Ever since the Nintendo Switch launched two years ago, the mighty hybrid has amassed several 3rd party titles. Gaining more support than both the Wii and Wii U combined. However, several companies haven’t fully thrown in support for the platform, with Electronic Arts being one of them. Now we know why, as EA recently acknowledged this during A recent earnings call.
According to IGN, EA’s CEO Andrew Wilson was asked why the company hasn’t looked to release The Sims onto the Switch. Seems like a good fit, doesn’t it?
Wilson’s response was the following:
“Any time we’re evaluating platform conversations we’re really looking at a couple of things. One, does the game really fit the profile of that platform in terms of the control or the community ecosystem? Two, do we think the community playing on that platform would appreciate the game and go there, or would they prefer to play it somewhere else?
We have a lot of data that would suggest a great many Switch owners also own a PlayStation 4 or an Xbox One or a PC and very often choose to play the games that we make on those platforms, even though they have a Switch and they enjoy a lot of great content on the Switch.”
TLDR; EA doesn’t see any compelling reason to release titles onto the Switch. According to their logic, most people that own a Switch also own either another console and/or a PC. So one way or another they would get up playing an EA game. So why waste the time and resources is the line of thinking.
I can see the logic here, even if it’s brutally honest. It’s no secret that many games that head to the Switch that are developed for other platforms have been lacking. Mainly due to a visual downgrade which affects the graphical fidelity and the framerate. Despite the success of the Switch, many have chosen to purchase the game on another platform over the Switch version. Which also explains that while companies like Bethesda are outsourcing their switch ports to companies such as Panic Button, who know their way around the system. Or Capcom, who has released multiple ports onto the Switch. EA has decided to pass on the Switch entirely.
Seeing that EA doesn’t think that the Switch is worthwhile, it also means we won’t see any original titles for the platform.
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Even still, a game like The Sims would be right at home on the Switch. It’s not a game that would stress the system, it’s leisurely and could be played in both mobile and docked mode. It seems like the perfect game for the Switch and it would sell as well as it does on other platforms. Maybe even more so. There’s even a mobile version of the game for iOS and Android. So, why wouldn’t EA bring this over?
Why is a great question, indeed.
