In a recent financial call with investors, EA CEO Andrew Wilson firmly stated that the company has no intentions of increasing the price of its games, despite the recent moves by competitors like Microsoft and Nintendo to hike their game prices to $80. Wilson emphasized EA's commitment to providing "incredible quality and exponential value for our playerbase," highlighting the success of their co-op adventure game, Split Fiction, which has sold an impressive 4 million copies.
Wilson elaborated on the evolution of EA's business model over the past decade, noting a significant shift from traditional retail sales of "shiny discs in plastic boxes" to a more diverse pricing strategy that spans from free-to-play offerings to deluxe editions. He stressed that regardless of the price point, whether it's a dollar, $10, or $100, EA's goal remains to deliver exceptional quality and value to its players. This approach, according to Wilson, has proven to be a robust and growing business strategy.
Echoing Wilson's sentiments, EA's CFO Stuart Canfield confirmed that there are no planned changes to their current pricing strategy, as reflected in their financial guidance.
This announcement comes as a relief to many gamers, especially following Microsoft's recent decision to raise the prices of Xbox consoles, accessories, and some games. Microsoft's new pricing structure has already taken effect for hardware, with game prices expected to rise to $79.99 for new first-party titles around the holiday season. This trend of increasing game prices from $60 to $70, and now to $80 by some companies, has been evident in the AAA gaming industry over the last five years.
Nintendo's decision to price upcoming Switch 2 exclusive games, like Mario Kart World, at $80, along with setting the Switch 2 console at a steep $450, has drawn criticism from fans. However, industry analysts suggest that such price increases are inevitable given the current economic climate.
Given EA's stance on pricing, fans can anticipate that the next iterations of EA Sports FC, Madden, and Battlefield will maintain the standard $70 price point.
In other news, EA recently made significant layoffs, cutting around 100 jobs at Apex Legends developer Respawn Entertainment and affecting approximately 300 individuals across the organization, as reported by IGN last week.
