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EA has decided to stick to its guns on the controversy over Sim City 5’s always online requirement, announcing that all its franchises are to recieve simliar "online universes".
A company often accused of playing the safe bet at the expense of innovation, EA has opted to chance lost sales in order to bring players an unprecedented level of connectivity by taking all its franchises online.
This despite a Pew Internet report released last week revealing that 38 percent of Americans don’t have high speed internet access.
Eurogamer reports that Keith Ramsdale, the head of EA’s Northern Europe division made the announcement at the publisher’s UK showcase.
Citing Fifa as an example, Ramsdale said this meant more than simple online play, but the ability to access a game brand across multiple devices, with each contributing to the same goal and profile.
"Imagine a player gets up in the morning, plays an online match on his 360 before going to work," he said.
"On the bus, on his way to work, he practices his free kicks on his tablet. At lunch he looks at the transfer window on his PC. On the way home he chooses his kit on his smartphone."
"Here’s the thing: when he gets home to play again on his 360 that evening, all those achievements and upgrades will be alive in his game."
To Ramsdale, this means a player can play "how he wants, when he wants and on the device he wants".
"We’re very focused on transforming all of our brands into these online universes. That gives the consumer full control of how and when they play in a rich world of content."
