EA embarks on a mission to restore confidence among PC gamers
EA embarks on a mission to restore confidence among PC gamers
They certainly had valid reasons for departing from Steam. One major factor was...and I’m aware some folks are tired of the term 'money.' Yes. EA thrives on revenue, collecting substantial sums each year and striving to maximize profits with minimal waste. But Steam operates differently—it isn’t owned by EA, so it takes a share of the earnings, around 30%. This likely upset them since Valve was capturing a significant portion of EA’s income. What did EA do? They eliminated intermediaries and launched Origin, a platform designed to support EA titles across various genres, from Wing Commander to Star Wars: Battlefront. By handling sales directly, they retain full profit margins for game development and future projects. That approach isn’t inherently wrong.
Origin initially faced challenges and was perceived as underwhelming for several months—perhaps even years—but it eventually became a staple. Meanwhile, Steam itself wasn’t particularly popular at its launch. The infamous Half-Life 2 introduced online activation that still divides users today. And let’s be honest—it’s a client. Installing one is harmless unless you’re tied to a specific service like Uplay.
To clarify, while CD Projekt and Ubisoft also offer their own clients and sell through Steam, they also distribute via other platforms such as Uplay and GOG. Nevertheless, these companies earn more through Steam because their titles consistently perform well. In fact, The Witcher 3 achieved dominance on PC through GOG alone, eventually surpassing Steam in popularity. A small Polish studio now holds a major share of the American gaming market—a shift no one could have predicted.
I don't mind the origin. I just begin it to enjoy BF. EA needs to sell on Steam. Regarding the trust, EA must provide a lot before I consider trusting them again. They still have a long way to go.
Yep, but that's what happens when the devs(CDProjektRed) put so much effort into the game and give players so much content and playability and keep on actively fixing their bugs,glitches, etc. CD Projekt deserves every bit of their recent success with the Witcher 3, it was by far the best game of 2015 and no other dev tried nearly as hard as CD Projekt to bring such a good game not to mention with free DLC and a 10 hour campaign DLC(and upcoming 20 hr DLC). That's how you get players to love you
EA's releases often show big differences in quality. The BF4 launch was a major issue, even though Dice put in a lot of effort which seems to have improved the game. I prefer playing BF3 over it. Besides that, Dragon Age Inquisition really caught my attention. Its artistic direction is impressive, and EA avoided the pitfalls of microtransactions. I think they shouldn't be held responsible for poor titles like Battlefront, since you could try a beta version before buying. The same applies to NFS.
I don't believe PC gamers dislike EA anymore. We still face some issues, like the SimCity situation, but overall they’re not terrible. I’d like to see them avoid the way Mass Effect 3 DLC was released—some players missed key moments like 'from ashes' and 'leviathan' that help understand the story. Still, all three Mass Effect titles left a lasting impression on me, and I’m grateful to EA and BioWare for it. Dice (part of EA) developed the top modern graphics engine, Frostbite. Regarding Origin, I prefer Steam because it offers more features and innovation, though I usually don’t run into major problems with it. It’s not worth jumping on trends and criticizing companies like EA.
You're correct. Companies such as EA, Ubisoft, and CD Projekt likely don't take a 30% cut from Valve for Steam revenue. While that percentage is common among indie developers, major publishers have leverage in negotiations. Valve aims to include them on Steam and typically secures more favorable deals than the standard 70% that many smaller studios receive. Of course, developers won't disclose this due to terms of service restrictions.