Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:
EA
) was mysteriously absent from last night's
PlayStation 4 unveiling
. Activision (NASDAQ:
ATVI
), Capcom and Ubisoft showed off new games, while Square Enix
teased attendees with a tech demo for the kinds of gaming
experiences it would like to develop. (Square Enix also announced
that a new Final Fantasy game would be unveiled at this year's
Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles.)
Konami (NYSE:
KNM
), best known for the Metal Gear Solid series, did not introduce
any new software. However, it was one of the
143 studios
on Sony's list of confirmed developers.
Namco Bandai, creator of the Tekken series, did not present
any new games either. The same was true for Take-Two Interactive
(NASDAQ:
TTWO
), which recently delayed the release of its biggest game --
Grand Theft Auto 5.
Not every game publisher can be present for a console
unveiling, so this was not too surprising. However, the absence
of Electronic Arts -- the company that made some of the biggest
franchises in gaming, including NFL Madden and Dead Space --
really stood out.
While the company missed the initial tease of Wii in 2005,
Electronic Arts joined Nintendo (OTC:
NTDOY
) for the full unveiling in 2006. EA was a big part of the Xbox
360 unveiling, which included a 30-minute special on MTV (NYSE:
VIA
). The company was also there for the
PlayStation 3 launch
.
Electronic Arts is likely to release a game or two (or
several) when PlayStation 4 is released this fall. However, that
does not explain why the company failed to present at Sony's
event.
Michael Pachter, Managing Director of Equity Research at
Wedbush Securities, thinks he knows why.
"Pretty much every game announced was a brand new game, with
the possible exception of Killzone," Pachter told Benzinga. "That
one looked like a re-boot, however."
This could be the source of Electronic Arts' absence. "I don't
think that publishers want to showcase sequels to existing
franchises, hence no Call of Duty, Assassin's Creed or
Battlefield, all of which are going to be on current generation
consoles," said Pachter. "The publishers don't want to convince
consumers that it's okay to skip this year's version while they
wait a year or more to buy a new console.
"EA doesn't have any new IP to announce for the next
generation, like Activision did with Destiny. I think the Respawn
game is likely going to be their first new IP for next
generation, and they weren't ready to announce. It's as simple as
that."
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@LouisBedigianBZ
(c) 2013 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment
advice. All rights reserved.
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