In a recent financial call with investors, EA's CEO Andrew Wilson firmly stated that the company has no intention of following the likes of Microsoft and Nintendo by raising the price of its games. Despite the industry trend where major players such as Microsoft and Nintendo have moved towards $80 price points for their latest releases, EA is committed to maintaining its current pricing strategy.
Wilson emphasized EA's focus on delivering "incredible quality and exponential value" for its player base, using the success of their co-op adventure game Split Fiction, which has sold 4 million copies, as a prime example. He pointed out the evolution of EA's business model over the past decade, moving away from traditional retail sales of physical copies to a more diverse pricing structure that includes free-to-play models, standard editions, and deluxe editions.
"In a world where everything we did 10 years ago was about selling shiny discs in plastic boxes on retail shelves — well, that's still a *part* of our business, it's a significantly smaller part of our business, and we now have pricing representing everything from free-to-play all the way to deluxe editions and beyond," Wilson elaborated. He stressed that regardless of the price point, from $1 to $100, EA's goal remains to ensure high quality and great value for players. Wilson believes that when quality and value are aligned, EA's business remains robust and continues to grow.
CFO Stuart Canfield reinforced this stance by stating that EA's current guidance reflects no changes in their pricing strategy. This news comes as a relief to many gamers, especially following last week's announcement from Microsoft about raising Xbox prices, including consoles, accessories, and upcoming first-party games set to retail at $79.99 during the holiday season.
The gaming industry has seen a significant price increase over the past five years, with AAA gaming titles jumping from $60 to $70, and Nintendo setting a new benchmark at $80 for its upcoming Switch 2 exclusives like Mario Kart World and other Switch 2 Edition games. The Switch 2 itself will launch at $450, a move that has sparked debate among fans and analysts, who see the price hike as inevitable amid current economic conditions.
Given EA's firm stance on pricing, fans can anticipate that the next iterations of EA Sports FC, Madden, and Battlefield will adhere to the established $70 price for standard editions. This comes amidst reports from IGN last week that EA cut around 100 jobs at Apex Legend developer Respawn Entertainment, with broader layoffs affecting approximately 300 individuals across the organization.
