EA Sports President Moore Discusses Company's Sports Video Games

Woods Game Is No. 1 Seller On Wii For EA, EA Sports

EA Sports President Peter Moore said the company's "Tiger Woods" videogame franchise has been the "one game where we've done very well" in regards to the Nintendo Wii, and sales "have reflected that," according to Chris Littmann of SPORTINGNEWS.com. Moore said the game has "not only been EA Sports' No. 1 selling game on the Wii, but it's been EA's No. 1 selling game on the Wii." Littmann noted the company is preparing to debut "EA Sports Active," and when asked if there is "fear [over] any sort of leeriness from consumers who maybe picked up" Nintendo's Wii Fit, Moore said, "We love the Wii Fit board, they've sold millions and our game will be compatible with it, but as Westerners we're used to a more cardiovascular style of fitness than maybe folks that developed a game in Japan. ... We wanted to develop something that is far more cardiovascular and aerobic in nature." Littmann noted the "traditional 'NASCAR' franchise was recently shelved in favor of the more family-friendly" "NASCAR Kart Racing," and Moore said, "We decided [to] try and do something very different this time around to coincide with Daytona, the launch of the season and to try to get that NASCAR consumer to have that Wii-type experience." Moore: "There isn't enough changing in the game -- whether it's drivers, cars, teams or technology -- that at this point warrants an annual edition."

WAITING ON THE PITCH: EA Sports currently does not have an MLB-licensed videogame due to the league's exclusive first-party deal with Sony that lasts until '12, and Moore said, "I'm not sure it'll be an exclusive license next time around." Moore: "There's a strange situation in baseball where you've got Sony with its first-party exclusive and Take Two and 2K with their third-party exclusives. ... We've made a big impact in the past in baseball, and I hope we can do the same again when there's an opportunity and MLB is ready to discuss the future." Moore said of EA's event-specific downloadable content, "I'd rather look at it as enhancing a game for the guy who did step up and buy it new, providing him or her with experiences as things move on." When asked what his "favorite feature you've seen so far" for "Madden NFL 10," Moore said, "Without giving away the game, it's all about realism for us. ... You can look for a lot of work being done in the physics of the way the game plays and the ability for us to continue to feel like you're almost playing in a real game" (SPORTINGNEWS.com, 3/12).