Peter Moore has worked his magic at EA since arriving from Microsoft over a year ago. Many of EA Sports annual updates were becoming stagnant and not really moving forward, they were losing their way a little.
Moore has managed to rectify that and bought a fresh approach to FIFA, Tiger Woods, Madden and Grand Slam Tennis with new art direction, All-Star play and Wii MotionPlus support to name a few changes.
In a recent interview, the likeable executive had a few things to say about the Wii and their success so far on the console.
IG: I know as a third-party now you’d love to see the market share between the big three split into a third, a third, a third…
PM: Yeah, and alternating every week! You want balance, but then it isn’t right now… You see us obviously trying to do a lot with the Wii, but boy we love our core gamer. I think we’re building very strong relationships with all three [manufacturers]. I like the balance in our portfolio now; it feels very well balanced and we’re focusing on the attributes of all three different platforms.
IG: Regarding the Wii, EA and EA Sports both wrestled for some time with how to reach that Wii audience. On the sports side, you created things like “All-Play” but do you feel that EA Sports finally has the grasp on Wii it needs?
PM: I certainly think this is the best lineup coupled with the best technology in Wii MotionPlus and the best marketing that we’ve done with the best product portfolio. Tiger, Tennis, EA Sports Active, Madden in August, FIFA which has been great for us on Wii, new art styles as you can see particularly in Madden… so I’m feeling very good about where we are on the platform. It’s a question you’ll probably have to ask me again in December. We’re not afraid of trying new things, seeing what works, tweaking the formula… having All-Play we decided was better being a feature in all the games rather than branding, for example. We’re working hard on this; it’s 45% of the market so we simply cannot ignore it. You’ve got to do everything you can to get the recipe right, and I think we’re getting close.
IG: Right, I think for Madden it’s very important. Last year everyone noticed how the Wii version just wasn’t selling in comparison to the 360 and PS3. Are you anticipating big sales finally for Madden this year on Wii?
PM: You always hope and anticipate; we believe we’ve got that formula right, the marketing right, and we’ve got two great athletes on the cover. The game is a blast… but again, ask me when the first NPD numbers come out and I’ll tell you.
Thanks Industrygamers
