EA Subscription for Xbone

[InsanityRequiem]

http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/07/29/ea-announces-subscription-service-on-xbox-one-ea-access

Heard that correctly folks, EA is making a subscription program for the Xbox One. Monthly $5 or Annually $30 to play the games that EA says you can play. And it's on top of the $60 yearly Xbox Live Gold subscription. So now you'll be paying a few hundred for the system, $60 a year for online, and now an extra $30/$60 for EA games (If you don't buy them separately).

Looks to me that EA's trying to force "Games as a service" onto their consumers fully, with the Xbox One as the test bed.

 

[Someone Depressing]

This is.... wow. Just... wow.

There are, literally, no words. I don't have an Xbox One, and if I get one then I'll also have just went on a recent arson/murder spree, and I just need something to do until the police find me and then I hand myself in peacefully, but...

EA, best company in the world.

 

[duwenbasden]

Yo dawg I heard u like subscriptions so we put a subscription on your subscription so you can pay while you pay!

EA subscription, best subscription.

Please like and subscribe our gamez.

I'll now help myself out the door.

But then again, it looks like an add-on only service, so... but I don't have a bone.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

Could be worse, really. They could've made the subscription mandatory for playing any new EA games at all.
Nothing in the article seems to indicate this, at least.

Looks like the service provides a small number of free games, a discount on EA digital stuff and early access to upcoming releases.
It's basically PlayStation Plus, except a lot more limited and less interesting unless you really want a lot of EA games.

Stupid and completely unnecessary, but at least optional. Not the end of the world.

 

[Sassafrass]

Eh, if they expand the library to include every game they've made, including new releases, I'd make use of this if it ever comes to PC which, knowing EA, it probably will do. I mean, possibly playing new games for either $5 or $30 is a tempting deal. I know, I won't be able to keep them after the sub is up but I trade in my games like crazy anyways.

 

[Treeinthewoods]

So if I pay EA five dollars a month or thirty dollars a year I can play any of the various games that are available in their "vault" and get a 10% discount on DLC?

That would be cool if they have a bunch of games I want to play, cheaper than buying them all at least. Still, at this time there aren't any games in that vault that I am really dying to play so I won't get it.

Still, it's a great idea if they get a bunch of good games in there. Thanks for posting about this, I hadn't heard of it yet!

 

[LaoJim]

I'm not really getting this at the moment.

If you are the sort of gamer that likes Battlefield + Fifa/Madden then this seems like a reasonable deal, except that if you're that kind of gamer you've probably already got those games. If they kept you updated with the latest iterations of each as they came out it'd be fantastic value, but they're clearly not doing this as they're advertising a 10 percent discount when those titles come out.

It all depends on when and how many games EA add to it, which is impossible to know at this point. How long after release would they put Dragon Age 2 there, or FIFA 15, or Titanfall?

The maths doesn't seem to quite work for me. If you buy 5 EA games at 60 dollars then it pays for itself. (10% discount = 30 dollars). But then what are the chances of wanting to buy 5 games that aren't the latest versions of Battlefield or the Sports titles? Battlefield 4 is 29 dollars on Amazon, Madden 25 is 23 dollars, and Fifa 14 is 50 dollars. So if you're desperate to play Fifa now it's a great deal (but then FIFA 15 will be out within a few months anyway). If you're going to buy Madden/Battlefield and maybe buy one or two EA titles you're in the black. However given that people are not really used to subscription services (and suspicious of anything EA does), you'd think they'd need more of a push to get the service established.

Can you sign up for one month, play and everything then cancel? That'd seem like the best way to do it, have an EA month every year.

 

[Joos]

Ea: "Please allow me to show you just how to unload a whole clip in your foot."

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

Can you sign up for one month, play and everything then cancel? That'd seem like the best way to do it, have an EA month every year.

No, you mustn't give them ideas! Now you've said it, it's going to happen :-( I hope you're satisfied.

You know what tho, that thought also occurred to me. Not the EA month, that's a horrid thought, but paying $5, playing your fill and breaking off cleanly at the end isn't a bad thing. No discs to sell on or lock to an account, no depreciation, just a flat $5 and cancel right after. It's the video game equivalent of a quickie in an alley with a cheap floozy replete with remorse and self-doubt after the fact.

 

[LaoJim]

You know what tho, that thought also occurred to me. Not the EA month, that's a horrid thought, but paying $5, playing your fill and breaking off cleanly at the end isn't a bad thing.

That's really want I meant. Imagine a few years down the line, Mirror's Edge 2 is being released. A month before the release date you sign on for a month, spend one week each playing through Dragon Age 2, Need for Speed Rivals, Titalfall, and Battlefield Hardline (which are all now free and which you haven't yet played because you've been planning this for a while), claim your 10% discount on Mirror's Edge and then cancel. You get to play through 4 games for 5 dollars (providing you're dedicated enough/not bothered enough about completing them)

I didn't mean an official EA month, just a month you'd set aside to milk this deal for all its worth.

 

[laggyteabag]

I actually think that this is a pretty good deal. Well, not right now, the only thing out of the bunch that I would consider playing is Battlefield 4, and I already own that, but for $4.99 a month, or $30 a year, that is surprisingly good for 4 games. Sure, if you keep up with it, you will eventually be paying more than the games are actually worth, and it is entirely up to EA to decide what games you can and cannot play, but still, $5. Compared to something like an MMO subscription, that is damn cheap. But much like LaoJim said, if you like Battlefield, Fifa, Madden or whatever else comes up, chances are that you would have already purchased it, but still, $5.

Hell, if a game came up on there that I wasn't all that sure about, say, Battlefield: Hardline, I could pay my $5, play it for a month then decide whether or not is is worth the purchase. I'd rather pay $5 than pay $60 if it turns out that I didn't like it in the end. Or if Dragon Age: Inquisition came up, a month is a long time, you could easily complete the game in that amount of time, and if you are the kind of person who only plays through the story once, you are golden.

 

[Maximum Bert]

Somehow I doubt there will be an easily accessible cancel button for this signing up is probably easy canceling yeah theres a few hoops to go through because less people cancel if theres some effort involved.

Not keen on the idea anyway just allows them to control you more and if the idea catches on god knows what mess we will be in I still think the PS4 and Xbox subscriptions to pay online (that I already pay for) are BS this is just taking it another step.

 

[Insideout Ink Demon]

gamers as a whole keep adopting these shitty practices happily.
on disc dlc, pre-orders that dont deliver on promise,not being possible without the cloud, always online, exclusive missions. this will do well enough to make some money and inconvenience until its dropped in acouple of years.

 

[major_chaos]

I'm not personally a fan of subscribing to things, but this really isn't that bad of a deal. $30 a year is nothing (30 bucks gets you what, a month of WoW? and no one seems bothered by that) and you get global discounts and free games. Its kind of sad just how rabid the anti EA mood is here, and how much it bleeds over into contempt for people who enjoy EA games.

 

[lnin0]

Nothing more than a rebranding of the three year old "Season Ticket" which was $25 a year. EA raised the price by $5, extended the early access time from 3 to 5 days, dropped the discount 10% and tossed in some year old rentals to sweeten the mix. This seems like nothing more than a move to broaden the audience of Season Ticket.

I personally would have been happier if they were trying to copy Netflix and offering up their back catalog of games under a $5 sub model. However, as one of the WORST, MOST FUCKING UNTRUSTWORTHY companies on the planet, you really need to be more forthcoming and consistent about what exactly you are offering.

"You will get whatever old fucking games whenever the fuck we decide for how ever fucking long we feel like renting them," is probably not the type of transparent message which is going to inspire confidence in your customers.

 

[Ieyke]

So, EA is gearing up for another run at the "Worst Company" golden poo, eh?

God damn is that company just a bunch of stupid greedy assholes...
It's no wonder all the ex-EA employees I know hate them as much as we do...

 

[epicdwarf]

WHY??!?!?!

It is just cheaper to buy the games instead of paying to play them for a month/year. Wasn't there a game service that already tried this and failed horribly?