Posted
Aug 29 2008, 01:30 AM
Another Tuesday, another EA SPORTS title launch. Just on the way back to San Francisco from New York City, where yesterday we had a whirlwind series of events and announcements culminating in
a star-studded launch event at Strata on Broadway. Tiger, as always was the consummate professional – prompt, polished, articulate and genuinely funny and relaxed. We began the day with a series
of satellite television interviews with Tiger discussing the game, as well as answering the obvious questions about his rehab (he is well into his therapy program, but was non-committal about a return
date to the tour).
We were also delighted to be able to announce our global strategic partnership with Gillette in the early afternoon, which will link various EA SPORTS games to the Fusion razor range. Centerpiece
of the partnership program will be the EA SPORTS/Gillette Champions of Gaming, a global online tournament that will commence in October through Xbox Live, culminating in a series of finals in Tampa,
Florida in January when the winners will be able to compete against one of the Gillette Champions: Tiger Woods, Roger Federer, and Derek Jeter. More details on that in the coming weeks.
Throughout the day, and throughout the city, we ran numerous tournaments combining Tiger on the Wii and some real putting in conjunction with our retail partners at Gamestop. The fortunate winners were able to come to the evening event and meet Tiger and compete for further prizes on the numerous demo stations that were scattered throughout Strata.
Tiger conducted various interviews throughout the day, showing off his gaming prowess to various journalists. Here he is walking through the fine points of the Xbox 360 version of the game.
Mid-afternoon and we’re off to 30 Rock for the taping of the Conan O’Brien Show. Tiger and Conan played a competitive (and hilariously funny) first hole at St. Andrew’s on the show, with Conan’s golfer wearing a kilt and sporting his trademark shock of red hair. Tiger won the hole, of course…
Here is Conan making a pre-taping trip to Tiger’s green room, getting his guest loose with his irreverent wisecracks.
Directly after the taping, we were back downtown for the evening event at Strata. Among the approximately 600 invited guests, we were honored to have several Olympic gold medalists join us, including Brian Clay, Misty May-Trainor, Kerri Walsh, and perhaps most excitingly, Michael Phelps. It was such a thrill for all of us at EA SPORTS to have arguably two of the greatest athletes on the planet, Tiger and Michael, at our event. I spent a few minutes talking games to Michael, and learned that he is relatively hard core – all three consoles, loves sports games, and was on top of all the new releases. He was delight to be with – humble and self-effacing but at the same time poised and confident.
On a final, and perhaps most important note, my hat is off to our development team in Tiburon. When I checked Metacritic this morning before boarding the flight at JFK, the PS3 version was tracking at a 90 average rating, and the Xbox 360 version was at 88. Both excellent scores and 8 to 10 rating points higher than last year’s game. Wii ratings are yet to come, but having the played the game for some weeks now, I know that version will garner similar ratings. Great work team…
Posted
Aug 26 2008, 07:18 PM
Just arrived here in New York City in support of the launch activities for
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09. I will be with Tiger tomorrow as we do a full day of media interviews, including an appearance on the Conan O’Brien Show later in the day. I’ll provide you with behind-the-scenes peeks in a post later in the week.
In the meantime, please enjoy the latest video from our recent commercial shoot with Tiger. We all now know he can walk on water, as evidenced by the video in my recent post, but can he nail a 25 ft putt using a Rubik’s Cube (square) rather than a golf ball (round)? We had a few minutes available in between takes on the shoot, and the director asked Tiger if he had ever holed-out a Rubik’s Cube. Tiger didn’t think it was possible, correctly citing the laws of physics, probability, etc. etc., but offered to give it three attempts. On the first try, he shattered the cube. What you see in the video below is his second attempt, real, unedited, with no digital shenanigans at play…enjoy.
Posted
Aug 25 2008, 05:52 PM
Just back from a good trip to Leipzig for the annual Games Convention. It was my first trip to this event and I was impressed by the scope and scale of the convention, and was also impressed how seamlessly it evolved from a trade event to a consumer extravaganza on the second day. A useful template for a future E3 maybe?
For EA SPORTS, the announcements we made in Leipzig were important examples of our commitment to globalizing our business and the priority our teams are placing on pushing innovation in the online, connected space. The response to both of our big pieces of news last week – that we have a tennis game in development at EAC, and that FIFA 09 will debut a new feature called adidas Live Season – is a testament to the opportunity we have to continue to evolve the EA SPORTS brand and become even more relevant to a new era of both sports fans and gamers alike.
Before either of us got out of town though, I had a chance to ask FIFA 09 Executive Producer Andrew Wilson a few questions about adidas Live Season. As you can imagine, the first question I got from many people was how Live Season was the same or different than Dynamic DNA in NBA LIVE. Here’s a little of what Andrew had to say:
Q: What exactly is adidas Live Season and how does it work?:
A: adidas Live Season is a new premium service for FIFA 09 PS3, Xbox 360 and PC that will update in-game player form each and every week. It will change the way real life is reflected in a football videogame forever. Our new service will run from the launch of the game to the end of the 08/09 season and is based on how real players performed in the most recent real-world matches. FIFA 09 will feel different every week throughout the entire season matching the weekly rhythm of football. That means that the actual form and strength of a player in the game is based on his real life performance. Believe me Peter, Liverpool will be as good in the game during the course of the season as in real life – or as bad….
Additionally, let me explain a couple more interesting points of Live Season:
The data that changes on a weekly basis is the form of a player. No other data will be changed weekly. We will however be making adjustments to the data with the ‘Day 1’ updates – meaning, updating player transfers and the resulting line-up changes – and the winter updates where necessary based on player performances.
On a weekly basis, players will be assigned a “player form” rating, which can be one of five ratings: bad, poor, neutral (no change), good, and excellent. For the four non-neutral form settings, we update a variety of that player’s attributes based on what position the player plays and what form setting they were assigned. Form is relative to how players are rated in our player database.
Q: Who actually is responsible for rating players and how does the system work?
A: We have a global football data experts network that works with us every year to make sure the FIFA franchise includes the most accurate player and team data. This same team of passionate experts monitor every player in the Live Season leagues to supply in-depth data each week.
Q: What happens if a player gets injured? Would he simply vanish from the game?
A: We thought a lot about that, but the players are so important to the game that we decided that we won’t take them out of the game altogether. If and when players are seriously injured, they may get a poor or bad form rating to reflect the fact they aren’t able to play up to their rating in the database. But we are not making players unavailable due to suspension or injury for the service this year.
Q: Not that I expect this from Liverpool, but what if my team is having a bad season and I’d prefer to not have the team reflecting real-world form?
A: It’s simple. You can always turn off Live Season. If Liverpool, for instance, is having a bad season you can reset the service and play with a much better Liverpool squad that was included in the game when you bought it. You can reset your squads back to the same way when you first opened the game. You can decide whether you want to play with the latest form, or with the default player database: offline and online. It’s your choice each time you play. But as a sportsman that you are I bet you would never reset it. With both Dynamic DNA in NBA LIVE as well as Live Season in FIFA, we’re finally able to create sports experiences that evolve with the season. It brings sports fans that much closer to the real-world of sports.
As I mentioned in my previous post, I am off to New York this week for the Tiger launch. I’ll bring all the news from the Big Apple, including some of the behind-the-scenes shots from the numerous events we have planned. BTW – we’re now well over 1 million views of the Tiger viral video on You Tube as of this morning...
Posted
Aug 22 2008, 02:55 PM
It’s fast becoming a phenomenon on the web, but for any of you who haven’t caught the Tiger Woods video that’s getting a lot of eyeballs on YouTube this week, you have to check it out.
I must admit that I’ve admired Tiger for years now, but I never knew he could walk on water. Impressive. So next time you see something in a game that you think is a glitch, think twice…
I’m in New York with Tiger next week for the launch of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 – I’ll bring you all the news from what should be an exciting week.
Peter
Posted
Aug 20 2008, 05:24 PM
We’re off to a good start here at the Games Convention in Leipzig.
At our press conference that started the day, we made two important product announcements that address our strategies of globalizing our business and continuing to take advantage of online and the connected sports gaming experience.
For FIFA, we announced
adidas Live Season, a new premium service that will dynamically update player form in-game on a weekly basis. While different in execution and unique for FIFA, adidas Live Season is like Dynamic DNA in that we’re harnessing the power of online to bring the virtual world of sports games to life with real-world data. In both NBA LIVE and FIFA this year, connected consumers will enjoy the benefit of a game that evolves as the season evolves.
In real-world terms, this will allow you to track Liverpool’s inexorable march towards the Premier League Championship this season, as the form of each of the key players improves each week, while at the same time Manchester United collapses like the sub-prime mortgage market (says he, hopefully…).
I was also very excited to announce that we have a
new tennis game in development at EAC. Tennis is something we’ve looked at for some time now, and we think the time is right to capture the excitement of the sport and bring new innovation to the genre as we globalize our business. The tennis game will lead on the Wii and be the first EA SPORTS game to use the new MotionPlus accessory for the Wii Remote.
You’ll hear plenty more on both FIFA and tennis in the months to come…
Peter
Posted
Aug 19 2008, 07:54 PM
Just arrived in Leipzig for the annual Games Convention, where we will be talking about our globalization strategy for EA SPORTS, as well as giving attendees a much-anticipated deep dive on FIFA 09, by far our top selling game here in Europe.
It would be remiss of me if I didn’t thank all of the members of Madden Nation who joined us at the Rose Bowl last week for Maddenpalooza. As you can see from the attached video, a good time was had by all, as we welcomed a number of NFL legends, had non-stop music from acts like Busta Rhymes and Good Charlotte, and of course, had a full afternoon of hands-on with the game itself before our partners Wal-Mart sold the first game at the close of the evening.
We are also very proud of the outstanding reviews the game is garnering on the three consoles – great work from the team at Tiburon.
Red Sox making me feel very uneasy – mid-August and we are 4 ½ games back of Tampa Bay? Only good news is that the Yankees are even further back. Starting to feel like the wild card is the only way we get to the post season.
Across the pond, I watched Liverpool Saturday morning on Fox Soccer Channel (how did we displaced footie fans ever get by without FSC?). Unconvincing performance, but a win nonetheless. Thank God for Torres…
More later in the week.
Peter
Posted
Aug 08 2008, 11:29 PM
Before I head down to Pasadena for Maddenpalooza, I wanted to share with you our new 60 second TV spot for Madden NFL 09.
Created by our talented in-house advertising team and our agency Weiden & Kennedy, the ads are probably a departure from what you have seen from
EA SPORTS on television in recent years.
To all of us who have played video games and watched sports over the past 15 years, “It’s In the Game,” is one of the most familiar signatures in television advertising. EA SPORTS iconic sign-off and stylistic advertising has defined the EA SPORTS brand and you, its fans, for nearly a generation. But as the business changes and the demographics of gamers evolve, so too must EA SPORTS’ advertising creative.
Beginning a few weeks ago with the launch of NCAA Football 09, and carrying through the majority of EA SPORTS advertising for the remainder of the 09 season, a new brand campaign will better reflect the brand and the face of gamers everywhere. This new campaign includes nearly two dozen television spots and more than 50 web vignettes, as well as community, mobile and other extensions.
No longer speaking exclusively to “boys in their bedrooms,” EA SPORTS will bring forward the new faces and voices of real-life gamers in an authentic, unscripted vision by legendary filmmaker Errol Morris. The campaign features YOU - real gamers of all types - young and old, male and female, celeb and athlete – speaking in their own voices.
While the essence of "It's In the Game" and the ubiquitous EA SPORTS medallion remain unchanged, this new campaign replaces that familiar sign-off with a range of voices from within the EA SPORTS community in their own words. I truly hope you enjoy the spots, and that you appreciate how we are trying to bring to life the unique faces of sports video gamers by sharing your stories and passion for our franchises.
Enjoy…
Posted
Aug 08 2008, 01:46 AM
As we all know by now, Brett Favre is a New York Jet. And if you believe the simulation we ran using the Madden NFL 09 engine, Jets fans should get ready for the playoffs. Our prediction has the Jets winning 11 games, their most since the 1998 season, and New York earning a wild card berth in the playoffs. It’s going to be fun to see Favre in the AFC East, but I’m sure my fellow Patriots brethren will tell you that we’re still not scared of the Jets.
Get a look at #4 in green and white. Going to take a while to get used to this, huh?
Meanwhile, our team is in LA making final preparations for Maddenpalooza. We can hardly wait to get down to the Rose Bowl for next week’s launch.
Chris Erb, our director of marketing for Madden and the brains behind the incredible flurry of launch activities, checked in earlier today with these pictures to give us a sneak peak from the Rose Bowl, where we’re expecting thousands of fans to turn out on Monday to see Good Charlotte, Busta Rhymes and buy their first copies of the game. Most importantly – admission is free. Get there early.
A couple of other important announcements we made today:
• An online roster patch featuring Brett as the Jets starting QB will be available by launch day, and hopefully even Monday Aug. 11. As we’ve said before, the final packaged version of the game that you can buy in stores beginning next week will feature Brett on an “NFL Greats” roster. In Franchise Mode, players can transfer Favre to the free agent roster pool, and pick him up on any of the 32 NFL teams for the 2008 season. Or, go online and download new rosters (that include other changes as well) after you buy the game on Tuesday.
• As we’ve previously confirmed, Madden will hit stores on Aug. 12 with Brett in his Green Bay Packers uniform. We don’t plan to re-issue the game with new packaging, but will offer a free downloadable cover in the coming days on easports.com featuring Brett Favre in a Jets uniform. Fans can print this new cover out and insert it into the case of Madden NFL 09. Look for it by Tuesday.
• The Madden demo is now available. We’ve been reading lots of feedback on it. Make sure you download it and preview the new Virtual Training Center and Madden IQ test. Our producers are in the forums answering your questions, and they’ve posted this story for anyone wanting more about the demo.
Read article
See you next week in Pasadena.
Posted
Aug 07 2008, 12:06 AM
On the road this week for business, I was excited to pick up my copy of USA Today this morning and see a terrific story on the history of Madden.
Click here to read it.
As I’m quoted as saying in the story: “We don't so much as launch Madden any more, we celebrate its arrival”, and it’s quite a celebration at Tiburon this week. Our Madden development team has put together a truly breakthrough game this year to celebrate the 20th anniversary of this great franchise – something we’re extremely proud of. And it's nice to see the critics agree. Madden was named best sports game of E3 in the official “Game Critics Best of Show Awards” that were announced yesterday. Congrats also to EA’s other nominees for this category, including: NBA LIVE, Skate It and Tiger Woods PGA TOUR.
And so much for what I said in yesterday’s post about welcoming Brett back to Green Bay. As we all continue to watch this saga unfold, reports have Brett heading to Tampa Bay next year. Who knows. But since I’ve had many people asking, I just want to set the record straight – Madden NFL 09 will hit stores next Tuesday with Brett wearing his Packers green and gold, as we celebrate his legacy as one of the great QBs to ever play the game and someone’s who’s been with us from the early days of John Madden Football. But what’s most important is what’s in the game – and by the start of the season, we’ll have a roster patch that will ensure that, in the game, Brett is on whatever team he’s playing for this season.
Who could have imagined the offseason would be this fun?
We’re under a week to go until Madden launch. Don’t forget to look for me next week at Maddenpalooza.
Posted
Aug 05 2008, 07:31 PM
What a fascinating story that continues to unfold with the cheese heads in Green Bay.
We’ve obviously been close observers of the ongoing Brett Favre saga that has now been unfolding for weeks, so it’s with great interest that we stay glued to ESPN.com to learn the latest on what’s happening at camp today after last night’s long meeting with Favre and Packers Head Coach Mike McCarthy.
Interestingly, you might remember from a previous post that I mentioned that there was controversy even within the halls of EA about putting Brett on the cover of the game. Ironically, there was concern that once he announced his retirement that he would return home to Mississippi and never be heard from again until he showed up in Canton to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame. How wrong we were! Looking back to the day we announced Brett on the Late Show with David Letterman, it was clear then he was not totally convinced that he would never step foot on another NFL field in uniform.
All the drama aside, here’s what you really need to know about Brett Favre in Madden:
Brett is in the game. Just as we do every year, we’ll release a roster patch the day before the game hits stores with all the changes that have been made in the offseason since the game went final. Thus, Brett will be a Green Bay Packer when rosters are updated on Monday, just as Jason Taylor will be a Redskin instead of a member of the Miami Dolphins. We’ll also release another roster update before the start of the regular season.
Here’s hoping things get resolved one way or the other for one of the game’s true legends.
PS. Don’t forget to let me know if any of you are coming to Maddenpalooza, so that we can meet up…