It appears as though Electronic Arts, the world's second largest game maker, is working with Microsoft to release games under Windows Phone 8. Electronic Arts COO Peter Moore told Bloomberg, "We’re working very closely with Microsoft to understand what their views on gaming navigation are,". And for those of you wondering, Activision is the #1 U.S. game maker, also according to Bloomberg.
With sluggish game sales dragging EA's sales down by 37 percent so far this year, the game company is reportedly looking to expand its offerings outside of the retail-box realm. EA hopes to get more titles on the Internet, tablets and phones. The company also believes WP8 is central to its handset strategy.
Analyst Robert Jakobsen believes he knows why EA values WP8 so much, "It is important to attract the gamers and due to Windows Phone 8’s relation to the classical Windows PC programs, it is a good platform for game developers,".
Earlier this year, EA proved it was willing to reach new horizons by launching two games for Ubuntu Linux: Command and Conquer Tiberium Alliances and Lord of Ultima. Interestingly (and perhaps relatedly), these games did not include full installer; rather, they were released as web applications. Could this have been an example of EA exploring its web-app knowhow?
Presumably, talks with Microsoft indicate EA plans to port over its mobile adaptations of popular (and other not so popular) properties like The Sims, Need for Speed, Battlefield and FIFA Soccer, to Windows Phone 8. It seems likely that existing iOS and Android offerings would end up on WP8 devices. Although touchscreen devices present unique challenges to PC gaming, EA has done a commendable job of adapting some of these once PC-based titles to the small screen.
Windows Phone's marketshare remains tiny, but Microsoft hopes to stir up more interest among consumers and manufacturers with the upcoming release of WP8. The mobile OS is expected to arrive this fall.
