EA has admitted that the company “blew it” when it came to acquiring all-star developers like WestWood Studios (the makers of Command & Conquer) and Bullfrog (Dungeon Keeper, Theme Park, Popolous). All this from Electronic Arts’ CEO John Riccitiello.
He continues, “We at EA blew it, and to a degree I was involved in these things, so I blew it. When I talked to the creators that populated these companies at the time, they felt like they were buried and stifled. The command and conquer model doesn’t work. If you think you’re going to buy a developer and put your name on the label . . . you’re making a profound mistake.” Riccitiello said at the DICE Summit in Las Vegas.
EA bought out Peter Molyneux’s Bullfrog in 1995, soon after Molyneux had left. The same fate landed on Command & Conquer developer Westwood Studios, whose core members left once EA swallowed the company up.
Riccitiello blames EA’s choice to force its management structure on the acquired developer, which he says serious hampered their creative freedom.
The good news out of all this negativity is that they promise it won’t happen again, that they’ve learned from their mistakes. EA’s boss man has sworn to preserve the “company culture” at their newest acquired studios, BioWare (Mass Effect) and Pandemic (Mercenaries, Star Wars Battlefront, Full Spectrum Warrior). “It seems to be working,” Riccitiello added. “I think we are on a good track.”
It’s good to hear that EA is learning from past mistakes, too bad Westwood had to go through. They were a great developer.