Former Electronic Arts President and COO John Riccitello is returning to the publishing behemoth. On April 2, Riccitello will become the new chief executive officer, while current EA CEO Larry Probst will stay on as executive chairman of the board of directors.Probst held the position of Big Kahuna since 1991. During his time, the company has steadily solidified its position as supreme being in the world of game publishing, made seven more Madden iterations, saw firsthand the awe-inspiring financial powerhouse that is Will Wright's The Sims (and its subsequent sequels / expansion packs) and who at one point abstained from letting EA publish M-rated titles. (The latter position did not last: EA's first M-rated title was Quake III for the PlayStation 2 in 2000.)
Riccitello left EA in 2004 to co-found Elevation Partners with, among others, U2 singer Bono. Elevation Partners created a "super developer" through the purchase and merger of Pandemic and BioWare in late 2005.
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