EA Prioritizes Realism in Gaming Following Dragon Age Sales Setback
By EA has disclosed a decline in net bookings and stay service earnings following underwhelming performances from major titles such as EA Sports activities FC 25 and Dragon Age: The Veilguard, which did not meet expectations.
The organization had previously cautioned that this might happen, and in its latest financial report for the third quarter ending December 31, 2024, verified that net bookings fell by 6 percent year-over-year to $2.2 billion.
Out of total net bookings, complete game net bookings decreased by 3 percent year-over-year to $633 million. Live services and other net bookings fell by 8 percent to $1.58 billion during the same timeframe.
EA CFO Stuart Canfield stated that the decline was due to disappointing performances from certain titles.
“Dragon Age: The Veilguard did not meet expectations amidst the competitive landscape of the single-player RPG genre, and EA Sports activities FC 25 started strong but waned through the holiday period,” Canfield remarked.
Reiterating on Veilguard, Canfield noted that impactful storytelling has historically been a reliable strategy, yet it appears that the environment is currently changing. “[Dragon Age’s] financial performance underscores the shifting landscape of the industry and highlights the need for us to realign resources towards our most significant and promising opportunities,” he added.
While it may often be challenging to extract clarity from corporate jargon, it certainly reflects a sentiment that suggests EA is growing increasingly pessimistic about the prospects of single-player experiences. This isn’t surprising considering live services constituted 74 percent of EA’s operations on a trailing 12-month basis.
Ultimately, EA has now moderated its expectations for Veilguard— which has garnered 1.5 million players to date—and has updated its annual guidance to reflect “lower contributions” from this title.
EA head suggests a significant franchise may undergo a major revamp
In discussing its other franchises, EA CEO Andrew Wilson indicated that EA Sports activities FC did not perform as well because some players are taking longer to upgrade between annual launches.
“Although initial acquisition was strong, subsequent acquisition cohorts delayed longer in the cycle to purchase a new title as many remained on previous versions,” Wilson explained. “Overall engagement in our full HD offerings remained flat year-over-year. This shift in mix and slower acquisition of new players accounted for roughly half of the title’s shortfall against expectations.”
He pointed out that recent efforts to address gameplay challenges produced a “positive response,” as evidenced by player retention rates and a record number of weekly active users in January. Wilson described the impact of EA Sports activities FC’s performance as a “temporary” setback, rather than a foundational issue that will affect the company in the long run.
“Our global football franchise’s net bookings have surged over 70 percent over the last five fiscal years, establishing it as one of the leading sports entertainment properties globally,” he remarked, noting that FY25 is projected to be the second most profitable year in the franchise’s history.
The company’s other primary sports franchise, American Football, is set to exceed $1 billion in net bookings during the current fiscal year and has shown double-digit growth in weekly active users during Q3.
In other areas, Apex Legends net bookings declined year-over-year, but Wilson stated that the performance was in line with expectations. He remarked that the live service shooter “has not been progressing in the direction we desired for some time” and hinted that a substantial overhaul might be forthcoming.
“We believe there will be a time when we need to undertake a more comprehensive update for Apex as a broader gameplay experience,” he continued. “You can assume we likely won’t release that alongside a Battlefield launch. Therefore, from a timing perspective, we are currently considering that it will occur after Battlefield.”
The Sims franchise, on the other hand, achieved year-over-year growth and, according to Wilson, exceeded expectations after expanding with the spin-off MySims: Comfy Bundle. He noted that 50 percent of all players who bought that title were new to EA.
Looking ahead, EA anticipates net bookings of $7 billion to $7.15 billion by the close of the fiscal year on March 31, 2025—down 6 percent to 4 percent year-over-year.
EA has also announced intentions for a $1 billion accelerated stock repurchase in addition to its current $375 million quarterly program. Canfield stated that this decision “reinforces our strategy and commitment to returning capital to shareholders” and “de