Reactions: Could John Riccitiello get the boot from EA?

I won’t waste my time or yours trying to reword this well-written article from Kotaku. Just read it. If you’d like some more perspective to get both sides of the coin, you could read this as well. What I will do, is give some of my thoughts on this potentially industry-shaking news.

My first thought upon reading the fact that EA’s stock has plummeted 70% since 2007 goes something like, “Wow…” It boggles the mind. How is it that a company that’s putting out better games while maintaining its yearly Madden killing is spinning so drastically out of control? How is it that a company that’s completely overhauled its once oppressive image in the eyes of consumers is doing so poorly? Just look at your game collection from the past two years and I’m betting you’ll find your fair share of fantastic EA titles.

So I did some research of my own. Just how impressive was that $52 price EA stock held in 2007? Well, turns out Wal-Mart, one of the largest corporations in the world, currently sells stock for $54.30 a share. And what about the other heavy hitters in the video game industry? Funny story. EA’s current $17.18 a share actually beats out the $10.86 held by Activision and the $10.15 held by Take-Two.

To me, it looks as if the drop in earnings is more a result of the state of the economy, not poor management on Ricitiello’s part. I find it absurd that investors could be upset with him in this economic environment. Are they completely blind to every other company around them? It’s not 2007 anymore! It would be a terrible shame if the CEO who brought us new IPs like Dead Space and Mirror’s Edge, the man who bought BioWare and has helped them to publish Mass Effect and Dragon Age, the man who’s supported games like Left 4 Dead and Rock Band 2 through the EA Partners program, were to be fired. For the sake of all gamers, let’s hope that EA’s stock-holders come to their senses and refrain from pressuring the board of directors into any rash decisions.

Author: Cody