Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Don Mattrick leaves EA

Posted by Zonk on from the greener-pastures dept.

Jeku writes "Don Mattrick leaves Electronic Arts after 23 years. From the article, a quote from Larry Probst, EA CEO: 'Don would have been on a short list of internal candidates that might move into the CEO role,' Probst said. 'Don came to the conclusion that he was not interested in running a public company. And that he did not want to be doing the same job in five years or ten years.'" More commentary on the exec shakeup over at Gamasutra.

22 comments

  1. Sims Movie? by Tringard · · Score: 2, Insightful

    FTA:
    "...the company decided to form the division so that it could concentrate all of the resources necessary in developing "The Sims'' as a property, which could be licensed for things such as toys or movies."

    I can sort of (barely) see toys, but a movie?!? Seems like the fast track to another game-to-movie flop.

    1. Re:Sims Movie? by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 1

      You're going to have real people watch a movie about real people manipulating virtual people engaging in relationship building that includes blurred sex. Like Team America but just dumber. Should win an Oscar nomination.

  2. Lets hope he has some smarts. by antigrimace · · Score: 1

    It could be a fun thing to have him start up a private company funded by EA money and create innovative titles, something that is lacking from EA these days.

    Just dreaming of his deep pockets and the possibilities....

  3. So after 23 years.... by corrosive_nf · · Score: 0

    he realises he does'nt like his job?

    1. Re:So after 23 years.... by dhakbar · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I think it may be slightly more likely that he realizes he doesn't like his company any more.

    2. Re:So after 23 years.... by grumpygrodyguy · · Score: 1

      Amen.

      --
      The government has a defect: it's potentially democratic. Corporations have no defect: they're pure tyrannies. -Chomsky
  4. Good old Don. by Teddy+Beartuzzi · · Score: 1
    Of course, he's actually famous for programming the game Evolution. Pretty remarkable career from one minor game.

    I wonder what ever happened to Jeff Sember?

    1. Re:Good old Don. by Pxtl · · Score: 1

      God, was that the C64 game where you start as an amoeba and then go through several levels, like a mouse... I don't remember... the final level was a human with a gun that bounced off walls, right?

      Classic. How the mighty have fallen. EA kicked ass back in the C64 days. Too bad they became the monster.

    2. Re:Good old Don. by Teddy+Beartuzzi · · Score: 1
      Yes, that's the one, though EA had nothing to do with it. EA didn't come into the picture until EA Canada hired Mattrick years later.

      Some pics of the original Apple ][ version they worked on (I'm sure they didn't do the Commodore translations). Apple Screenshots

  5. Don't let them fool you..... by beesmum · · Score: 1

    I used to do landscaping and weekly maintenance on Don Mattrick's property when I was living in Vancouver and had a job with a gardening company. Nice enough fellow, not the type I would have guessed to be part of a huge evil empire like EA. He had a gigantic bit of land near the University of British Columbia and he had bought two or three surrounding properties which he had contractors leveling. That was three years ago. With the money he's made from the growth of EA over the past ten years, I'm sure he's quit to commit more time to tinkering in his secret bunker. Or refine his plans to infiltrate indie publishers and enslave them, forcing them to churn out redundant sports games and buggy, look-what-the-cat-barfed up movie license games... C'mon, he had to be a little bit evil to work at EA that long. I'm sure this fits into EA Empires evil plan for world domination.

    1. Re:Don't let them fool you..... by superpulpsicle · · Score: 1

      I have two young relatives who are sons of this guy who work in EA vancouver. These two kids are respectively 15 and 19. When they visited me in the U.S I told them straight out about the EA monopoly. And about the buyouts and the way they lock up licenses to crush competitors with pure $$$. Nothing that you haven't seen on slashdot.

      They looked at me like deers infront of headlights. I don't know what their father feed them, but they had this 100% positive view of EA as a community contributor and perfect savior of Canada. They truely saw EA as a generous company that donates games to kids, the place where every person wants a job. Where game developers are treated like superstars.

    2. Re:Don't let them fool you..... by beesmum · · Score: 1

      I actually knew someone who was working at EA as a peon tester back then and he hated the job passionately. But then, when you look at the job market, getting payed to test NHL 2000 for 5 months at a decent wage is better than slinging fries at Macdonalds for minimum wage. Even though it was mind numbing and he seemed traumatized by the whole ordeal. Emotionally vacant. He was in his mid twenties though, I imagine your relatives haven't had their brains turned to turnip mush yet. Give them time.

  6. Any EA employees reading? by grumpygrodyguy · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Hey EA!

    Fix EAX sound support in BF2 and TEST YOUR GAMES before you release them!

    --
    The government has a defect: it's potentially democratic. Corporations have no defect: they're pure tyrannies. -Chomsky
    1. Re:Any EA employees reading? by dutchct · · Score: 0

      producers don't read slashdot!

    2. Re:Any EA employees reading? by KDR_11k · · Score: 1

      Blame DICE, the developer. They are the ones deciding on these issues.

      --
      Justice is the sheep getting arrested while an impartial judge declares the vote void.
    3. Re:Any EA employees reading? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      OK I WILL!!!!

  7. Is EA killing the Sims? by cgenman · · Score: 1

    (and I don't mean by walling them in with no potty)

    The sims, like sim city was born from the drive and originality of Maxis' lead, Will Wright. Of course, it also was born from the dedication and sleepless nights of countless programmers, designers, and artists. It was successful because it was freeform, fun, original, emotionally engaging, etc, etc.

    However, with the success of the sims came expansion after expansion. Since the Sims success caught on, there hasn't been a single original title released by Maxis, just an amazing eight expansion packs and two very similar sequals, with a few platform ports thrown in.

    Not much truly original has entered the sim's world recently. Gameplay wise, The Urbs is the same as the Subbies. This seems somehow the anthesis of a franchise, and a company, that has made it's name on amazingly original gameplay. Can the sims survive as a franchise with such oversaturation? Is the Sims destined to be the next Sim City, or the next Myst or 7th Guest?

    --
    The ______ Agenda
    1. Re:Is EA killing the Sims? by will_die · · Score: 1

      Not sure who is releasing it, but Will Wright is busy writting his next big game; with a guessimated release of fall of 2006.
      It is called Spores and was shown at last year E3 convention to great fanfare.
      It allows you to evolve your family of spores up to a great space going race, a mixture of civilization and the sims(Well maybe this does prove your original thinking) according to the hype.
      You can find screen shots by doing a google search for wright and spores

  8. That's unfortunate.. by daVinci1980 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    When I worked at EA as a programmer, I had a chance to meet the e-staff. They were all sort of exactly what I'd expected (having worked for the slave drivers for about 5 months at this point) except for Don.

    He was the one guy on the e-staff who didn't seem to like the way the employees were treated, and didn't really like the way the company was headed. I expect that he's probably going to leave the game industry as well, but that's unfortunate.

    What's truly disheartening about this is that it seems to indicate, from a high-level perspective, acceptance of what has become the standard in the game industry. Churn and burn your employees, there will always be two ready to replace any one that falls. The fact that Don disagreed with this worldview, was likely to take over the largest video game publisher, and decided that he didn't want the job would seem to indicate that he couldn't rectify profitability with employee rights / treatment.

    As they would say at EA, Don Mattrick has left EA to pursue other opportunities. We wish him the best on all his future endeavors.

    --
    I currently have no clever signature witicism to add here.
    1. Re:That's unfortunate.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      Churn and burn your employees, there will always be two ready to replace any one that falls.


      Isn't that true? Next thing you know baseball and basketball players will be complaining that they have to work too hard.
    2. Re:That's unfortunate.. by daVinci1980 · · Score: 1

      There is a subtle, but important difference between professional athletes and people in the video game industry.

      Professional athletes are (by and large) paid enough money that they could conceivably retire after 2-3 years (some of them after only 1 year) and they could live comfortably for the rest of their lives.

      People in the game industry are generally paid at or slightly above the IT industry average for their particular position, title, and experience.

      In other words, churn and burn in the NBA, NFL or MLB is acceptable because those people are compensated accordingly. If someone gets burned out on playing football after 3 years, that's okay because he's made enough money to live on for the rest of his life. If someone gets burned out on making games after 3 years, he has nothing more to show for it than a resume that most regular IT companies won't touch.

      --
      I currently have no clever signature witicism to add here.
  9. Obligitory PA rerun by Rob+T+Firefly · · Score: 1

    A peek at their methods for replacing him

    --
    Slashdot Burying Stories About Slashdot Media Owned