EA: We want to reestablish Origin as a service for gamers

EA vice president Andrew Wilson wants to make it clear to gamers that the company’s digital distribution service Origin is for them, not EA.

Speaking to Games Industry, Wilson spoke on the growing pains the service has gone through.

"Over the years … there’ve been some permutations of that vision that have manifested as part of Origin.”

"I think what we’ve done is taken a step back and said ‘Wow, we’ve actually done some really cool things with Origin.’ It is by no means perfect, but we’ve done some pretty cool things. As you say, the plumbing is there. What can we do now to really think about Origin in the next generation?"

It’s a notion that has Wilson excited about what’s to come, as he hopes to bring Origin back to its roots as a service for gamers first and foremost.

"Part of the reason why I think it came back in to me was my history with Origin, and the ability to take a step back and say OK, now that we have the plumbing what does ‘make your EA games better’ mean? What does ‘make it easier to access those games’ mean? What does ‘enhanced gameplay’ mean? What does ‘connect with friends’ mean in the context of Origin, and what does that mean for the PC, for console, and for mobile?”

Really coming back to our roots as a service for gamers, versus anything else that it may have been perceived to have been over the last few years by virtue of its various permutations or changes in direction."

Wilson also believes the culture is changing for the better, and that the company has already made strides in the right direction – with many more planned in the near future.

"When I speak to the team now, they’re very energized about this concept of ‘Listen, the transaction is really a very small part of the experience; that’s really not what this is about.’"

"We get it. We understand it. We have heard, we have made some changes already in terms of how we do things, and we’re looking at more changes that we’ll talk about over the coming months that really are gamer-focused."