EA FC Will Replace FIFA.
EA could not reach an agreement with FIFA for licensing the game; instead, they will rebrand the game, which mostly should be the same.
FIFA 23 is the last game under the license published by EA. The football association federation was asking Electronic Arts at least $300 million per year with the new deal. Unfortunately, for them, an agreement could not be reached. The former deal consisted of EA paying FIFA $150 million per year for the license.
EA will now publish its successful football video game under the name of EA FC. In theory, the game should mostly feel the same, with all of its beloved and hated game modes, except that it won't count with the official World Cup, Euro Cup, and other international tournaments.
Honestly, these tournaments show up every 4 years, and they are not even playable in career mode; I think they won't be missed. In regards to national teams like Argentina, Belgium, England, and others, there is a chance that EA will find it more difficult to obtain the license to feature them.
EA FC recently launched a campaign partnering with a lot of top teams in the football scene. Teams like Real Madrid, Manchester United, Liverpool, Juventus, and more, are committed to the new re-branded project.
Fans can rest assured that we will see the team, players likeness, and stadiums featured in the game. It is estimated that around 300 partners are on board, including leagues like the Premier, La Liga, Bundesliga, and UEFA itself.
Let's circle back to game modes for a moment. It is expected that Career Mode, Seasons, Co-op, Volta, Pro Clubs and FUT should remain unchanged. FUT is EA's money maker; there is no reason to think that the mode will suffer the effects of losing the FIFA license. There are plenty of things to work with without involving FIFA, and any changes brought to the mode will be the ones that EA has already planned.
What about the FIFA license?
At the moment, FIFA does not have an official publisher to work on the next FIFA titled game. The name carries a lot of weight, and being able to license official international tournaments is something sought after.
Unfortunately for them, they lost their biggest commercial partner. A 30-year partnership catapulted the sport to millions around the globe. Most of us got into football at an early age because of FIFA. It seems that organizations often undermine the impact that video games can have on their brand.
There is an upcoming free-to-play football game called UFL. The game is being developed by Strikerz Inc using the mostly acclaimed Unreal Engine 5. The potential is unlimited; the engine will allow the developers to create incredible visuals. Check out its alpha game play.
UFL promotes a fair game without any dodgy scripts like the FIFA games have. I don't know if this will be a reason for them to distance themselves from the FIFA name. Another reason is that this is a new IP, and spending millions of dollars on licensing alone is not a good business decision.
FIFA (the federation) is commited to a Triple A video game experience in the near future; it is a matter of time before they find someone willing to pay them for the license. Perhaps they will come to the realization that EA was the only capable of paying those exorbitant amounts.
Only companies like Microsoft or Sony are capable of reaching licensing agreements of this sort. Perhaps one of the big console developers will seize the opportunity. I see Microsoft pulling this kind of deal, considering that it is part of their monopolistic business practices, and they possess the resources to do something like this.
[Source: Insider Gaming]
Comments