EA boss Andrew Wilson talks about the importance of listening to the community

Jul 29, 2014 23:31 GMT  ·  By

Electronic Arts' recently appointed CEO Andrew Wilson emphasizes the importance of feedback and confirms that a paradigm shift in terms of showcasing games is now being implemented across the large publisher, so that the community can share its thoughts about early game ideas.

In recent months, EA has demonstrated a predilection towards showing off games that are early in the development stage, while delaying ones that still need work in order to achieve the best standard of quality.

The publisher has already decided to delay Dragon Age: Inquisition and Battlefield Hardline, while it showcased new projects like Mass Effect or Mirror's Edge during their concept phases.

All these actions are due to the emphasis on community feedback, according to EA boss Andrew Wilson. He has talked with Kotaku and highlighted that getting the community involved in new ideas is really important.

"At the end of the day, games are getting bigger, games are starting to a much broader audience, so it's more important than ever to get feedback and get dialogue on some of the things we're thinking about and I want to be in a company where we start a bunch of new stuff, but if you're going to start a bunch of new stuff, you've got to get feedback quickly, because if it's not going to work, you're better off killing it and moving on to something else," he says.

Wilson notes that the only way to generate the feedback is to ensure that fans get an inside look at the game, even if it sometimes could lead to competitors copying certain things or ideas. Otherwise, according to the executive, EA would just limit itself to creating sequels of things it knows would sell.

"In a world where you just don't share, you never get feedback, the only things you're ever going to make are the things you know are going to be hits. So I really want us to change as a company and start making more new stuff, and in order to do that, you have to get feedback, and in order to get feedback, you have to be willing to open the curtain and have a conversation about it early."

"And those fears you would have had in years gone by of competitive advantage and what if someone else sees what you're doing and will they build it quicker? At the end of the day if we build a great game, it doesn't matter."

EA definitely has quite a lot of all-new properties in development right now across its many internal teams and it's great to see just how important community feedback is becoming inside its corporate structure thanks to Wilson's new leadership.