I haven’t been sleeping well lately, for various reasons. I now know why: it was my body getting me ready to mine some salt for this story that got sent to me overnight, because I have never seen such pure amounts of salt to be mined. EA’s chief design officer, in an interview with Patrick Söderlund with GamesIndustry.biz makes a defense of Command and Conquer Rivals and of mobile gaming. The game received a negative reaction from the “real gamers" after it was announced during EA’s E3 press conference, and there wasn’t a new PC Command and Conquer game also in tow. Söderlund says “We’re going to come to a point where we need to respect mobile games as much as console games. I know that’s difficult to see when you come to E3, but our mobile business is growing quite significantly, and we look at those teams with the same value and the same integrity as we look at our console teams. And we believe this is the best interpretation we can do of the brand right now."
Oh yes, let the hate flow through you, gamers. Or, flow even further, after the 2.1k:49k like:dislike ratio on that trailer. Woof. On one hand, everything EA does is a ploy to make money in some way because they’re a billion-dollar corporation. A new “real" Command and Conquer game would serve the same purpose as this mobile version serves: to use the license to make a bunch of money. And really, people harp on mobile games so much that it’s getting old at this point. Yes, you think paying money after the fact is such a scam, like paying up front for a game that’s difficult to return is such a great and fair business model.
As Söderlund says, there are massive countries where mobile is gaming and this is a real Command and Conquer game because this is the only one they will play. Also maybe there’s a reason Command and Conquer isn’t exactly active right now, and perhaps the brand needs a jolt from a mobile game to get going again. So, if you want a C&C game, get to downloading Rivals as soon as you can. As Söderlund says: “when you have a catalog of properties like we do, sometimes it makes sense to resurrect them, and sometimes it doesn’t. In this particular instance, with the game design the team had? The Command & Conquer brand just fit."
If you’re not happy with where the Command and Conquer franchise is going, take some advice from Tim Curry:
However, EA, don’t think I’m going to let you get away with my favorite “mobile games are real games" argument and walk away. You don’t exactly get the benefit of the doubt here with reviving a brand on mobile. People have a right to be scarred after Dungeon Keeper. If anyone is responsible for the mobile gaming stigma, it’s you.
There’s something almost cynical to EA arguing that people should treat their mobile games seriously. If the people will get mad about EA reviving games on mobile, and about their loot box practices, perhaps the next best thing is to try and convince people that no, seriously, this is a real game without providing the real gamers something to calm their collective tits. If EA had released the classic PC Dungeon Keeper adapted for touch on mobile simultaneously with the new version, nobody would have cared, or at least would have not had an interesting argument to make, because here’s the thing you want.
Here’s some free advice, EA: go call up Aspyr or some other port house of repute, and throw a bunch of money at them to port Command and Conquer: Red Alert to iOS so nobody has to get mad. Or hire an indie developer, find some Command and Conquer producer, and get them to produce a C&C revival. In that same interview, Söderlund talks about the value of the EA Originals, and how “we want to get these games into the hands of players because they have a deeper meaning than just being a mass market play." Consider whatever you do to keep the gamers and Command and Conquer fans happy a marketing expense that maybe makes a bunch of money for you if it all pans out, and if not, well, you kept people from spreading a bunch of negativity about the game that’s supposed to actually make you a bunch of money.
OTOH, they gave us Plants vs Zombies 2, which (in spite of many, many opportunities to spend money), has a huge amount of content for free (and not spending the money means genuinely getting some opportunities for real strategy late in the game).
Don't say that too loud or you'll make a *lot* of people angry.
To be fair, I was one of them when I first heard about the game (and George Fan getting laid off). But I've spent enough hours playing that I can't deny I'm hooked.
Pvz2 was awesome when it was first released, reallly well balanced, then they made major changes to encourage use of the ‘making like easy skills’ and it was ruined. I now only play the first game and pvz2 is gone forever for me. EA ruin everything they touch
PvZ2 just never did it for me. I go back to PvZ every few years for another party through, but I'm pretty sure I'll never go back to PvZ2.
That wasn't by choice, and EA deserves zero benefit of the doubt. It was the development team at PopCap who hated F2P and actively undermined the EA project managers' predatory practices.
Meanwhile, real tragedies and pain happens in this world and nobody gives a shit about it. EA produces games that are consumed by millions (because otherwise, they wouldn't do them) and they're seen as the devil. Glad to see we've all got our priorities sorted out.
What are you doing on Toucharcade? You could be saving lives in Africa right now if you would truly care for them yourself. Yet you’re here.
Whataboutism is a hell of a drug.
So is ignoratio elenchi
I haven't said I'm different. I care more about not breaking my phone than thousands of people dying. It's just sad that we are what we are. We. Not you or them.
I know what you are saying but there are a lot of people that enjoy games and do a lot of work to make the world a better place sometimes it is needed to take a break from all the problems and video games are great to escape the real world for some hours and being able to charge up the battery and starting fresh.
> Also maybe there’s a reason Command and Conquer isn’t exactly active right now, and perhaps the brand needs a jolt from a mobile game to get going again.
Is it because EA's last entry in the main series was nearly two decades ago, and also a disaster? Or that the last game in the Red Alert series was nine years ago? And that the only thing in since then was an awful Facebook game?
The gaming market is so fu**ed up it is unbelievable that people that buy full priced games and have to deal with loot boxes the same example goes for the Star Wars games I was visiting the PSstore and the first Star Wars game is on sale for some €15,- but when I was looking the angry review on YouTube I find out that it looks really good but the singleplayer is so short you can finish it in a few hours and that are a few examples how the market is these days and the mobile market isn’t that great either I bought TitanQuest but I have to buy the game again because of some legal issues about the ownership of the IP............🤔
I'll take Mobile Games Serious when I can sit down & play a game without being interrupted by some kinda Paywall or Timer.
I feel many games are ruined by this mechanic, sometimes I just want to sit down with my coffee & play A game on my iPad instead of pulling out the console etc..
Most Free Games don't give you that you get a quick get in & get out feeling.
Thankfully there are many games on the stores that are actually decent I can spend time in them longer then 5 mins, i'm also not nagged to spend money for energy etc.
**Also to The poster stating about Plants vs Zombies 2, I agree That game is quite fun i've never spent a penny in it but it's playable with tough strategy. Go in with the mindset of strategy, make use of the events, Make sure to level up your plants when you can, it's not a bad game it's actually done well.
(For a EA game)
To be fair, you playing a free game for long periods of time (or at all) doesn't help a company stay in business. The reason that so many games are free with paywalls and timers is because that's how they monetize the game so that they can continue making games. Unfortunately games with an up-front cost don't do nearly as well as free to play games and until that changes paywalls and timers are here to stay.
Woof is right. Eff this guy
EA can get stuffed basically, they’ve ruined the mobile market with the free to play spend 100 dollars on ONE in game car on RR3!! They should go to hell for what they’ve done
Real games EA allow you to buy the ENTIRE GAME ONCE!
I’m so so so glad of the massive backlash they got from trying to monetise Star Wars Battlefront, with in game pay to win crap on top of the AAA game price.. their is literally nothing EA will not try to rip it’s customers off, they are a purely dispicable company.
Carter and Eli talking down to their customer base while defending EA? I'm shocked /s
Personally, I have no problem taking mobile games seriously, coz I already have. But to take this EA game seriously, or ANY EA GAME for that matter? That’s a resounding NO! They’ve already done too much damage. I vote with my wallet.
Edit: This is a cash grab like all the other recent EA shit. And no EA, this is NOT and WILL NEVER BE a real C&C game.
EA have produced some great iOS games, and I'm sure they could make a fantastic C&C game. Sadly, recent experience suggests they won't.
Ironically I think my time is more precious than my money these days. If they brought out a premium C&C game with a campaign of around 10 hours, of be all over it. I haven't got time for the never ending play model used for most freemium games.