Awww.....Poor EA

[tgb]

Couldn't have happened to a nicer company.

While I feel bad for the employees that have been laid off, karma's a bitch.

[lch]

They lay of people because of "higher marketing costs"? Bah.

[LawBeefaroni]

It's going to happen to a lot more companies, nice or otherwise. Note the retail numbers in the ERTS story.

Consumer cut in spending the most since 1980
By JEANNINE AVERSA – 56 minutes ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — Scared and out of money, Americans stopped buying everything from cars to corn flakes in the July-September quarter, ratcheting back spending by the largest amount in 28 years and jolting the national economy into what could be the most painful recession in decades.

With retailers bracing for a grim holiday buying season, the economy isn't just slowing; it's actually shrinking, the government confirmed Thursday. It reported that the nation's gross domestic product declined at an annual rate of 0.3 percent in the year's third quarter and consumers' disposable income took its biggest drop on record.

Hey, 1980...that's the last time the Phillies won the World Series. CURSE YOU PHILLIES!

[killbot737]

Maybe if they stopped paying people to make unskippable "EA Games - Challenge Everything!" intro videos they'd be in the black.

Boo Hoo.

Well, if you're on the wrong end of that I feel bad. Go kill some executives or something, just be sneaky about it!

For example: figure out where they vacation and find a way for them not to return. Most goobs don't understand how to stage a proper accident! Not that I know about such things.

[LawBeefaroni]

Not that I know about such things.

No, I don't suppose a killbot would.

[Brian]

yeah but it's not the people driving the company into the ground and making all the wrong decisions regarding DRM and such that are going to suffer from these layoffs. It's Joe programmer who's just trying to make a good game.

The job cuts will amount to between 500 to 600 positions across all functions and locations, EA said.

Sure. How many exec positions are included in that?

[Butterknife]

yeah but it's not the people driving the company into the ground and making all the wrong decisions regarding DRM and such that are going to suffer from these layoffs. It's Joe programmer who's just trying to make a good game.

I'm still here. For today at least.

[pad152]

Couldn't have happened to a nicer company.

While I feel bad for the employees that have been laid off, karma's a bitch.

100% agree!

With their Nazi control (you can only play the game you bought if we like you or let you) scheme and recent screwed up release of Red Alert, I'd say they are batting a 1000! Laying people off so they can hire more lawyer's because their gona need them, I bet we'll some class action law suites in 09 comming their way!

I hear their next game will be Sim Nazi's where you play the part of EA executives!

[Jeff V]

And yet their copy protection schemes have nothing to do with this. The article references Spore as being a big hit for them. The results are from a quarter that is seasonably slow in sales, but high in costs (it's when the Xmas releases are being finalized). Last summer, not many predicted the sort of economic crash we've had. Now revenue has to be anticipated to be much lower since by all accounts this is going to be a sucky season for retail. Johnny R. likes wiping his ass with wads of cash, and he'll try to keep the stockholders as happy as possible, even if it means cutting bodies at a time where they might ordinarily ride the wave until the next product cycle. On top of this, given the economic forecast, there will probably be less projects funded in the near future...and I bet they will be pretty profitable ones.

The only way they will ever be hurt by their copy protection choice is if gamers make a concerted effort to boycott such products. They have yet to display such a backbone. They bitch and moan and by the game anyway. EA knows this. Johnny R. is in your head.

[GreenGoo]

Meh. I stopped buying their games years ago.

Probably would have bought Spore without the DRM. One lost sale due to DRM. What's that gonna do? Nothing. Yet it's a sale they would have had. Oh well.

[hitbyambulance]

Meh. I stopped buying their games years ago.

Probably would have bought Spore without the DRM. One lost sale due to DRM. What's that gonna do? Nothing. Yet it's a sale they would have had. Oh well.

this is what i was going to say. haven't purchased anything new from EA for ages - was going to make an exception for Spore, but... oh well.

[Greybriar]

I haven't purchased any EA games since I learned of EA's use of draconic DRMs.

It should be noted that there are four SecuROM lawsuits pending against Electronic Arts that I am currently aware of.

[Rip]

Arise!

We have much EA hatred spread across many threads on the forum but I thought it would be fun to resurrect an older one.



Awsomesauce

[AWS260]

Don't forget to vote.

[LordMortis]

I just can't get worked up of EA. Maybe I could if I bought one of their games in the last decade or longer. I think DKII was the last EA game I bought and I loved it.

Although now that we mention it, I think DKII forced me to buy new CD players to play it because my existing CD players wouldn't read the disk with Secure ROM or whatever it was with the icon of the jail on it and that was possibly what stopped me from ever buying a EA game again. I had four machines and CD players started at about $50 a piece at the time and replacing them was inconceivable to me.

Edit:

Safedisc

http://theodor.lauppert.ws/games/dk2.htm" target="_blank

Suddenly I'm worked up again.

[Rip]

I just can't get worked up of EA. Maybe I could if I bought one of their games in the last decade or longer. I think DKII was the last EA game I bought and I loved it.

Although now that we mention it, I think DKII forced me to buy new CD players to play it because my existing CD players wouldn't read the disk with Secure ROM or whatever it was with the icon of the jail on it and that was possibly what stopped me from ever buying a EA game again. I had four machines and CD players started at about $50 a piece at the time and replacing them was inconceivable to me.

Edit:

Safedisc

http://theodor.lauppert.ws/games/dk2.htm" target="_blank

Suddenly I'm worked up again.

I was just about to say easy now with researching the memories you may find yourself turning back green.

[Rip]

Don't forget to vote.

EA got my vote. SimCity secured it if there had been any doubt. Although I think I hate them enough for pulling the PC sporting titles I may have voted for them anyway. I am so down on them right now I have half a mind to trounce on forum protocol and encourage people to vote for them in EBG.


Breath....breath...breath.......breath.....

[naednek]

If it was for worst gaming company then ya, I agree, but company in general? I'm sure there's much worse out there.