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Electronic Arts In No Rush To Develop For Switch
After Electronic Arts' earnings call, per WSJ reports, the publisher explains that they do not expect to develop any more titles for the Nintendo Switch until they re-evaluate whether or not it is worth it.
Despite FIFA 18 releasing for the system earlier this year, EA is waiting "until [the Switch] has been on the market for a full year" before committing any more resources to it. After that time period, they will re-evaluate if the system is a viable platform for their games, says the company's chief financial officer Blake Jorgensen.
Jorgensen explains that it is too soon to judge whether FIFA 18 has been successful on the Switch and that the publisher needs more time "to fully understand what the demand is" before committing more resources.
EA join an ever-growing chorus of third party developers that took a wait-and-see approach to the Switch, but is unique in that they are not making excuses or attempting to alter that skepticism. Nintendo and EA have historically had a strange relationship since the Wii, where EA's success with family-oriented titles lead to partnering with Nintendo for the Wii U. The two companies claimed an unprecedented partnership at E3 2011, which fell apart in record time and lead to a near-complete separation in the companies' goals.
[Source: Wall Street Journal via Takashi Mochizuki Twitter]
Our Take
EA probably has more right to be skeptical of the Switch than most, as their strategy for the kinds of games the company develops does not really fit well with Nintendo's conservative hardware and portable use strategies. Though, much like other third parties that are late to the system, reconsidering this choice next March will probably make them too late to the party if they plan to get games out after that.
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