EA Worldwide Studios executive VP was initially “puzzled” after seeing Switch, says “it’s a pretty special machine”
Posted on 6 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 81 Comments
In the latest issue of EDGE, EA Worldwide Studios executive vice president Patrick Söderlund spoke about the possibility of the company further supporting Switch. The same interview also had some talk about Söderlund and Switch on a more personal level.
EDGE asked Söderlund if Switch has blindsided the games industry, in particular due to how Wii U performed. His response was “a little”, before adding that he was “puzzled” by the system when he first saw it. Söderlund admitted though that Nintendo probably understood something he didn’t, and now feels that it’s “a pretty special machine”.
Söderlund said:
More: EA, interview, Patrick Soderlund
EA could bring many more games to Switch if FIFA 18 performs well
Posted on 6 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 155 Comments
EA’s first Switch game will be published next month. FIFA 18 will launch on the console along with other platforms on September 29. On the whole, early feedback has been quite positive.
EA’s future support on Switch could hinge on the performance of FIFA 18. Speaking to EDGE this month, executive vice president Patrick Söderlund noted that the company wants to support the platform “and help Nintendo grow that installed base”. He went on to say that “it”s about supporting the platform, building technology for the platform, testing it out with big things like FIFA – and maybe a couple of others, we’ll see – and if they go well, I see no reason why we shouldn’t have as much of our portfolio on that platform as possible.”
Söderlund stated:
More: EA, interview, Patrick Soderlund, top
EA exec talks more about Switch, says Nintendo has been listening to third-parties
Posted on 7 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 74 Comments
Executive vice president Patrick Soderlund Patrick Soderlund made some comments to IGN a few days ago about EA and Switch. Famitsu also caught up with him following the Nintendo Switch Presentation 2017 last week, where FIFA was announced for the new platform.
When asked about future titles on Switch, Soderlund said:
“I only spoke about FIFA today, but our company’s structure lets us release all sorts of games for every platform, so we’ll go wherever the gamers go. I think Nintendo Switch will put Nintendo at the forefront of the game industry once again. Their approach is quite different from anything they’ve done in the past – they’ve listened to EA, Activision, and other companies since the beginning of the Switch’s development, so we’ve been involved throughout the whole process. They teamed up with us because they wanted to guarantee the console would be successful. Doing business with Nintendo is very important for us… We’d like to bring more and more games over for everyone.”
Following EA’s announcement of FIFA on Switch, one rumor came out claiming that it could be based on PlayStation 3 / Xbox 360 versions of the game. Thus far, it’s only been officially stated that the title has been “custom built” for the new console.
More: EA, interview, Patrick Soderlund, top
EA’s Patrick Soderlund on bringing FIFA to Switch, future support, system can stand up to mobile, hyped for Zelda
Posted on 7 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 29 Comments
EA executive vice president Patrick Soderlund stopped by the Nintendo Switch Presentation 2017 last week to announce FIFA for the big N’s new console. IGN caught up with him to talk about the publisher’s support a bit more in-depth.
Soderlund started out with the following:
“We’ve been with Nintendo for a very long time. I’m a Nintendo fanboy since I grew up. Nintendo is the reason I got into gaming.”
“What I like about Nintendo is that they come to the table with a slightly different approach. They’ve done that in the past to great success, and sometimes not so much, but I think unless you’re willing to think about something unconventional, it’s going to be hard to break ground. Nintendo forces us to think differently. (Switch) challenges conventions, as game makers, makes us think about the platform in a different way.”
EA praises Nintendo, but quiet on NX support for now
Posted on 7 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 28 Comments
We’ve seen a couple of third-parties announce titles for NX even though the system still hasn’t been properly unveiled. We’ve also heard about some publishers who have left the door open to support. With EA though, their intentions are less clear.
Game Informer asked EA executive vice president Patrick Soderlund about NX at Gamescom today. While he was quick to praise the big N, he wasn’t willing to come out and comment on the new platform for now.
He said:
“Nintendo is such an instrumental part of our whole industry. They deserve to be successful, and they deserve to be a major player in the business, given their pedigree. It’s not only the machines that they’ve built, but also the IPs they’ve brought to market. There are very few companies like Nintendo. Whenever they bring something to market that we see an addressable market for, we’ll be there. Given that they haven’t announced [a new console] officially or shown it, I can’t comment specifically.”
More: EA, interview, Patrick Soderlund, top
EA will have games on NX “if it makes sense”
Posted on 7 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 31 Comments
EA will make games for NX “if it makes sense” for the publisher to do so, according to executive vice president Patrick Soderlund.
In an interview with with BBC, Soderlund had this to say about supporting the new console:
“I personally and the company are huge fans of Nintendo, they’re the reason why I started making games. We’re in constant communication with them and when they come to market something – and if it makes sense for us – we’ll be there.”
Many remember when EA appeared on stage at Nintendo’s E3 2012 media briefing to announce an “unprecedented partnership” between the two sides. That relationship fizzled out soon after the console’s launch. EA’s final Wii U game was Need for Speed: Most Wanted.
