Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com Joystiq http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2013 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Report: EA layoffs at EA Mobile India, Playfish]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/04/17/report-ea-layoffs-at-ea-mobile-india-playfish/http://www.joystiq.com/2013/04/17/report-ea-layoffs-at-ea-mobile-india-playfish/http://www.joystiq.com/2013/04/17/report-ea-layoffs-at-ea-mobile-india-playfish/#comments EA retiring Playfish Facebook gamesThe Electronic Arts layoff waves continue, with cuts reported at EA Hyderabad (India) and Playfish.

MCV India reports 50 employees were let go at the India mobile studio. As has been standard ops for EA during these layoff rounds, the company acknowledged there were cuts, but wouldn't discuss specifics.

Develop reports there have also been layoffs at social games developer Playfish, which isn't surprising since Playfish appears to have no games in production or to support following Monday's sunset announcements. EA bought Playfish for $300 million in 2009 (entering a "strategic" five year deal with Facebook in 2010). Again, there is no official count of how many employees have been let go.

Based on rough estimates following last week's layoffs, including the latest information and sources speaking under condition of anonymity, it appears EA has let go of over 300 employees (full-time and contract) this past week.

If you're a member of an affected team at EA, please don't hesitate to reach out.

JoystiqReport: EA layoffs at EA Mobile India, Playfish originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 17 Apr 2013 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>eaEA-Hyderabadea-indiaelectronic-artsindialayoffsmobilepcplayfishWed, 17 Apr 2013 07:30:00 EST<![CDATA[EA retiring Playfish Facebook games [update]]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/04/15/ea-retiring-playfish-facebook-games/http://www.joystiq.com/2013/04/15/ea-retiring-playfish-facebook-games/http://www.joystiq.com/2013/04/15/ea-retiring-playfish-facebook-games/#comments EA retiring Playfish Facebook gamesSimCity Social, The Sims Social, and Pet Society are going offline on June 14, EA announced this morning. The three Playfish Facebook games are being retired after player counts and activity fell off, EA said. Today's news means all of Playfish's Facebook games, according to the EA subsidiary's website, have either shut down or are scheduled to - with the exception of Madden Social 13, which an EA press release notes as developed by EA Tiburon.

EA bought Playfish for $300 million in 2009 before signing a "strategic" five year deal with Facebook in 2010. However, a number of executives have since left the EA brand, including co-founders Sebastian de Halleux, Sam Lababidi, and Kristian Stregerstale.

The announcement follows EA layoffs last week, with over 160 employees let go from EA Mobile Montreal. In addition, there are reports of closures of a studio in London, where Playfish is based, along with closures at EA Mobile Brazil and BioWare Social. We also have information of support staff being let go in London and then there's a question about the extent of the EA Galway support center layoffs.

We've reached out to EA for comment.

Update: An EA spokesperson informs Joystiq the company "won't be commenting on the status of Playfish."

Continue reading EA retiring Playfish Facebook games [update]

JoystiqEA retiring Playfish Facebook games [update] originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 15 Apr 2013 08:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>eafacebookmaxispcplayfishMon, 15 Apr 2013 08:25:00 EST<![CDATA[EA's Digital EVP and Playfish co-founder departs]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/28/eas-digital-evp-and-playfish-co-founder-departs/http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/28/eas-digital-evp-and-playfish-co-founder-departs/http://www.joystiq.com/2013/02/28/eas-digital-evp-and-playfish-co-founder-departs/#comments EA's Digital EVP and Playfish cofounder departsKristian Segerstrale has left Electronic Arts, where he served as the head of the EA Digital team and was responsible for overseeing most of EA's games-as-services, including Sim City Social. Segerstrale had joined the company as a co-founder of Playfish, which EA picked up about four years ago for $300 million. The division has been leaking executives, with two of Playfish's other co-founders leaving last year.

With Segerstrale's departure, EA Digital will be transferred under the direction of good old Peter Moore, who will now oversee all of EA's revenue groups, including Global Publishing, Global Media Solutions, Worldwide Customer Experience, and Mobile and Social Publishing. That's a lot of responsibility already, but you know Peter - he can always do Moore.

JoystiqEA's Digital EVP and Playfish co-founder departs originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 28 Feb 2013 05:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>eaea-digitalexecutiveexecutive-vpKristian-Segerstralepcpeter-mooreplayfishrevenuesocialThu, 28 Feb 2013 05:00:00 EST<![CDATA[SimCity Social, a Facebook game you may actually care about, launches today]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/25/simcity-social-a-facebook-game-you-may-actually-care-about-lau/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/25/simcity-social-a-facebook-game-you-may-actually-care-about-lau/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/25/simcity-social-a-facebook-game-you-may-actually-care-about-lau/#comments In writing this post informing you that SimCity Social is now live (in "open beta") on Facebook, I may or may not have played SimCity Social for 25 minutes without realizing it. And then I discovered full screen mode, which makes it look even more like SimCity.

What I'm trying to tell you is that the game is live. And that I want to go play more of it. Because it's SimCity. You should probably check it out too, right here.

Perhaps you'd like to know more before proceeding? We've got that covered too!

JoystiqSimCity Social, a Facebook game you may actually care about, launches today originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 25 Jun 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>eaea-maxiselectronic-artsfacebookmacmaxispcplayfishq3-2012release-datesimcity-socialMon, 25 Jun 2012 15:00:00 EST<![CDATA[SimCity Social: balancing depth and accessibility]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/22/simcity-social-balancing-depth-and-accessibility/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/22/simcity-social-balancing-depth-and-accessibility/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/22/simcity-social-balancing-depth-and-accessibility/#comments SimCity Social balancing depth and accessibilityBeneath SimCity Social's cartoony aesthetic, its inviting pixel population of cosmetic wonders and attractions, lies a core gaming experience familiar to the franchise. This isn't FarmVille; it's "real city-building simulation on Facebook" that EA Maxis hopes people will "appreciate and understand."

Both EA Maxis and Playfish Beijing are working on SimCity Social, which employs key aspects of popular social gaming on Facebook married to some of the core strategy of the series. But it's not just SimCity 2000 crammed onto Facebook - even if that's what it may look like.

Continue reading SimCity Social: balancing depth and accessibility

JoystiqSimCity Social: balancing depth and accessibility originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 22 Jun 2012 16:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>eaea-maxismacpcplayfishplayfish-beijingsimcity-socialFri, 22 Jun 2012 16:10:00 EST<![CDATA[Send giant birds to poop on your friends in SimCity Social]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/16/send-giant-birds-to-poop-on-your-friends-in-simcity-social/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/16/send-giant-birds-to-poop-on-your-friends-in-simcity-social/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/16/send-giant-birds-to-poop-on-your-friends-in-simcity-social/#comments Send giant birds to poop on your friends in SimCity Social
We've taken two major points away from the SimCity Social producer diary above. First off, the game is looking an awful lot like SimCity 2000, which is a good thing in our book. Secondly, SimCity Social makes it possible to send a squadron of massive birds, flying in formation, to take major dumps all over your friends' cities.

We're going to spend literally one hundred percent of our time making that happen once the game launches on Facebook, which is said to happen sometime in the coming weeks.

JoystiqSend giant birds to poop on your friends in SimCity Social originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 16 Jun 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>EAElectronic-ArtsFacebookmacMaxispcPlayfishsimcity-2000simcity-socialSat, 16 Jun 2012 12:00:00 EST<![CDATA[EA's Playfish VP finds another social group in Accel Partners]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/01/29/eas-playfish-vp-finds-another-social-group-in-accel-partners/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/01/29/eas-playfish-vp-finds-another-social-group-in-accel-partners/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/01/29/eas-playfish-vp-finds-another-social-group-in-accel-partners/#comments John Earner, general manager of the London branch of social-games subsidary Playfish, has left to join venture capital Accel Partners. Playfish runs EA's Facebook offerings, including The Sims Social, FIFA Superstars and Restaurant City, which Earner oversaw development of in England. Earner will serve as an entrepreneur in residence at Accel, one of Playfish's investors.

Playfish lost two of its co-founders in March 2011 -- although both still serve as consultants to EA -- and EA Interactive's Barry Cottle was picked up by Zynga earlier this month.

JoystiqEA's Playfish VP finds another social group in Accel Partners originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 29 Jan 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>John-EarnerpcPlayfishthe-sims-socialSun, 29 Jan 2012 15:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Risk: Factions coming to Facebook, bringing special faction-based weapons]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/07/07/risk-factions-coming-to-facebook-bringing-special-faction-base/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/07/07/risk-factions-coming-to-facebook-bringing-special-faction-base/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/07/07/risk-factions-coming-to-facebook-bringing-special-faction-base/#comments EA just announced at its Summer Showcase that it will bring its downloadable version of the timeless strategic board game, Risk: Factions, to Facebook this summer. The title will feature the same competitive multiplayer components of its XBLA, PSN and PC counterpart, and will add "special weapons" to help distinguish each of the different factions therein. For instance, humans will have an ability that boosts their attack, while zombies have a weapon which makes them "better brain-eaters." (Sharper teeth, we guess?)

Risk: Factions is currently in closed beta, meaning we should find out how these new special abilities influence the game's tightly-balanced strategy soon enough. All the tactics in the world can't overcome razor-sharp zombie molars, you know?

JoystiqRisk: Factions coming to Facebook, bringing special faction-based weapons originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 07 Jul 2011 16:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>eafacebookpcplayfishriskRisk-FactionssocialstrategyThu, 07 Jul 2011 16:57:00 EST<![CDATA[EA celebrates Independence Day with a massive sale]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/07/01/ea-celebrates-independence-day-with-a-massive-sale/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/07/01/ea-celebrates-independence-day-with-a-massive-sale/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/07/01/ea-celebrates-independence-day-with-a-massive-sale/#comments Rather than watching your grandma mouth along the words to Lee Greenwood's timeless Americana classic "God Bless the USA" one more time this Independence Day, wouldn't you rather giver her a run for the money in one of the many Hasbro Family Game Night games? EA's offering just such a possibility, putting nine of its Hasbro titles on XBL up for sale at 50 percent off, and offering a swath of deals on other platforms on July 4th.

Perhaps you were looking to freedom-ize the necromorphs of Dead Space on iPad during your independence celebration? That's also on sale for .99 cents, alongside a handful of other iOS titles. And if you're more of the PC type, everything from Mass Effect 2 ($12) to Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit ($18) is marked down on Origin.

Continue reading EA celebrates Independence Day with a massive sale

JoystiqEA celebrates Independence Day with a massive sale originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 01 Jul 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>4th-of-julyeaea-mobileelectronic-artsfacebookhasbroindependence-dayioskindlemacMass-Effect-2microsoftmobileoriginpcplayfishpogopogo.comsaletiger-woods-onlinexboxxbox-live-arcadeFri, 01 Jul 2011 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[EA: 40% of game sales digital, NPD becoming less relevant]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/10/ea-40-of-game-sales-digital-npd-becoming-less-relevant/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/10/ea-40-of-game-sales-digital-npd-becoming-less-relevant/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/10/ea-40-of-game-sales-digital-npd-becoming-less-relevant/#comments Digital sales have been an increasing boon for EA, a source of great profit and growth for the publishing giant, and the company now estimates 40% of games sold are bought through digital channels. Retail is becoming less of an important sector and the publisher feels NPD rankings are decreasing in relevance. Tomorrow, the latest NPD figures for the month of February will be revealed.

"Overall, we think the digital growth aspect of the EA story is likely to get even stronger and to impress investors in the coming years," said Arvind Bhatia, Sterne Agee investment firm analyst, during a recent management meeting (via IndustryGamers). Globally, EA still recognizes the importance of retail product, but locally the company is looking to expand its mobile and downloadable offerings, leaning on its new EA Partners divisions to help expand its digital business.

JoystiqEA: 40% of game sales digital, NPD becoming less relevant originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 03:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>arvind-bhatiabusinesschillingodigital-distributioneaea-partnersnpdplayfishsterne-ageeThu, 10 Mar 2011 03:51:00 EST<![CDATA[EA expanding 'Partners' model to mobile, social businesses]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/02/ea-expanding-partners-model-to-mobile-social-businesses/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/02/ea-expanding-partners-model-to-mobile-social-businesses/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/02/ea-expanding-partners-model-to-mobile-social-businesses/#comments EA Partners has been responsible for helping to bring some noteworthy titles to market in the past few years. The co-publishing arm has helped to distribute the likes of the Rock Band and Left 4 Dead series, as well as the recent Bulletstorm, and will aid in the upcoming releases of Crysis 2 and Portal 2.

It's perhaps surprising, then, that David DeMartini, the man who managed these successful co-publshing deals, has stepped down as the division's group general manager to pursue a "new commercial role." EA Partners looks to not miss a beat, however, as former SVP and COO of the EA Games label, Brian Neider, has stepped right in.

Neider has quickly settled into his new role, calling the Partners program an "all around win-win," which allows "EA to partner with some of the world's best console, PC and digital developers while providing those independent developers with a global distribution/publishing partner."

In fact, the shakeup marks a time of expansion for the "Partners" busines model. Through its Chillingo (mobile) and Playfish (social) divisions, EA will expand its co-publishing philosophy to capitalize on the demand for social and mobile games. "Like EA Partners, Chillingo and Playfish work with the best development talent in the mobile and social gaming space," Neider told Develop.

JoystiqEA expanding 'Partners' model to mobile, social businesses originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 02 Mar 2011 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>bryan-neiderchillingodavid-demartinieaea-partnersmobileplayfishWed, 02 Mar 2011 16:20:00 EST<![CDATA[Playfish: Tougher for start-ups to get hold in Facebook]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/02/playfish-tougher-for-start-ups-to-get-hold-in-facebook/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/02/playfish-tougher-for-start-ups-to-get-hold-in-facebook/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/02/playfish-tougher-for-start-ups-to-get-hold-in-facebook/#comments If you, like us, are in the development stages of a cross-generational, cross-media Facebook game that combines user photos, restaurant reviews and adorable animals then back off or we'll sue you. But we'd also caution you to heed the warnings of Kristian Segerstrale, who runs EA-owned social developer Playfish. He says that it's difficult for new games to have the kind of explosive growth they enjoyed when Facebook first got into games.

The blame can largely be laid at the feet of Facebook policy changes that prohibit games from pushing status updates to the walls of non-players, making advertising and recognizable brands more important than ever. "Companies without franchises will be in an increasingly precarious position," Segerstrale told Develop. "If on the one hand you have Harry Potter and on the other you have 'The Wizard Adventure,' consumers will choose the one they recognise."

... Great, now Playfish has stolen our game's name. You can all expect to hear from our lawyers.

JoystiqPlayfish: Tougher for start-ups to get hold in Facebook originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Dec 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>eafacebookKristian-Segerstralemacpcplayfishsocialwizard-of-adventureThu, 02 Dec 2010 20:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Riccitiello: EA backing away from big acquisitions, not buying Harmonix]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/30/riccitiello-ea-backing-away-from-big-acquisitions-not-buying-h/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/30/riccitiello-ea-backing-away-from-big-acquisitions-not-buying-h/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/30/riccitiello-ea-backing-away-from-big-acquisitions-not-buying-h/#comments In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello revealed a core attribute that the megapublisher is prioritizing in the coming years: Thriftiness. He explained the company has no interest in pursuing more multi-million dollar acquisitions for now -- rather, he said the company will focus on better integrating some of the major casual game developers it acquired over the past year, including Playfish, the Facebook game developer EA bought out for $300 million (with $100 million in potential bonuses) last November.

When pressed on whether the publisher was considering purchasing the recently let-go Rock Band developer Harmonix, Riccitiello responded that such an acquisition would "look like I'm doubling down on yesterday." He added, "I'm sure some smart investor will buy the business feeling that they can catch a falling knife, but more people have been cut trying to catch falling knives than have benefitted from getting the timing exactly right." That seems awfully harsh, but we suppose it's not quite as harsh as if EA were to buy the developer then dissolve it a few years later.

JoystiqRiccitiello: EA backing away from big acquisitions, not buying Harmonix originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 30 Nov 2010 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>acquisitioncasualeaharmonixJohn-riccitielloplayfishrock-bandTue, 30 Nov 2010 10:45:00 EST<![CDATA[EA signs 5 year deal with Facebook]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/03/ea-signs-5-year-deal-with-facebook/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/03/ea-signs-5-year-deal-with-facebook/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/03/ea-signs-5-year-deal-with-facebook/#comments Electronic Arts' social gaming plans march ever onward as the publisher signs a five-year "strategic relationship" with Facebook. The agreement will find Facebook Credits becoming the exclusive payment method in EA games on the platform. EA, under its Playfish brand (obtained for $300 million), currently has two of the top 10 Facebook games in Pet Society and Restaurant City.

A similar five-year deal was announced earlier this year by social gaming top dog, Zynga, after the developer had a kerfuffle about the 30 percent cut Facebook took whenever users purchased in-game items using Facebook Credits.

It turns out EA is apparently cool with the 30 percent cut, as those were the terms of the publisher's agreement with the social media platform behemoth. Electronic Arts will soon launch Monopoly and its Pogo Games brand (about 20 titles) on Facebook, so it can start raking in cash from the platform's 500 million users.

JoystiqEA signs 5 year deal with Facebook originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Nov 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>EAElectronic-ArtsFacebookmacpcplayfishZyngaWed, 03 Nov 2010 09:30:00 EST<![CDATA['FIFA Superstars' Facebook game is first big EA-brand social game created by Playfish]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/fifa-superstars-facebook-game/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/fifa-superstars-facebook-game/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/fifa-superstars-facebook-game/#commentsFiled under: , ,

EA Sports head Peter Moore has announced on his company blog that the label will be bringing FIFA Superstars to Facebook. The game is being created by social games developer Playfish, which EA purchased for a cool $300 million last fall. Earlier this year, the Wall Street Journal reported that the developer was working with a "well-known EA brand" for social networking platforms, and FIFA would certainly qualify as that project (despite The Sims being the best guess at the time).

Moore didn't offer up any concrete details about FIFA Superstars' gameplay in his post, but did comment that additional information would be coming "soon." Seeing as how the World Cup kicks off in just a month, on June 11, it's reasonable to assume we'll hear more from Moore on the topic before then.

Joystiq'FIFA Superstars' Facebook game is first big EA-brand social game created by Playfish originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 10 May 2010 15:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>browser-basedeaea-sportselectronic-artsfacebookfifafifa-superstarsplayfishsocial-gamessocial-gamingsocial-networkingMon, 10 May 2010 15:29:00 EST<![CDATA[WSJ: Playfish creating social game based on 'well-known EA brand']]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/02/02/wsj-playfish-creating-social-game-based-on-well-known-ea-brand/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/02/02/wsj-playfish-creating-social-game-based-on-well-known-ea-brand/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/02/02/wsj-playfish-creating-social-game-based-on-well-known-ea-brand/#comments The Wall Street Journal today examines "Why Playfish Sold Itself to EA." Um, wouldn't you sell yourself for $300 million? While such an investigation might seem trivial, the WSJ calls in Playfish president and GM Kristian Segerstrale, who reveals that several hundred million is merely chump change. Playfish certainly considered a road to riches paved in the arduous process of going public as an independent company, but "as we advanced our conversations with EA, what became clear was that this would be genuine opportunity to accelerate our pace of growth and build a billion-dollar business faster," Segerstrale explains.

To realize this dream -- to get rich really quick -- Playfish clearly saw it would take more than its prowess as a stand-out developer in the burgeoning social games arena. It would take brand power. According to the WSJ, as suggested by Segerstrale, "there will be a social game based on a well-known EA brand this year." Hardly a revelation, to be sure, but it's at least confirmation of a killer strategy. Take an established IP -- likely EA's The Sims -- and adapt it for a network of social gaming experiences that spans persistent platforms like Facebook and the iPhone. Oh, so that's why Playfish sold itself to EA.

[Via Develop]

JoystiqWSJ: Playfish creating social game based on 'well-known EA brand' originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 02 Feb 2010 13:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Applebusiness-strategycasualeaElectronic-ArtsfacebookiPodmobileplayfishsocial-gamesthe-simsTue, 02 Feb 2010 13:15:00 EST<![CDATA[EA acquires social network game dev Playfish for $300 million]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/11/09/ea-acquires-social-network-game-dev-playfish-for-300-million/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/11/09/ea-acquires-social-network-game-dev-playfish-for-300-million/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/11/09/ea-acquires-social-network-game-dev-playfish-for-300-million/#comments As a number of "industry sources" reported last month, Electronic Arts has elected to add a new studio to its already expansive roster: Playfish, a prolific developer of free-to-play casual games on social networking sites like Facebook. The studio was bought out for about $275 million with an additional $25 million set aside for equity retention arrangements. Playfish is also set to receive another $100 million, should it manage to reach unspecified "performance milestones" before 2012.

Not only is that sum of money much higher than the $250 million total teased by the aforementioned analysts in October, it's ... well, it just seems like a lot of money to spend on a studio which actually developed a game called Bowling Buddies. However, considering Playfish's ten titles register 60 million active users and one billion play sessions every month, we suppose EA's making a sound investment. The times, dear friends -- they are a-changin'.

JoystiqEA acquires social network game dev Playfish for $300 million originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>acquisitionbuyoutcasualEAElectronic-Artsfacebookplayfishsocial-networkingMon, 09 Nov 2009 11:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Report: EA acquires social games dev Playfish]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/10/15/report-ea-acquires-social-games-dev-playfish/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/10/15/report-ea-acquires-social-games-dev-playfish/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/10/15/report-ea-acquires-social-games-dev-playfish/#comments
Industry sources claim EA has completed a deal to acquire social games developer Playfish, report Inside Social Games and Silicon Alley Insider. Unconfirmed estimates put EA's buyout bill at $250 million, while ISG believes Playfish could earn as much as $75 million in revenue this year alone. That's alotta money for those janky, little games on Facebook, right?

For years, EA has been dabbling in social gaming -- a slightly less dirty designation than "casual gaming" -- starting with the launch and consolidation of the EA Casual Entertainment division in 2007, and then with the creation of EA Blueprint expressly for social ventures in 2008. The company has done plenty of outside spending, too, like throwing some dollars at Napster creator Shawn Fanning for his Rupture service. Just this week, EA launched Pogo Puppies for Facebook -- which actually competes with Playfish's Pet Society (pictured above) -- and scooped up social games publishing technology company J2PLay, as reported by Games.com.

It's difficult to predict how EA Casual's major investments in social gaming might affect the EA Games label -- makers of the kinda games we care about -- but let's just hope there's a mighty thick wall between the two divisions. Okay, so maybe we've got some social anxiety, but we just can't stand the thought of our extravagant, big-budget, dim-the-lights, and shut-out-the-world games go the way of the dodo.

[Via Industry Gamers]

Source - Is EA Going to Buy Zynga or Playfish in Social Gaming Bid? [Inside Social Games]
Source - Rumor: EA Acquires Playfish For $250 Million [Silicon Alley Insider]

JoystiqReport: EA acquires social games dev Playfish originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>casualeaea-casual-entertainmentElectronic-Artsfacebookplayfishrumorsocialsocial-anxietysocial-gamessocial-gamingThu, 15 Oct 2009 12:20:00 EST