put the number at 5 to 10 percent of EA's workforce, or approximately 500 to 1,000 employees. EA corporate rep Jeff Brown told Joystiq that the restructuring "impacts a relatively small number of EA's 9,000 employees." He added, "Most importantly, EA is hiring and we expect to finish the year with more employees, not fewer."Update: During EA's financial call this afternoon, the company got more specific on restructuring numbers. Regardless of layoffs, EA expects to grow its current headcount of approximately 9,200 employees to 9,700 by the end of fiscal 2013 (ending March 31, 2013).
EA explains lack of SOPA stance
Responding to a Reddit reader, Electronic Arts corporate communication head Jeff Brown has detailed the publisher's lack of position on the "Stop Online Piracy Act" (SOPA). "EA has not expressed a position on SOPA," Brown wrote in the letter, noting there was confusion over the holiday about the company's stance on the bill. "We never supported so, naturally, never withdrew. We tried to correct the record but there is still plenty of confusion." "The game industry's representatives in Washington, Entertainment Software Association, has expressed support for SOPA ... OK true, EA is a member of ESA, and ESA supports SOPA, but we don't think that implies our support. Among ESA members, some support, some oppose, some take no position." SOPA is currently shelved while the House "address outstanding concerns and work to build consensus."
NYT: Video-game companies take lucrative advantage of US tax code, especially EA
If the United States tax code were cheese, it would be more Swiss than American -- tax breaks and incentives for software development, research and technological advancement were established to promote an intellectual advantage in the US, and video-game companies are in a unique position to take full advantage of federal funding, especially EA, The New York Times reports. EA boasts $1.2 billion in global profits over the past five years -- which is technically a net loss, after deferred revenue, executive-stock-option deductions and other accounting necessities, including a payout of $98 million, cash, in taxes worldwide. The US federal tax rate on any company is 35 percent, but that's before the creative accounting. In 2004, EA hired Glen Kohl, formerly an employee of the Treasury Department under President Clinton, to make the most of its tax incentivies. Kohl has since lobbied for federal tax breaks on domestic production and established offshore subsidiaries in low-tax countries. EA now has 50 offshore subsidiaries in countries such as Bermuda, Singapore and Mauritius, and holds $1.3 billion in offshore funds that won't be taxed unless brought into the US. EA spokesman Jeff Brown justified EA's monetary exportation as a consequence of running an international business:
EA calls Activision's legal claims 'deliberate misdirection'
In light of last night's revised lawsuit announcement by Activision, Electronic Arts corporate spokesperson Jeff Brown responded on behalf of his company, characterizing the announcement to the LA Times as "a PR [public relations] play filled with pettiness and deliberate misdirection." The revised suit added EA as defendants in the case between Activision and West/Zampella, citing several alleged interactions between the ex-Infinity Ward heads and EA, a relationship said to have been fostered by talent agency CAA. Brown continued, accusing Activision of attempting to "hide the fact that they have no credible response to the claim of the two artists who were fired." He further contends that West and Zampella "now just want to get paid for their work." Unfortunately, it seems for all parties involved that this whole affair is a bit far beyond the basic reconciliation point.
'Seasonal roll-offs' hit EA for third year in a row
Following scattered reports of EA layoffs on Twitter, Joystiq confirmed with the company this afternoon that "seasonal roll-offs" have begun in the wake of the publisher's holiday release schedule. EA corporate communication spokesperson Jeff Brown explained: "As you know, seasonal roll-offs that follow game launches are common and vital to maintaining a healthy business. Because so many of our games ship in the holiday quarter, the team size adjustments tend to follow in the same timeframe. However, EA is growing and several of our studios are looking to hire talented people." Notably, this is (at least) the third year in a row that layoffs hit EA in the holiday season -- also like previous years, we'll have to wait and hear more when the company speaks about financials publicly on its quarterly investor's call this November 2. For now, EA wouldn't confirm which studios or how many folks were being affected by the firings. As always, we'd like to extend our best wishes to all parties involved. If you'd like to share more information regarding the layoffs, don't hesitate to get in contact. Update: According to a report on Shacknews, "as many as 100 employees" have been affected thus far, with EA Canada and EA Black Box both specifically named. The NBA Elite 11 and Skate 3 teams are said to be hit hardest.
Military base GameStops reconsidering Medal of Honor sales
On the heels of this morning's announcement that Medal of Honor's multiplayer mode swapped the "Taliban" moniker in favor of "Opposing Force," we asked GameStop and the Army and Air Force Exchange Service if they would now allow the sale of the title on military bases. A representative for GameStop referred us to the AAFES, refusing to give comment and suggesting that we should check if the the military retailer's "position had changed." A representative from the AAFES told us that the service is "aware of reported changes to the latest Medal of Honor game" and that "the organization has been, and continues to be, engaged in a thorough review to fully understand the extent of the modifications." EA's Jeff Brown noted that the publisher isn't directly asking to "rescind the ban on the game," but did send the AAFES a letter last month "clarifying some facts about Medal of Honor." It seems there's still a possibility that this October's release will be available on military bases after all.
Activision and EA trade barbs over corporate cultures
Activision's Bobby Kotick and EA's Jeff Brown engaged in a little Battlefield of Duty: Corporate Warfare 2 match this week, lobbing sound bites back and forth at each other. Kotick was first, boasting in the latest issue of Edge (via Next-Gen.biz) that his company allows its studios to maintain their independent cultures; citing Treyarch, the embattled Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games as examples. Kotick suggested that EA doesn't offer this luxury, and that's why Activision has successfully hired developers from its competitor's ranks. "We have no shortage of opportunity to recruit out of EA," he said. "That's their biggest challenge: Its stock options have no value. It's lost its way." Of course, Brown, EA's corp comm VP, was quick to respond: "[Kotick's] company is based on three game franchises -- one is a fantastic persistent world he had nothing to do with; one is in steep decline; and the third is in the process of being destroyed by Kotick's own hubris." Though Brown didn't clarify which franchises he was referring to, we'll throw out three names for you -- and you can play the matching game! Here goes: Guitar Hero, Call of Duty and World of Warcraft. The two suits probably had more to say to each other, but at that point the other players muted them both, and a few seconds later the actual match started up.
EA: Activision shot its prize horse
We're fully ready to stop caring about the whole EA/Activision/Infinity Ward split nonsense, but until Larry King's divorce gets even mildly scintillating, there really aren't many choices out there. So here's this: Upon the news that Activision was raising its Q1 fiscal outlook based on strong sales of Modern Warfare 2 DLC, EA spokesperson Jeff Brown told IndustryGamers, "This is kind of like announcing: The race horse I shot last month has won the Triple Crown!" [emphasis his]. You know, we're all for internet civility, but you've got to admit, that's pretty funny, right? We think even BK would be like "Ahh, you got me, JB. You got me."
Activision blasts West and Zampella in countersuit [Update: Activision responds!]
Update: Activision offered this statement regarding the lawsuit: "Activision's cross-complaint filed today against Jason West and Vince Zampella makes clear that the company did not arrive at its decision to fire them lightly or without good reason. It further shows Activision was forced to sever the relationship when it became apparent that long-standing attempts failed to convince West and Zampella to conform their conduct to what was required of them by their contracts, company policies and as fiduciaries." Original: You probably already know all about the firing and subsequent lawsuit filed against publisher Activision by ex-Infinity Ward co-heads Jason West and Vince Zampella, but did you know about the countersuit filed by Activision against the duo in the Los Angeles Superior Court this morning? LA Times' Company Town blog got its eyes on the suit, which contends West and Zampella "morphed from valued, responsible executives into insubordinate and self-serving schemers who attempted to hijack Activision's assets for their own personal gain." The suit further details that specific allegation, claiming the two took, "a secret trip by private jet to Northern California, arranged by their Hollywood agent, to meet with the most senior executives of Activision's closest competitor," who we're understanding to be the Redwood Shores-based Electronic Arts. When asked for comment about the allegations, EA spokesperson Jeff Brown responded (with this totally sick burn), "We don't have the time to comment on the many lawsuits Activision files against its employees and creative partners." If all of that wasn't enough, the 23-page document also claims that West and Zampella "delayed pre-production" of a third Modern Warfare game, and tried to "prevent Activision from awarding additional compensation to [IW] team members" so that the two could easily poach former co-workers from Infinity Ward. Whoa whoa whoa, another Modern Warfare game you say? Madness!
EA's Jeff Brown agrees with Sony -- not arrogant
Recently, GamesIndustry.biz had the honor of interviewing EA's Jeff Brown, VP of corporate communications. A lot of the interview is the generic blah blah blah about the upcoming console wars, EA's game lineup, whatever. The meat of this article is when GamesIndustry starts asking about Mr. Brown's take on the PS3. About the price point, Jeff assured us "we know this as fact: Sony Computer Entertainment and Sony Corporation are very, very, very good at marketing consumer electronics. These guys aren't dumb." Well... okay, Jeff. They can't be too dumb since they've been the market leader for a little over a decade. Just answer the question -- "Is it a little high? Perhaps it is, but I would never underestimate their ability to market consumer electronics." Thanks.The next question was about Sony's arrogance in telling consumers they are getting a lot of hardware for their money, to the point of the PS3 being cheap. So, Jeff, will that arrogance damage the Sony brand? Is that fair criticism? "I don't think it's fair. And at the risk of sounding arrogant myself, I don't think it's relevant." He goes on to explain the troubles most, if not all, systems have at launch. Shortages, glitches, whatever. Bouncing back is what matters and that will take a year to accurately judge.There you have it -- Jeff Brown says saying Sony is arrogant isn't fair and the criticism isn't relevant. We really do have to wait for the truth, because all of this he said, she said is just that -- speculation. No one knows better than the next person, but it is clear that out of all the hurdles systems have had to overcome around launch, Sony is dealing with a lot. A lot.[creds to "Fan" for this tidbit!]
