Valve Software’s Steam has been the big dog 
in the PC digital distribution space for a while now, but one of the industry’s biggest publishers is ready to take it on.
Electronic Arts has announced Origin, an updated “direct-to-consumer gaming platform” that will let people buy titles directly from the company, rather than via retail or another service. Given how heavily EA is betting on PC games in the year to come, it’s not an altogether shocking move.
As EA promises a more aggressive stance on talent
acquisition, owned IP and digital models, Gamasutra editor-at-large Chris Morris analyzes where the company could succeed, and where it might fail.
Electronic Arts investors had a lot to cheer about Wednesday afternoon in the company’s earnings call. Not only were revenues and earnings per share higher than expected, but CEO John Riccitiello also declared a shift to a more aggressive stance on several fronts.
Shareholders, who have stuck with the company through its long rebuilding process, may have sighed with relief, but it’s still a little early to declare ‘all is well’ at EA. The coming fiscal year could be critical in determining the future course of the publisher.
Video game industry veteran John Schappert, 
who has served as chief operating officer at Electronic Arts for the past two years, has quietly left the company.
Schappert’s last day was yesterday – and media reports indicate he plans to join social gamers maker (and EA rival) Zynga in an undisclosed role.
It’s too early to know whether the infamous Madden 
Curse will hit this year’s cover athlete, but if the wave of recent troubles related to the football franchise is any indication, the hex might be working its mojo on Electronic Arts itself.
Already concerned with how the seemingly unavoidable lockout of the real NFL season will affect sales of the upcoming Madden 12, the company has seen a number of key personnel depart Madden maker EA Tiburon in the past few days, which raises some questions about what fans can expect in 2013.
The latest version of Electronic Arts’ annual 
Tiger Woods franchise downplays the golf superstar in a big way. As it turns out, those changes might have earned the publisher a hole in one.
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters has proven to be the fastest moving in the series’ history. EA says the game — the 14th installment in the long-running golf sim — sold 225,000 copies in its first week.
If you’ve bought a copy of Madden or NCAA 
Football in the past six years, you might have found an interesting email in your in-box over the last few days.
A pair of disgruntled gamers have filed a class action suit against Electronic Arts over the games, accusing the publisher of overcharging customers and stifling competition, via its exclusivity agreement with the NFL, NFL Players Association and other leagues.
There’s no love lost between leading game 
publishers Activision and Electronic Arts, but this November the studios are planning their biggest battle yet.
EA CEO John Riccitiello, speaking at the Ad Age Digital Conference this week, confirmed that upcoming shooter Battlefield 3 will be released in November, putting it in a head-to-head battle with the latest Call of Duty game — widely expected to be Modern Warfare 3.
Activision and EA aren’t going away anytime soon, 
but the never ending clash of the video game publishing titans has opened the door for a newer, more nimble type of competitor.
Their names — Zeptolab, Mojang, LimaSky — certainly don’t demand attention like the major console publishers. But their products are as familiar to the gaming world as many titles from the big guns. And, in some circles, they’re perhaps even better known.
Historically, injuries haven’t really been a big part 
of video game sports. Showing the real-world effects of the devastating hits from an NFL linebacker tend to remove players from the fantasy environment.
With the next installment of its flagship Madden franchise, however, Electronic Arts plans to emphasize the seriousness of player concussions by preventing in-game players who suffer the head injury from returning to the virtual field.
When it comes to sports video games, Electronic 
Arts is largely viewed as the industry’s king. But for the past six years, the company has had a hole in its lineup: Major League Baseball.
With its hands tied due to an exclusivity agreement between MLB and Take-Two Interactive Software, EA has had to ride the bench. Today, though, it’s stepping back into the batter’s circle.
Chris Morris: Journalist 