Starting August 18, game subscription service EA Access will become EA Play and, as of August 31, EA Play will be available on Steam, a popular gaming platform for playing and creating games and for chatting with other players and developers. Electronic Arts announced the changes on its blog.
“The EA Access and Origin Access subscription game services will be getting a fresh new name and look starting August 18. EA Access and Origin Access Basic will become EA Play*, and Origin Access Premier will change to EA Play Pro,” said EA in their blog. “All the great benefits you love (access to a library of top titles, early game trials, and your 10% membership discount) aren’t going anywhere. In fact, we’re adding even more in the coming months, starting with exclusive in-game challenges and monthly reward drops for members on select titles.”
“EA Play puts you at the center of the experience. Moving all the benefits to a single brand is an important step in streamlining our services to ensure that being an EA Play member is the best way to play,” EA said in the blog post.
Two game subscription options: EA Play and EA Play Pro
Game subscription EA Play is still available on PS4, Xbox One and via EA’s Origin for PCs, reports The Verge. For $4.99 a month or $29.99 a year, EA Play members can unlock exclusive rewards and get access to members-only content. They also can play select new releases for up to 10 hours, and they get instant access to a collection of popular EA games. Game subscription membership also entitles gamers 10% discounts on digital purchases.
In addition to the standard membership, EA offers an EA Play Pro membership for PC gaming. For $14.99 a month or $99.99 a year, members get access to all of EA’s latest titles as soon as they are released, access to EA’s premium titles and additional in-game rewards and exclusive content. EA Play includes a wide variety, appealing to different gaming tastes: action, shooter, adventure, simulation, and puzzle games.
Popular titles include Apex Legends – Season 6, Sonic Mania, Rocket Arena, FIFA20, Command & Conquer Remastered Collection, Northgard, The Surge 2, and Star Wars Battlefront II Celebration Edition. Other titles include the following:
Quarterly financials reveal spike in gaming
The news comes just two weeks after the company reported its first quarter fiscal year 20201 financials for the period ended June 30, 2020. Due to the shelter-in-place orders across the countries, the service saw an increase in gaming and members.
“This was an extraordinary quarter, and we’re deeply proud of everything our teams at Electronic Arts are doing for our players and communities,” said CEO Andrew Wilson. “We launched new games, deeply engaged players in our live services, and welcomed tens of millions of new players to our network. It was an unprecedented first quarter of growth in our business, and we will continue building on that strength with more innovative experiences, more groundbreaking content, and more ways to connect with friends and play great games throughout the year.”
EA CFO and COO Blake Jorgensen also commented on the extraordinary quarter.
“Player engagement through the first quarter was exceptionally high, and well above our forecast,” said Jorgensen. “Our Stay Home, Play Together initiatives have been a strong tailwind for the business, as players look for safe and social entertainment in these difficult times. We are focused on delivering high quality titles for our players, combined with our incredible ongoing live services and increasing reach across platforms and geographies which should continue to expand our business over time.”
Insider Take:
By joining the Steam platform, which boasts 30,000 games from AAA to indie games, EA Play will get access to a new audience of potential subscribers. This sounds like a winner for everyone. Electronic Arts adds another platform, adding value to its EA Play membership and increasing its visibility to prospective members. With no end in sight for COVID-19, it is likely that Electronic Arts will have a strong Q2 for fiscal year 2021.
