EA Wants to Change; Ambitious Studios With More Autonomy

Gamesindustry.biz published an interesting interview with Samantha Ryan, the manager of several devteams at Electronic Arts. Tthe conversation reveals a picture of the positive changes the publisher has made in terms of relations with its studios.

1. According to Ryan, EA's current goal is to give studios more autonomy. This includes how much say the people who lead these teams have, as well as what games they make.
2. Heads of studios now communicate directly with and answer to EA CEO Andrew Wilson. Previously, this was done through several indirect positions. As Ryan explains, people high up in the hierarchy of each studio are veterans who have often spent several decades in the industry. Therefore, they do not need close supervision. Such people are trustworthy and can find the right balance between their own passions and market realities.
3. On top of that, developers most simply do a better job when they tackle projects they care about. Ryan recalls that when she visited the team developing Star Wars: Squadrons, the creative director showed her pictures presenting the inside of the cockpit of a starfighter that he had drawn as a child.
4. The results of this approach are already visible. Full Circle studio is working on a new skate., while EA Motive is working on a Dead Space remake. These brands don't match the popularity of the publisher's biggest series, but they have numerous fans who have long been asking for new installments.
5. Ryan also wants to increase the transparency of the development process, so that the players can more easily follow the work on projects of interest to them. After all, their comments and suggestions help create better games, as well as catch problems early that would be very difficult to fix later. These are not just empty words. In the case of Skate. the released video footage comes from a very early version of the game, which is still missing even most of the textures. Many people from the fan community were also allowed into this release to see if the project was heading in the right direction.

It is worth noting that Samantha Ryan is talking about the studios of which she herself is a manager, namely BioWare, Full Circle, Maxis and Motive. These are teams that are not responsible for sports and racing games, as well as the Battlefield series. Groups that work on such projects are unlikely to enjoy the same freedom, at least in terms of choosing what projects they undertake.

The first effects of the changed approach, in the form of Star Wars: Squadrons, turned out to be quite successful, so there is a lot of promise for future games developed in this mode. We won't have to wait long for one of them - Dead Space will be released on January 27, 2023. In the case of Skate. no release date has been announced as of yet.

1. Dead Space Remake is Chance for Great Comeback
2. Star Wars: Squadrons Review – Finally, X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter Returns!

Dead Space

January 27, 2023

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• BioWare
• EA / Electronic Arts
• restructuring
• EA Motive / Motive Studios