Gamers are eating good recently, with great game releases like Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Dynasty Warriors Origins, Synduality: Echo of Ada, and Marvel Rivals. The industry as a whole is in a dire state, though, as major AAA publishers launch flop after flop into the market. EA is no exception, and it’s hurting after both the latest soccer game as well as Dragon Age: The Veilguard failed to meet the company’s expectations.
As a result, Electronic Arts has slashed its financial forecast for its current fiscal year due to these struggles. In particular, the company has revised its live-service earnings expectations from a “mid-single digit” growth to a shrinkage of the same degree. It blames the majority of that change on the troubled EA Sports FC 2025, which was released to a resounding chorus of “meh” reviews in September.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard was instead responsible for a significant shortfall in bookings after its very weak launch on Halloween last year. Uniquely, the game launched in an excellent technical state, with bleeding-edge technology and a relative lack of bugs. However, uninspired gameplay, unappealing character designs, and tedious writing were common criticisms in user reviews. EA says that the game missed its sales targets by “nearly 50%”.
After everything, the company now says that its bookings outlook for the full fiscal year is somewhere in the range of $7 billion to $7.15 billion. While that’s still a ton of money, that’s bookings, not profits or even revenues, and it’s a huge cut from the previous estimate of $7.5 to $7.8 billion.
Unsurprisingly, EA’s stock dropped sharply on this news; in after-hours trading, shares of the company fell by about 12%. Despite that, EA’s CEO Andrew Wilson says he’s still confident in the company’s long-term strategy. He notes that EA Sports FC 25 just got a major update with a “comprehensive gameplay refresh,” and that players are responding positively. He also says that he expects growth next year thanks to “launch[ing] more of our iconic franchises.”
Despite many customer-hostile business practices over the years, it’s undeniable that Electronic Arts has been a driving force in the games industry. Here’s hoping that Wilson and company can right the ship, lest we see the capsizing of yet another American tech icon.