EA Access - subscription for games on XB1

[Xenocity 343]

By Jeffrey Matulef Published Tuesday, 29 July 2014

EA has announced a new service for Xbox One that will give subscribers access to multiple triple A games for $4.99 (about £3) a month - or $29.99 (about £18) a year.

 

Dubbed EA Access, this service is being rolled out today in a beta for a limited number of players. The beta will grant subscribers unlimited access to FIFA 14, Madden NFL 25, Peggle 2 and Battlefield 4 with more titles to come.

Additionally, EA Access members receive 10 percent discounts on all of EA's digital Xbox One content.

Another benefit to the service is that its members will be able to play trials of upcoming games up to five days prior to their launch. So far the list of games this will entail includes: Madden NFL 15, NHL 15, FIFA 15, NBA LIVE 15 and Dragon Age: Inquisition. Your progress from these trials will carry over into the full game upon release.

EA Access memberships will be available over Xbox Live or at retail via Amazon, GameStop and EB Games.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2014-07-29-ea-access-gives-players-multiple-triple-a-games-for-usd5-a-month

Other sources claiming you get access to their retro titles as well over time.

 

Who's buying in?

Remember you still need XBL Gold!

[Duke87 1,070]

This is intriguing. Those games would sell in physical copy for $30-$50 each. Instead EA is offering them for all for $30 a year.

 

Seems like a steal from the gamer's standpoint but I wonder why EA would go this route? I have a few ideas as to where the catch may be:

 

1) If people pay for digital access rather than physical copies, that prevents them from reselling the games used, which means fewer people can buy a used copy, which in turn means more people will buy a new copy (major gaming companies have been attempting to prevent used copies of their games from being resold for years now).

2) I wonder if access to the stated list of games will be preserved as long as the subscription is maintained. If not, when games drop off the list, that then forces people to go buy a copy if they want to continue playing them.

3) Having an EA Access account will allow EA to track your playing habits and sell that information to advertisers.

 

Somehow, EA thinks they are going to make more money off of this than they would just selling the games for download. They wouldn't do it otherwise.

[Xenocity 343]

This is intriguing. Those games would sell in physical copy for $30-$50 each. Instead EA is offering them for all for $30 a year.

 

Seems like a steal from the gamer's standpoint but I wonder why EA would go this route? I have a few ideas as to where the catch may be:

 

1) If people pay for digital access rather than physical copies, that prevents them from reselling the games used, which means fewer people can buy a used copy, which in turn means more people will buy a new copy (major gaming companies have been attempting to prevent used copies of their games from being resold for years now).

2) I wonder if access to the stated list of games will be preserved as long as the subscription is maintained. If not, when games drop off the list, that then forces people to go buy a copy if they want to continue playing them.

3) Having an EA Access account will allow EA to track your playing habits and sell that information to advertisers.

 

Somehow, EA thinks they are going to make more money off of this than they would just selling the games for download. They wouldn't do it otherwise.

Microsoft is most likely subsidizing this, hence why it is exclusive to Xbox One.

 

Though it is heavily "leaked" that both EA and Activision get a cut of Xbox Live revenue.

 

 

EA isn't really that "evil" and "money grabbing" compared to the other gaming companies and in a world where comcast, telecoms, big oil, and others exist.