EA’s CEO, John Riccitiello, has confirmed that they are developing an MMO version of the latest game in the Star Wars franchise, Knights of the Old Republic in partnership with Lucasarts.
According to an interview in Portfolio, EA is moving aggressively into the MMO space with the Knights of the Old Republic as well as an MMO based on the popular Warhammer war strategy game played with models. The two games appear to be part of a plan B, in contrast to the plan A option: acquiring World of Warcraft off Vivendi. Riccitiello confirmed that discussions took place, but a deal was not possible ‘because [Vivendi] couldn’t afford control of EA, and I wasn’t giving it up.” Basing their two upcoming MMOs on brands established and popular with gamers of different sorts already is the next best thing, as it allows EA to use its financial clout to gain a head start against the multitude of MMO competition.
The rush to MMOs on the part of ‘traditional’ gaming firms is partly because of the highly appealing subscription model. Where users can be persuaded to pay, popular MMOs are highly lucrative with the ability to sell both the game (or expansion packs) and the right to play the game. According to Riccitiello, MMOs are also part of the gaming industry’s strategy to shift off consoles and mobile devices: currently 2/3 of the game industry is based upon consoles, which is EA expects to fall to 1/2 in three years time.
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