EA provides candid response to its nomination as "The Worst Company in America"

SimCity

EA has decided to issue a direct response to its likely chances of "winning" The Consumerist's Worst Company in America survey two years in a row. Chief Operating Officer Peter Moore words the publishing giant's pledge , saying, "We can do better. We will do better."

"It appears EA is going to 'win,'" Moore writes. "Like the Yankees, Lakers, and Manchester United, EA is one of those organizations that is defined by both a legacy of success and a legion of critics. Are we really the 'Worst Company in America'? I'll be the first to admit that we've made plenty of mistakes. These include server shutdowns too early, games that didn't meet expectations, missteps on new pricing models, and most recently, severely fumbling the launch of SimCity. We owe gamers better performance than this."

It's refreshing to see EA address some of its critics directly, particularly after SimCity's launch debacle worsened over EA's perceived stubbornness. That's only a sliver of the company's less-than-stellar reputation among gamers who've risen concerns throughout the years on other hot topics such as the Steam/Origin rivalry, free-to-play, and microtransactions.

Moore, however, disputes the validity of some of these complaints. He explains:

  • "Many continue to claim the always-on function in SimCity is a DRM scheme. It's not. People still want to argue about it. We can't be any clearer: it's not. Period."
  • "Some claim there's no room for Origin as a competitor to Steam. 45 million registered users are proving that wrong."
  • "Some people think that free-to-play games and microtransactions are a pox on gaming. Tens of millions more are playing and loving those games."
  • "We've seen mailing lists that direct people to vote for EA because they disagree with the choice of the cover athlete on Madden NFL. Yes, really."
  • "In the past year, we've received thousands of emails and postcards protesting against EA for allowing players to create LGBT characters in our games. This week, we're seeing posts on conservative web sites urging people to protest our LGBT policy by voting EA the Worst Company in America."

It'd be nice if Moore backed up EA's refusal to take the heat on Origin or microtransactions with data beyond random numbers. Moore doesn't really say how exactly the company will "do better" and seems to focus more on discrediting an Internet poll of public opinion. I get that a positive image is important for a company the size of EA, but clarity of communication and seeing a solution in action is far more critical.

"Every day, millions of people across globe play and love our games—literally, hundreds of millions more than will vote in this contest," Moore concludes. "So, here's my response to this poll: we can do better. We will do better. But I am damn proud of this company, the people around the globe who work at EA, the games we create, and the people that play them."

Omri Petitte

Omri Petitte is a former PC Gamer associate editor and long-time freelance writer covering news and reviews. If you spot his name, it probably means you're reading about some kind of first-person shooter. Why yes, he would like to talk to you about Battlefield. Do you have a few days?

Latest in Sim
An ancient, angry stone mech from No Man's Sky's new Relics update
No Man’s Sky lets you unearth ancient, angry mechs in the astro-archaeology filled Relics update
Dwarf Fortress adventure mode art
After 23 years of making Dwarf Fortress, even its creator is still 'terrified' of drowning all his dwarves with aquifers: 'Part of the problem is we are just not good at videogames'
Tarn Adams, who cofounded Bay 12 Games with his brother Zach, talks about their single-player simulation game "Dwarf Fortress" during an interview at their home office in Poulsbo, Washington, west of Seattle, on December 9, 2022. - A cult favorite among indie game fans, "Dwarf Fortress" has been available for purchase on the Steam online store since December 6, a first for this title that has been distributed for free since its debut in 2006. The real-time management game, set in a medieval-fantasy world and involving overseeing a group of dwarves seeking to build a mighty fortress, has climbed to the fourth best-selling weekly title on Steam. (Photo by Jason Redmond / AFP) (Photo by JASON REDMOND/AFP via Getty Images)
Dwarf Fortress' creator is so tired of hearing about AI: 'Press a button and it writes a really sh*tty, wrong essay about something—and they still take your job'
Decorations in TCG Card Shop Simulator
TCG Card Shop Simulator finally adds the ability to decorate our stores, and suddenly all my profits are being spent on adorable Pigni posters
A person on a snowmobile riding a track in the forest in game Sledders.
Powder enthusiasts seem pretty pleased with new physics-based realistic snowmobile sim Sledders
Dean Hall at GDC 2025.
Outer space inspired DayZ's Dean Hall to become a modder and game developer, and now he's making a Kerbal successor called Kitten Space Agency
Latest in News
Two brightly colored stormtroopers dressed like Run-DMC stand in front of PAX Australia's WELCOME HOME banner.
Tickets for PAX Australia 2025 are on sale now
An Enshrouded player in a recreation of Erebor from The Lord of the Rings
Kings under the Mountain! 33 Enshrouded players spent 10,000 hours to recreate this iconic location from The Lord of the Rings
A mech awakens.
Mecha Break developer is considering unlocking all mechs following open beta feedback
Lara Croft Unified Art
Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics lays off 17 employees 'to better align our current business needs and the studio's future success'
A long bendy arm stealing money from people in a subway car
'You're a very long arm. You steal things. It's a comedy game,' explains developer of comedy game where you steal things with a very long arm
The heroes are attacked by monsters
Pillars of Eternity is getting turn-based combat to mark its 10th anniversary, and that means PC Gamer editors will soon be arguing about combat mechanics again