EA Exec Loves Fox News

[Logan Westbrook]

EA Exec Loves Fox News

The head of the EA Games label says that developers shouldn't be afraid to court controversy, as long as it fits with their game's "creative integrity."

Fox News might not be fond [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/107628-Fox-News-Says-Bulletstorm-Could-Make-You-a-Rapist] of Bulletstorm, but that doesn't mean that the EA - Bulletstorm's publisher - doesn't like Fox News. In fact, the opposite seems to be true, as EA's Frank Gibeau says that he loves the boost of publicity that games get when Fox News goes on the attack.

Gibeau said that when trying to launch a new IP, a little controversy went a long way. He said that while he doesn't agree with the criticism that Fox News levelled at games - a recently Fox News blog post mused about whether Bulletstorm was the worst game in the world [http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/02/08/bulletstorm-worst-game-kids/] - he understood where the organization was coming from, and what it was trying to do. He thought that developers shouldn't be afraid of a little controversy, as long as it wasn't "gratuitous," and said that on each occasion that Fox News latched on to an EA game, he felt that the publisher could defend itself without anything to worry about.

He didn't seem to be especially worried about controversy hurting sales either, especially not on a game like Bulletstorm, which he didn't really think that many people in Fox News' demographic would really want to play anyway. Gibeau seems to be right not to worry, as negative Fox News coverage doesn't seem to have really hurt sales of Mass Effect, which was targeted for its "lesbian aliens," or Medal of Honor, which upset people with its inclusion of the Taliban in its multiplayer. Notably, EA did cave on that second point, but the game did go on to sell 1.5 million copies in its first week.

Despite his comment about using controversy as a marketing tool, Gibeau makes a very good point about negative media attention. Different people have different tastes, and inevitably, some people aren't going to like the content of a particular game. It's a bad idea for a developer to deliberately try to aggravate those people, but at the same time, developers shouldn't shy away from making mature games for fear of rocking the boat.

Source: Industry Gamers [http://www.industrygamers.com/news/ea-games-boss-we-love-fox-news/]








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[Polock]

Can't say I disagree with a little controversey, but come on EA. Sin to win?

 

[MorphingDragon]

"There is no such thing as bad publicity" has its limits.

AKA Sin to WIn and Your mum will hate this.

 

[Dogstile]

Can't say I disagree with a little controversey, but come on EA. Sin to win?

What? It was funny! Anyone who thought otherwise just didn't read the poster properly

 

[Rainforce]

That explains A LOT.
Also: "There is no such thing as bad publicity" has no limits, apparently.

 

[Autofaux]

Yeah, "no such thing as bad publicity"..

Unless Tiger Woods is involved.

 

[MorphingDragon]

Yeah, "no such thing as bad publicity"..

Unless Tiger Woods is involved.

SNAP

or Charlie Sheen.

 

[suitepee7]

Can't say I disagree with a little controversey, but come on EA. Sin to win?

What? It was funny! Anyone who thought otherwise just didn't read the poster properly

watch extra credits: an open letter to EA marketing. gives a few good reasons to dislike that campaign and what it did for the games industry.

 

[Zhukov]

So this means Medal of Honour 6 will let you play as the Taliban?

Maybe there could be a scene where you behead an American prisoner in front of a camera.

...

Hey, free publicity, right?

 

[The Sane]

I agree that we shouldn't worry about them, but I wouldn't call deliberately baiting them a good idea. EA is now the games publisher equivalent of a forum troll, and as far as I'm aware trolls are still uncool.

 

[Jonluw]

I'm calling it now: Fox news is actually hired by video game companies to weave controversy and give their games publicity. It's all a big conspiracy.

 

[SamElliot'sMustache]

Is it wrong that every time Fox goes on the attack against an EA game, that I secretly want both companies to destroy each other?

 

[Sarge034]

I thought your mom hates this was LOL funny, don't remember sin to win though. It's very simple if you don't like the pollicies the company has don't buy from them, money talks. I, on the other hand, will contenue to feed the troll if it produces a game I want to play. I see these advertisements as super bowl commercials. Interesting to think what they will come up with next, funny to watch, and only existing for the lulz. If they go too far the gamming community will say it with their wallets.

PS- FEED the trolls for the lulz

 

[SenseOfTumour]

I'd like to propose an experiment.

The makers of Duke Nukem Forever should cut together a video of all their most controversial bits of the game and send it to Fox News with a note saying 'we can't afford much advertising for our new game, but we thought you should warn your viewers anyway. It's far cheaper to let you guys do our advertising for us for free.'

Just be curious if Fox ran with it if the games PR people made it even more obvious that they're just playing along to Fox's mad views.

I'd suggest they would, as it's cheap, easy hours of TV filled up with sensationalist nonsense, and it's so easy to find 'experts' to condemn the subject matter.Even better if the 'expert' has never heard of videogames, or even electricity, just makes them more of an expert.

I think they filter for 'experts' with two simple props, they show them a copy of a swimsuit edition of Sports Illustrated, and if they faint from the sight of such hardcore pornography that debases women, they're in.

If they then wave a copy of 'Guns and ammo' under their nose and they awaken, and spring straight back up with an obvious boner, they get their own regular opinion show.

 

[SenseOfTumour]

I should say however, I am against badly thought out deliberate 'shock' campaigns like 'Sin to Win' and the 'your mom won't like it', as was stated in Extra Credits, it just brings the whole industry down to the level of 12 year old boys giggling because someone said 'boobs'.

heheheheh-oh, sorry.

 

[FogHornG36]

Uh... ea thanks for seting a poor example for the video game community. This just makes me think of lindsay lohan, Bad publicity is the only publicity is all she can get.

 

[PeterDawson]

I think the lesson here to not try and generate controversy, just make what you want and if happens, all the better. I mean, every time EA has tried to force it, what with Dead Space 2's terrible marketing idea (Team Floyd!) and the whole 'Sin to Win' crap, its been worthless. But geniune controversies over artistic choices like the stuff in Mass Effect and even stuff in Bulletstorm (yes, artistic) haven't seemed too problematic. A shame they just flat-out bailed on the Taliban thing, might have been interesting to see played out.

 

[Baresark]

Ok. We all know there isn't any such thing as bad press. I have stated this in the past, long before someone at EA said it. I hate EA, they are SCUMM (yay Monkey Island). Seriously though, they intentionally push the limits on stuff as a form of shock sales. They did it with Dead Space 2 as well. Other games in the past even. Shock marketing is epic fail, and it hurts the industry.

Also, I find their cowardice in regards to the Taliban thing annoying. But, I do feel a bit gratified they got screwed on that. They military said if they didn't take it out, they wouldn't sell it on base, so EA took it out, and then proceeded to not allow it's sale on military bases. Now EA just looks like a bunch of punks. Which is a pretty accurate description of them.

 

[TheDoctor455]

Since when has EA been known for its integrity?