Episodic content could boost PC gaming, says EA MD

Keith Ramsdale, MD of Electronic Arts UK, has said that he believes episodic content could bring consumers who have turned to consoles in recent years back to PC gaming.

Speaking in the latest edition of the Games Central podcast, Ramsdale said, "We've come from a place where traditionally we've made a boxed product that contains 40, 50, 60 hours worth of gameplay in one go, and that's been the model... I think people are now questioning, is there a more sexy, a more efficient, a more consumer friendly way of bringing game content to the public?

"I think it's going to be an interesting few years as we figure that out," he continued.

"There are some examples already - you've got add-ons which are inherent in the PC business that work well, and it shows an appetite for episodic content."

Ramsdale went on to argue that giving consumers new ways to access game content could boost the number of people playing on PC - as EA has found with the FIFA series.

"FIFA on PC for years used to be a constant number. We used to know we'd sell 70,000 units in the UK. And over the last couple of years, that number's just gone - it's gone to 20,000 units, and I think those users have moved to Xbox and PS, the consoles," Ramsdale said.

"In Korea they launched FIFA Online, and instantly it had 100,000 users - where you didn't have a boxed product, you went straight online and played it as a tournament. You pay a fee to go and dip in and out and play a tournament as you choose. So it's a completely different way of consuming games."

The Games Central podcasts are hosted by veteran games journalist Tim Wapshott. Along with Ramsdale, the third edition features Intent Media MD Stuart Dinsey and Simon Byron, director of Barrington Harvey PR and co-author of recently published book Game On!. To download the podcast, search for "Games Central" in the iTunes Music Store.