Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
work. This belief system of ers an anchor upon which to set the arguments
about the improvements and changes in each game, allowing the game
makers to promote the increased fi delity achieved through replicating any
rule changes or issues that have arisen in the previous year, while setting
the stage for the one constant upgrade in sports games—the rosters.
A traditional means by which to disparage annual editions of sports
titles is to contend that they are merely roster updates, where the only
value the new version has resides in the movement of players from uniform
to uniform and in and out of the league. Although the articulation of the
importance of the new game mechanics of ers an opportunity to circum-
vent this argument, the consistent appeal to the games as a simulation of
reality make updated rosters a key piece of what makes each year's game
special. Beyond changing the jersey or kit in which a particular player or
team performs, each year's version also enables EA Sports to update a
player's rating to better represent how they will play on the fi eld or pitch.
Given that a player's rating and appearance in the game are a regular
source of discussion amongst the players themselves, one that requires
an EA Sports employee as a middle person to handle concerns and com-
version of the game special. In recent years, this line of appeal to players
has been expanded through the availability of online roster updates. For
their core titles, like
FIFA Soccer
,
Madden Football
, and
NHL
games,
EA Sports of ers periodic rosters updates throughout the playing season.
These changes allow designers to modify the game on the fl y, reproducing
trades, transfers, or signings that occur in the real-world sports on which
the video games are based, while also adjusting a players rating to rep-
resent a series of breakthrough performances, an injury, or a prolonged
slump. By enabling in-season roster updates, EA Sports can continue to
expand their contention that they are an accurate representation of what
happens in the sports gamers follow, while further entrenching the per-
ceived importance of accurate rosters and placing an even greater empha-
sis on the importance of online access to the game.
This combination of appeals form the crux of EA Sports' argument
about why players need to upgrade annually, as they add up to the conclu-
sion that each version of each game should be considered the best ever in
the series. By typically working from a base of somewhat subtle adjust-
ments, rather than wholesale changes, and making an ef ort to respond to
audience concerns, the games are unlikely to backslide because they iterate
on what made the games successful without taking anything particularly
important of of the table. Leveraging the ability to talk directly to gamers
online, EA Sports has taken up using developer posts to reach directly to
their community of fans, circumventing a typical press release and enabling
them to build anticipation as to why each version of the game will be the
best in the series. In advance of the launch of
Madden NFL
12
,
the art
director for the game mused that
