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Moore talks digital distribution; disc-based business model 'a burning platform'

by Ben Gilbert { Oct 19th 2009 at 12:58PM }

EA Sports head honcho Peter Moore is all about digital distribution. During a panel on monetization at the PLAY Berkley Digital Media Conference this past weekend (as reported by IGN), Moore extolled the many virtues of a digitally distributed future, when discs are a long-forgotten remnant of an old business model. "I'd say the core business model of video games is a burning platform ... absolutely," Moore said.

Thankfully for all of us disc-owning fools, Moore doesn't believe we'll be seeing a digital distribution–exclusive business model next week. "As an industry, I still think we may be as many as a decade away from saying goodbye to physical discs," he said, positing that Microsoft would likely be the first to release a download-only console (surely, not to be confused with a digital-format portable system or pc-based device). In the meantime, EA continues to ship 125-130 million discs each year while moving toward Moore's envisioned future.

TGS 2009: Every major publisher 'actively working on games for Project Natal'

by Ben Gilbert { Sep 23rd 2009 at 9:00PM }

Kicking off Tokyo Game Show 2009 with a kick digitally translated into a game, Microsoft has announced massive industry support for upcoming motion device Project Natal. Trumpeting a laundry list of gaming industry all-stars from Activision to Ubisoft, it appears that every major publisher is in some way "actively working on games for Project Natal" (full list after the break).

Microsoft says publishers received development kits in early June and have been hard at work ever since. EA's Peter Moore thinks Natal "could fundamentally change the way people play sports games" while Capcom's Keiji Inafune says it "will expand the possibilities of gaming." In fact, Microsoft is so intent on proving that developers love it, the company is hosting a panel at TGS featuring the aforementioned Inafune, Sega's Toshihiro Nagoshi and Konami's Hideo Kojima.

Wait a minute, Kojima is working with Project Natal? But we can't do any of that crazy Raiden ninja stuff!

Continued →

Peter Moore looks back at the Dreamcast

by Justin McElroy { Sep 9th 2009 at 8:15PM }

With this being Sept. 9, 2009 and all, you're probably going to be seeing a lot of looks back at the Dreamcast, which burst forth from the belly of the Saturn's rotting corpse 10 years ago today. Well, that is until the embargo ends on the Dreamcast 2 announcement at 9 p.m. ... Oh, crap. Forget you heard anything.

To distract you, here are Peter Moore remembrances of the system (with a liberal dose of rationalizing EA's lack of support for it, of course). He also clears up the important point of who finally pulled the plug on the console. (No, not the PS2, wiseguy. And shame on you for speaking ill of the dead!)

[Thanks, Chris]

Moore: 'No plans right now' for new NASCAR installment

by Xav de Matos { Sep 4th 2009 at 2:00AM }

EA's time with the NASCAR series has come to an end, at least for the time being, says EA Sports boss Peter Moore. Speaking with GameSpot UK, Moore said that the sports division of the mega-publisher has "no plans right now" to develop a new NASCAR title. Since debuting in 1997, EA Sports has developed nearly 20 NASCAR based racing games -- ending with the Wii-exclusive NASCAR Kart Racing in early 2009.

According to Moore, the company was forced to make "tough trade-offs," sending an undisclosed number of NASCAR developers to work on the upcoming -- and controversial -- EA Sports MMA title. Thankfully, EA has filled any void we'd have for the loss of one racing franchise with no less than sixteen Need for Speed games by the end of 2010*.

*We're exaggerating. We hope.

Peter Moore asks for transparency in marketing, doesn't mind being called ugly

by Ben Gilbert { Aug 26th 2009 at 6:00AM }

"We're never not interacting with our community," Peter Moore recently claimed at the Edinburgh Interactive Festival, MCV UK reports. Apparently the EA Sports prez was advocating the need for more community engagement and developer transparency in the gaming industry, saying, "We needed to get away from the 'dark science' days of making games, when we'd just lob the consumer a screenshot on the odd afternoon."

It's reported that he also argued for early and frequent marketing for games, adding that some publishers still don't understand the necessity for sustained engagement. He posits that community interaction and openness is key, though Moore admits he's had to develop a "thick skin" due to some forumgoers on the EA Sports blogs calling him "ugly." Aww, sorry Peter. We still love ya, buddy!

Fox 'Fight Game' interviews Peter Moore on MMA, war with UFC

by Ben Gilbert { Aug 16th 2009 at 8:30PM }

Aside from stressing the amount of effort that EA Sports is currently putting into the development of upcoming grappler MMA, Peter Moore had nothing but kind words for the sport while talking to Fight Game host Mike Straka (full interview after the break). The real elephant in the room, though, is clearly the less than wonderful relationship between UFC prez Dana White and Moore's development studio -- but when he was asked about the subject, Moore shrugged it off. "Not really my issue ... Dana [White] had come to EA well before I was there."

In addition to doing his best to dodge any flame stoking on Straka's part, Moore pointed out the recent announcement of a newly signed Randy Couture to the game's roster, as well as Jay "The Thoroughbred" Hieron, bringing the MMA player count up to five if our math is right. Applying that same math to the amount of UFC fighters with jobs, the league seems to have just lost two more candidates. Can't we all just get along, fellas?

[Thanks, xFenixKnightx!]

Continued →

Activism: Moore 'delighted' to talk to female gamers

by Richard Mitchell { Aug 13th 2009 at 8:40PM }

Speaking at the Edinburgh Interactive Conference this week, Peter Moore explained how EA Sports changed its business strategy in order to address a growing female demographic. According to Moore, the arrival of the Wii changed everything, thanks to its focus on gameplay over graphics. "We didn't even have arms any more, never mind superior graphics," says more, adding that games "became more about getting up off the couch." This led EA Sports to change its business model.

Moore notes that EA pulled in $150 million "by talking to the female consumer and providing a solution to someone who perhaps can't get to a gym, or afford one, through EA Sports Active." He adds that it's "not only great business" for EA, but it's "changing people's lives through a game." He concludes that EA is "delighted" to be talking to girls and women.

We'll bet the company is delighted. So delighted that it "indefinitely" delayed the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions Grand Slam Tennis in order to push out an expansion for EA Sports Active.

Metareview: The Conduit (Wii)

by Ben Gilbert { Jun 24th 2009 at 1:31PM }

While you're patiently waiting for the end of the week so you can cash that paycheck and pick up High Voltage Software's The Conduit for your Nintendo Wii, why not take a gander at what the rest of the interweb had to say about the game? Considering the lack of correlation between Metacritic scores and the sales numbers of Wii games, though -- at least according to Peter Moore -- you probably shouldn't let these numbers get to you too much.

GamePro (70): "The Conduit is the closest you will get to recapturing the magic of Goldeneye ... To be blunt, The Conduit is a by the numbers shooter that offers a couple of thrills but ultimately doesn't make much of an impact ... anyone who loved Goldeneye will want to give a look as well if only to get a nice dose of nostalgia, but the rest of you shouldn't feel a need to abandon your favorite next-gen shooter for this one."
GamesRadar (80): "The Conduit is fun, controls well, and is, at times, quite beautiful ... Both humans and alien drones are animated with competent physics and personality that puts High Voltage Software's Quantum3 engine outside the realm of the "GameCube 1.5" criticisms ... The truth is you probably wouldn't bat an eye at The Conduit had it appeared on PC, PS3 or Xbox 360 ... The solid, yet unremarkable single-player won't win any awards, but The Conduit still features the most finely honed online outings available on Wii."
IGN (86): "The Conduit is not a revolutionary first-person shooter, but it's a damned good one ... the title features the tightest, most comfortable control scheme of any console-based first-person shooter to date ... The Conduit features a robust list of modes and maps to play online and nearly 20 weapons to use as you rip through arenas blasting foes ... it's not revolutionary, but The Conduit is a great first-person shooter designed just for Wii owners."

Gallery: The Conduit

Peter Moore on the state of EA Sports, motion control

by Richard Mitchell { Jun 22nd 2009 at 11:30PM }

Gamasutra has published a very lengthy interview with EA Sports guru Peter Moore, in which he discusses the current plans of the label and the strategies behind sports game development and publishing. Perhaps most interesting are Moore's thoughts on the new motion control technology revealed by Sony and Microsoft during E3. Moore speaks about the possibilities of the new motion controllers, saying they will impact EA Sports "very positively."

Moore says that the company is already making plans to bring its "licensed product" and its "fitness product" to these new interfaces. Specifically, Moore imagines how a game like Fight Night or the upcoming EA Sports MMA would work with them, saying, "if it were in a first-person mode it would be very very cool." Agreed. He calls the new motion controllers a "huge opportunity."

Other topics in the interview range from the possibilities for smaller, regional titles (like cricket), the future of the Madden series and how EA plans to keep EA Sports Active ... um ... active in consumers' minds. Incidentally, this is the same interview in which Moore stated that Metacritic scores aren't necessarily relevant to the sales of Wii titles.

Lost Winds dev: Reviewers are a problem with low Wii metacritic scores

by Ben Gilbert { Jun 19th 2009 at 4:30PM }

Apparently, for the Nintendo Wii (according to Lost Winds developer David Braben), the folks reviewing Wii games are the wrong people for the job. Responding to comments made by EA Sports' Peter Moore earlier this month regarding low metacritic scores for Wii games and its less than serious effect on sales numbers of said games, Frontier Developments head David Braben told Eurogamer that, "Most reviewers are what are often called 'core gamers' - and these family-focused games tend to appeal less to them."

And he makes a good point. If Joystiq's readership is primarily "core gamers," what's the point in covering casual fare meant for more mainstream crowds? Braben continues, "It throws up a difficult dilemma for those reviewers ... are they reviewing the game for those people likely to play it, or for those people who form the bulk of their readership?" We put it to you, Joystiq loyalists: Continue to cover games intended for a "casual," more mainstream audience (as well as more "hardcore" titles), or focus on "core" games coverage exclusively?

[Image credit]

The industry chimes in on the importance of reviews for Wii games

by JC Fletcher { Jun 18th 2009 at 9:35AM }

Various industry figures have come out in support of Peter Moore's claims that review scores don't impact the success of Wii games. One developer told Eurogamer that how a Wii game does is contingent entirely upon marketing, calling Wii games "pure risk." "A lot of these games that you think are the perfect game for Wii don't sell because companies don't have the money to market them," the developer said. "Whereas Nintendo is spending gazillions of dollars marketing their games."

Michael Pachter suggested that review scores aren't important because many Wii owners don't read reviews. ""I think that Metacritic scores are irrelevant for people who don't look at them - how's that for obvious?" Pachter said. "While there are many Wii owners who are hardcore and who care very much about scores, there are many - perhaps half - who are quite casual, and wouldn't know Metacritic if it fell on them." He offered games like Carnival Games and Jillian Michaels Fitness Ultimatum as examples of successful titles with little critical acclaim.

However, 2D Boy's Kyle Gabler offers an instance in which Metacritic scores and reviews do make a difference: indie games, like his own World of Goo, which happens to be the third highest-rated game on Wii. He compares mainstream games to Will Smith movies, which draw audiences without reviews.

"But for indie guys like us, Metacritic and review scores matter a lot," Gabler said. "In fact we link directly to them from our web site. So does Steam. It makes a lot of sense - potential players don't feel comfortable dishing out cash for some random unknown indie game without an aggregate thumbs-up from solid reviewers."

Moore says Metacritic not so relevant to Wii sales

by Justin McElroy { Jun 10th 2009 at 1:00PM }

We've heard stories of PR reps and devs obsessing over Metacritic scores, but EA Sports' Peter Moore's not sweating them, at least when it comes to Wii games. Noting that some titles in the low 70s can still move millions upon millions of units, Moore says that the people buying casual games and health titles like EA Sports Active aren't getting their info from Metacritic.

Moore's bigger concern? User reviews on Amazon. We'd like to snicker, but that's how we buy vacuums, so what do we know?

Peter Moore looks for E3 to 'return to its roots'

by Justin McElroy { May 28th 2009 at 11:00PM }

Our old buddy Peter Moore doesn't spit fire as often as he used to now that he's at EA Sports. But that doesn't mean he won't bring it on occasion. Why look, just recently, Moore told MCV that he wanted E3 to reclaim its "strut and swagger" explaining "If there was ever a time when our industry needs to look confident and optimistic, it is now."

Moore was openly hostile to the expo last year, calling it "soulless." Whether or not this year's iteration will have enough soul for P-Moore will remain to be seen until next week.

Peter Moore to deliver opening keynote at EIF 2009

by Richard Mitchell { May 19th 2009 at 7:30PM }

MCV reports that Peter Moore, head of EA Sports, will be delivering the opening keynote of the Edinburgh Interactive Festival this year. Moore's address will discuss the reshaping of the EA Sports brand, which has recently expanded its casual offerings, most notably with EA Sports Active and the All Play series of sports games. Considering Moore's role in crafting the new EA Sports, his panache and his ... um ... British-ness, we'd say he's a crackerjack pick for the festival.

Our personal advice for Peter's address: You might want to skip the whole Facebreaker thing.

Peter Moore on digital distribution, used game sales

by Richard Mitchell { May 5th 2009 at 3:00AM }

Speaking to GI.biz, Peter Moore shared some of his thoughts on digital distribution and the future of games at retail. When asked whether we might see a day when yearly sports titles are released as downloadable patches instead of on retail discs, Moore said that Electronic Arts is trying many different things in the online space -- such as 3-on-3 NHL Arcade and NCAA March Madness Edition -- but has "no plans" to change its core business model. Moore stated further that moving to an update-only model for annual sports titles is "not as easy as it sounds" and that the data in a new sports title amounts to much more than a simple patch.

Still, Moore believes -- as he did in his Dreamcast days -- that online is the future of the gaming business. Concerning retail, Moore noted that things like Xbox Live subscription cards are a good way for retailers to become part of online distribution. Regarding used games, Moore doesn't seem concerned with putting a stop to the practice, instead saying that publishers must find ways to monetize such consumers. Said Moore, "They still log-on, and we get access to them, so how do we sell them stuff?"

Our suggestion: Rename all EA sports games Madden. That ought to do it.