Dragon Age: The Veilguard failed to reach EA’s expectations, but why did the game–the newest entry in a storied, beloved RPG series from an esteemed developer in BioWare–come up short? Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson said during the company’s latest earnings call that The Veilguard’s underperformance is a reflection of the “evolving industry landscape.”
“Historically, blockbuster storytelling has been the primary way our industry bought beloved IP to players,” he said. “The game’s financial performance highlights the evolving industry landscape and reinforces the importance of our actions to reallocate resources towards our most significant and highest potential opportunities.”
Reading between the lines here, it sounds like the Dragon Age franchise is not going to be a centerpiece or focus of EA’s business focus going forward.
Also during the earnings briefing, Wilson discussed EA’s approach to blockbuster games in general, saying the company takes a three-pronged approach. First, Wilson said the aim is to “create an authentic story experience for the core audience.” Second, Wilson said EA aims to make games with “innovative groundbreaking features.” And third, EA wants to “emphasize high-quality launches” for PC and console.
Wilson went on to say that EA also aims to appeal beyond the “core” userbase by meeting the evolving demands of players. He said these players are now “increasingly” looking for games with “shared-world features” and “deeper engagement,” as well as strong narratives.
For Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Wilson acknowledged that the game was reviewed positively by critics and fans alike. However, the executive admitted that the RPG, “did not resonate with a broad enough audience in this highly competitive market.”
Following The Veilguard’s launch and underperformance, BioWare laid off staff and reassigned some developers to other teams inside EA. A smaller team at BioWare is now working on the next Mass Effect.
In other EA news, the company continues to release more information about the next Battlefield game, with early testing to begin very soon.