The History of Electronic Arts

Gamasutra is running an extensive article today on the long history of Electronic Arts. Starting all the way back with the days of Trip Hawkins, they move through the days of Madden, Nintendo, small studio purchases and, of course, the Sims. There's also an a whole series of images associated with the article, letting you look back and chuckle about the cover art of games from the past. The article concludes: "Art and commerce have always been uneasy bedfellows, and nowhere is that tension more evident than in the world of video games. Perhaps after looking at the history of Electronic Arts we may have some insight into that hot point of ignition where business and inspiration combine to create cutting edge games. As Trip Hawkins explained, 'Entrepreneurship is a creative art form. Like other creative people, we do it because we have to do it. We have no choice but to express ourselves in this way. But of course like all artists we are optimists, so we believe good things will come ... It is not about making money, it is about making a difference.'"

Comments

Press release?

[ichbineinneuben]

This reads a lot like a press release. I don't visit Gamasutra often enough to know if this is par for the course there, but doesn't this sound like the kind of spin a corporate PR flak would apply to the bare, historical facts? Hawkins quote; "We had to rebuild the industry brick by brick over a period of years." Gee, all by yourself??? The writer makes a lot out of how designers got credit, including the photo montage with the cool game packaging - designer names prominently displayed. So, when and why did that policy change? Silence. And this tidbit: >Using this knowledge as leverage in his negotiations with Sega, Hawkins threatened to release >games for the Genesis without a license unless Sega agreed to more favorable terms for EA. It was >a very risky move that could have had expensive legal consequences. > >Fortunately, Sega recognized the benefits of working out a deal with Hawkins. A reporter might use the word "extortion" to describe this sort of behavior. I could point out more examples, but hey, let's ALL play!