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Tag: EA Sports

  • FIFA 15 Is Out Today in the U.S.

    FIFA 15 Is Out Today in the U.S.

    After a long summer with few big game releases, the fall video game season is now here. As one of the largest publishers in the industry, EA is getting a head start with the release of its big sports titles. Madden NFL 15 made its debut just over one month ago and EA Sports NHL 15 hit stores two weeks ago.

    This week the biggest sports video game franchise of them all is being released. FIFA 15 is out today in North America. Europeans can get their hands on the title starting Thursday (Friday for the UK).

    The game is being released on all major platforms, including PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC. PC gamers will be required to access FIFA 15 through EA’s Origin client. Xbox One gamers who already bought into EA’s new EA Access subscription service have had access to the game since last Thursday.

    According to EA over 5.5 million people have already played the FIFA 15 demo since it was released two weeks ago.

    As with other EA sports games, FIFA 15 doesn’t feature huge technical leaps over last year’s version. Instead, smaller features have been tweaked or improved along with the game’s graphics and animations. Improvements to player face graphics in particular have been a focus of this year’s FIFA.

    EA has also added more than 600 new player reaction animations to the game. In-game players now have “emotional” feelings (both good and bad) toward other players, which is supposed to enable more realistic in-game reactions.

    “We believe we have built a game in FIFA 15 that delivers the most immersive and responsive gameplay experience ever in the FIFA franchise, and we can’t wait for the millions of fans to start their season and experience all of the innovations,” said David Rutter, general manager of EA Sports FIFA.

    Another focus of this year’s FIFA improvements has been goalkeepers. FIFA 15 keepers have new animations and improved artificial intelligence, allowing them to react to shots in a more realistic manner.

  • Bruce Lee to Appear in ‘EA Sports UFC’

    Bruce Lee to Appear in ‘EA Sports UFC’

    EA is bringing UFC back to video game consoles this year, complete with a few surprises. Last fall the publisher announced that the upcoming EA Sports UFC will include female fighters such as Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate. Now the publisher has announced that one of the greatest martial artists of all time will appear in the game.

    EA and UFC today revealed that late actor Bruce Lee will be a playable character in EA Sports UFC. Calling Lee “the father of mixed martial arts,” the organizations revealed that fans will be able to play as Lee across four different weight classes, pitting him against modern UFC fighters.

    “There’s no debate, Bruce Lee is the father of mixed martial arts,” said Dana White, President of UFC. “He believed not one style of fighting was the best and that you had to have a little piece of everything to be a complete fighter. He was proven right when the first UFC event took place in 1993.”

    Gamers who pre-order EA Sports UFC will be able to unlock Bruce Lee as a playable fighter on day one, no skill needed. Those who pick up the game at a later date will have to complete the game’s career mode on Pro difficulty to unlock Lee.

    “I am so excited about this opportunity to bring my father back to videogames!” said Shannon Lee, chair of the Bruce Lee Foundation and Bruce Lee’s daughter. “I’m thrilled that fans can now interact with him in a new way. The EA Sports UFC development team has been incredible to work with, and they’ve done a great job capturing the look and feel of my father. I think people will love getting a chance to fulfill a fight fantasy by playing Bruce Lee in the new UFC game.

    In addition to the announcement, EA today released a new cinematic trailer for EA Sports UFC. The video is called the Bruce Lee reveal, though the legendary actor doesn’t appear until its final moments and isn’t shown fighting.

  • NCAA Being Sued By Yet Another Former Athlete

    It is no secret that many former college athletes have a major bone to pick with the NCAA over the financial setup of the association. The latest blow to the old order of things has come in the form of yet another lawsuit from a former player.

    Shawne Alston was a running back for the West Virginia University Mountaineers from 2009 and 2012 and he is now the plaintiff in the lawsuit which accuses the NCAA of violating federal antitrust laws. The suit claims that those laws are violated because the NCAA sets athletic scholarship values at a level below that needed to attend school.

    Alston is no stranger to taking on the powers that be as he also sued EA over “blatant and unlawful” use of his image in their popular NCAA Football franchise. If that sounds familiar it’s because other former players have done the same, including the famous Ed O’Bannon case in which the former UCLA basketball star is seeking compensation for his inclusion in an EA title, and the recent movement to unionize by the Northwestern University football team.

    While the judge of that suit has recently ordered settlement talks to take place before the trial date in June, the Alston case is a shiny new black eye on the integrity of the NCAA, something which even college sports celebrities like basketball commentator Jay Bilas have taken shots at.

    The core of Alston’s suit is the scholarship issue, something that the wording of the document spells out very clearly:

    “How is it that players cannot even make ends meet while the schools make tens of millions? The NCAA and the Power Conferences have agreed that Football Bowl Subdivision football players may only receive payments that the NCAA approves and the Power Conference Schools agree to. The Primary Form of payment is an athletic scholarship, formally known as a ‘grant-in-aid.’ The NCAA and Power Conferences have agreed to unlawfully cap the value of a grant-in-aid at an amount substantially below what a Football Bowl Subdivision football player would receive for his services in a competitive market, and at an amount below what it costs to attend school. This agreement violates the Sherman act.”

    Attorney Steve Berman, who is representing Alston in the case, put the matter even more bluntly:

    “FBS football players should no longer be treated as second class citizens. They generate massive amounts of money for the schools and the NCAA, and these players should not have to struggle to make ends meet while they are surrounded by multi-millionaire coaches.”

    Some claim that love of the game, university, and the chance to earn an education should be more than enough for these young athletes, but having lived the experience themselves they clearly have a different opinion on the matter. Whether or not the Alston suit or any other will change the status quo of college sports is yet to be seen, but it looks doubtful that such challenges will stop coming at the NCAA.

    The entire text of the Alston suit is available for public view, so have a look for yourself.

    [Image via WestViginiaU]

  • World Cup-Branded FIFA Game Coming This Spring

    The annual FIFA franchise is one of publisher EA’s biggest money-makers each year and the World Cup is the most-hyped sporting event in the world. It makes sense, then, that EA would put out a special World Cup edition of FIFA 14.

    EA today announced that 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil is, indeed, coming to PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles. The game will hit the U.S. on April 15. Oddly enough, a version of the game for PlayStation 4 or Xbox One has not been announced – despite the fact that FIFA 14 was released on both.

    Being built on top of FIFA 14, the World Cup game will feature gameplay similar to that seen in last fall’s new FIFA title. In fact, EA is touting all the same “innovations and improvements” to gameplay that it was during the run-up to FIFA 14‘s release.

    What is new to 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil is the teams, the players, and the stadiums. According to EA the game will include 203 national teams filled with 7,469 players. 21 New stadiums are also included in the game, 12 of them modeled after Brazilian stadiums in which the real World Cup will be played.

    In addition to the new assets, the game will include a fairly robust World Cup-styled tournament mode. The mode allows up to 32 players (or just teams) to create a local tournament. Players then take their team against other players all the way from group stages to the championship game.

  • NCAA Suing EA Sports: End Of College Sports Games?

    The NCAA has had a long history with EA Sports, and the production of NCAA football video-games. However, recently reports have surfaced saying that the NCAA is suing EA Sports for a number of issues that have arisen during the business partnership between the two institutions.

    The lawsuit was filed on November 4th in a Georgia state court, following a settlement that happened in September.

    In September, EA Sports and the Collegiate Licensing Company agreed to pay around $40 million to settle lawsuits brought by former players whose likenesses were used without compensation.

    EA Sports is responsible for making a variety of games for each system, but has its most popular in the NCAA Football franchise. Due to the fact that college players are not paid for what they do, it has been a rule that EA Sports is not permitted to use the names of players within the game, and it seems that the rule was broken, without players being compensated.

    It was already announced that an NCAA football game would not be released in 2015, and there has not been a college basketball video game since 2010, while the result shows the business of producing college sports video games may be coming to an end. It is disappointing for the people who play these games, but luckily the Madden games will still be around.

    The NCAA hopes to block the settlement, and require to EA Sports to pay for future liability judgments, legal fees and costs, according to the reports.

    The Collegiate Licensing Company seems to be involved in the battle between EA Sports and the NCAA, which might not be theirs to fight. Andrew Giangola, the spokesman for the CLC, said “CLC is caught in the middle of a dispute between NCAA and EA which should not involve us.”

    He obviously does not feel that they are involved, and EA Sports should be held solely responsible for any incident that occurred regarding the players not being paid for their usage in the game. Two players who were very vocal in the campaign to get compensation for the players were Ed O’Bannon, a former UCLA basketball player, and former college quarterback Sam Keller.

    Unfortunately for people who enjoy playing college sports games, it seems that with the NCAA suing EA Sports, and continuing their demands, that the era of college sports video games may be coming to an end. This will certainly hurt the business of EA Sports, who has made a great deal of profits from their NCAA Football games.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lc33Bc_6nh4

    Image via Facebook

  • Here’s A Sneak Peek At EA Sports UFC For Next-Gen Consoles

    Before THQ started to slowly die earlier this year, the company sold off its THQ license to EA to make some quick cash. At E3, EA Sports announced that it would be bringing a UFC game to the PS4 and Xbox One in 2014, but didn’t offer any real look at the title. While details are still scarce, EA Sports did have a little something to share today.

    In what the team calls a “Vision Trailer,” the guys at EA Sports lay out what they want to accomplish with their first UFC title after taking the helm from THQ. As you would expect, their main goal is to make the most realistic UFC title to date by taking advantage of the power afforded to them by next gen consoles.

    Unfortunately, the trailer shows us almost no gameplay footage. It instead wants to wax poetic about the future of UFC games without actually showing us that future. We get to see some in-game character models, but that’s about it. EA Sports may not want to show gameplay until their more confident in the product.

    After all, EA Sports proved the current generation was a massive step above the PS2-era with Fight Night Round 3. With EA Sports UFC, the developer may be able to capture that same magic we all felt when Fight Night moved to the Xbox 360.

    [Image: Official EA UK/YouTube]

  • Jon Jones to Appear on ‘EA Sports UFC’ Cover

    Publisher EA today announced that the cover of the upcoming EA Sports UFC game will feature UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones.

    “It’s a huge honor to be selected as one of the fighters to appear on the cover of EA Sports UFC,” said Jones. “I am a big fan of EA Sports and appearing on a cover is one of those things you dream about as a kid. I’ll definitely be following the cover vote to see which fighter the fans choose to join me as the face of the game.”

    Jones will share the cover with one other UFC fighter, to be determined by a voting tournament that starts today. The tournament includes 16 popular UFC fighters such as Georges St-Pierre and Ronda Rousey. The opening round of voting ends on November 10, with another round opening the next day. The tournament will have rounds each week in November, culminating with the final round on November 25.

    In addition to the cover announcement, EA today also released a new trailer for this year’s UFC. Unfortunately, the trailer doesn’t actually contain much footage of the game. Only a few behind-the-scenes glimpses of game art can be seen in-between footage of classic UFC matches:

  • Here’s Your First Real Look At FIFA 14 On The PS4

    FIFA 14 is the fútbol simulation to own every year. Sure, there’s Konami’s PES franchise, but EA Tiburon has proven time and time again that it gets soccer better than anybody else. That, at least, was certainly true on the PS3 and Xbox 360, but what about the versions of FIFA 14 hitting the PS4 and Xbox One?

    EA Sports released a new trailer today for FIFA 14 claiming that all the gameplay on show is captured from the PS4 version. It’s also the flagship title for EA Sports’ next-gen rendering engine – IGNITE.

    So, how does it look? You be the judge:

    Personally, I can’t tell that much of a difference. Granted, I’ve been absolutely spoiled by what 2K Sports is doing with NBA 2K14 on next-gen consoles. NBA Live 14 running on IGNITE doesn’t even come close, but I was personally expecting something a little better from FIFA 14.

    To be fair, I’m sure the game plays incredibly well. The additional processing power afforded by the PS4 and Xbox One will obviously lead to a better gameplay experience. It’s just that many sports fans were probably expecting a leap in graphic fidelity and realism as well. That doesn’t appear to be the case here as the character animations and designs look to be almost lifted straight from the PS3 version.

    It should be noted that this is a compressed gameplay trailer on YouTube. The final product on the PS4 and Xbox One will obviously look a little better, but you should probably keep your expectations in check when picking up FIFA 14 on November 15 or 22 for the PS4 or Xbox One.

    And hey, at least Xbox One buyers in Europe get it for free.

    [Image: PlayStation/YouTube]

  • Here’s What NBA Live 14 Looks Like On The PS4, Xbox One

    Last week, 2K Sports revealed the first gameplay footage from NBA 2K14 for PS4 and Xbox One. The video claimed to be taken from a PS4 and it looked absolutely phenomenal. Now EA Sports has revealed the first gameplay trailer for its upcoming next gen basketball title – NBA Live 14. Which one looks better? See for yourself:

    To refresh your memory, this is what NBA 2K14 looks like running on the PS4. We can assume that the Xbox One version will look the same:

    What’s immediately noticeable is that NBA 2K14 is obviously the better looking game. There’s no contest as 2K Sports has made what looks to be the most realistic looking basketball game ever made. NBA Live 14 also loses some points for not showing us what its Anthony Davis looks like, but I can’t imagine it being able to nail his glorious unibrow as well as NBA 2K14 does.

    You can’t count out NBA Live 14 just yet, however, as EA Sport’s brand new Ignite Engine may bring something new to the table. When it was first revealed, EA Sports said Ignite would make sports seem more real. So it may not look better, but NBA Live 14 definitely sports some impressive player animation.

    Even if NBA Live 14 doesn’t quite stack up to NBA 2K14, you have to give the guys at EA Sports a break. The team has had to weather their game being canceled for the last two years, and this will be the first time we’ve seen an NBA game from EA Sports since 2010.

    In short, it’s nice to finally have some competition in the basketball video game arena again.

    NBA Live 14 will launch exclusively on the PS4 and Xbox One on November 15 and November 22 respectively.

    [Image: Official EA UK]

  • Here’s What The Next Generation Of NBA 2K14 Looks Like

    The next-generation is almost upon us, and developers are finally starting to show us just how much of a graphical leap we can expect with the PS4 and Xbox One. Some games haven’t exactly wowed us just yet while others really do embody what we have come to expect from next-gen machines. NBA 2K14 falls into the latter.

    2K Sports shared the first trailer today for the next-gen version of NBA 2K14 running on PS4 hardware. In short, it looks absolutely phenomenal. I’ve said before that racing games are usually what developers use to show what new hardware is capable of, but you can put sports games into that category as well.

    Check it out:

    For the past two years, the NBA 2K series has remain unchallenged as EA canceled its NBA Live reboot for two consecutive years in a row citing quality concerns. EA promises that NBA Live 14 will be a thing this year, and that it will be on next-gen consoles using EA’s new Ignite engine. We’ve yet to see what it will look like yet, but I’m pretty confident that NBA 2K14 will remain the crown jewel of basketball video games yet again.

    After all, it takes a special team to render Anthony Davis’ unibrow so beautifully, and the 2K Sports team nailed it.

    [Image: 2K/YouTube]

  • EA Sports: No College Football Game Next Year

    EA Sports, the publisher behind games such as Madden 25 and NCAA Football 14, this week announced that it will not be releasing a college football game next year. Developers who had been working on the project have been shuffled around to other positions within EA Sports, making it unlikely that the publisher is even working on a future replacement for the NCAA-branded football series.

    The announcement comes just months after the NCAA announced that it would not be renewing its contract with EA Sports for the use of its name and logo in NCAA Football titles. The organization cited “the current business climate and costs of litigation” as a factor in its decision. The NCAA is currently dealing with legal disputes surrounding the use of student athlete names and likenesses in NCAA-branded products. Though the names of players were not used in the NCAA Football titles, their jersey numbers, physical stats, and even hair colors have been used in the games.

    EA Sports GM of American Football Cam Weber cited similar reasons for today’s announcement, calling the publisher’s decision “profoundly disappointing” for both developers and fans. From Weber’s statement:

    We have been stuck in the middle of a dispute between the NCAA and student-athletes who seek compensation for playing college football. Just like companies that broadcast college games and those that provide equipment and apparel, we follow rules that are set by the NCAA – but those rules are being challenged by some student-athletes. For our part, we are working to settle the lawsuits with the student-athletes. Meanwhile, the NCAA and a number of conferences have withdrawn their support of our game. The ongoing legal issues combined with increased questions surrounding schools and conferences have left us in a difficult position – one that challenges our ability to deliver an authentic sports experience, which is the very foundation of EA Sports games.

    Though there will be no college football games from EA in the foreseeable future, the publisher has promised to continue supporting NCAA Football 14.

  • ‘FIFA 14’ Out Today, Mobile App Also Released

    FIFA 14, possibly the most-anticipated sports video game release of the year, is out today in North America for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC (through Origin). Early adopters of the next-generation consoles will be able to play the game on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One when those consoles are released, and Xbox One pre-orderers in Europe will even receive a free copy of FIFA 14 with their console.

    Soccer fans buying this year’s version of FIFA on current-gen consoles will be greeted with familiar visuals and modes such as “Ultimate Team” and “Skill Games.” Reviews for the game have been overwhelmingly positive, with reviewers citing improved controls as a major step up from last year’s FIFA.

    In addition to the console version of FIFA 14, publisher EA this week also released a mobile version of the game. As a free download on Apple’s App Store, Google Play, and the Amazon Appstore, the app simulates the FIFA experience on a mobile platform.

    The mobile FIFA 14 is, obviously, graphically inferior to the console version, resembling more the FIFA games seen on earlier video game consoles. The game’s controls have also been re-engineered for mobile, with tapping, flicking, and swiping replacing the button controls of the full version. A new trailer for the mobile version depicts what players are in for, including a mobile verison of “Ultimate Team” and several other modes that are purchasable through microtransactions.

  • Female Fighters Will Be Included in EA’s UFC Game

    It’s hard not to wonder if Anita Sarkeesian would approve of this, considering her crusade against anti-feminism in video games. From the looks of EA’s initial marketing push for their upcoming UFC installment, Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate will be front and center as EA tells the world that women are indeed in the upcoming UFC game. However, these women will be committing violent acts against each other, quite willingly, as a matter of fact. Does the fact that EA is exploiting capitalizing on the popularity of the Rousey/Tate rivalry–two women who really want to beat the crap out of each other–empower female video game characters the way some envision; or does something like this mean the struggle continues?

    Another discussion for another time, perhaps.

    As for the marketing push, even though the game won’t be available until 2014, that hasn’t stopped EA from getting the appetite-whetting material out for all to see. As indicated, the 2014 version will very much focus on Rousey and Tate. Take a look at the first video and see for yourself:


    There’s also an Instagram video which features the incredibly photogenic Rousey as well:


    And then there’s the initial poster, which should leave no doubt about which way EA’s leaning when it comes to marketing the UFC game:

    UFC Poster

    Once you start navigating the page, you’ll find additional material that focuses on other fighters like James Jones and Anderson Silva. That being said, the focus, at least in the initial push, is squarely on Tate and Rousey. Of course, the fact that these two are the coaches for the upcoming new season of The Ultimate Fighter, the UFC’s reality TV show, might have everything in the world to do with that.

    EA’s UFC game will be out in 2014 with the PS4 and the Xbox One being listed as the supporting consoles.

    [Lead image via EA]

  • Want To See 37 Minutes of Gameplay From FIFA 14?

    Of course you do, regardless of what @YourTitleSucks might say about the title. Considering the previous successes of EA’s FIFA franchise, a 37-minute gameplay preview is probably unnecessary to convince people to buy the upcoming release. It could, however, address fears from those who are wondering why they should buy this year’s copy. Or confirm them. Nevertheless, the extended “trailer” has been released, and it consists of footage taken from EA’s Gamescom 2013 showing.

    The first half of the video, hosted by one of the most awkward presenters in history, features two “professional” FIFA players–the video game, not real life–who go at each other on the pitch. The action was naturally recorded, which gives us our gameplay preview. During the second portion of the video, another host takes over, and the awkwardness disappears, replaced by a little bit of attitude. Unfortunately, the second half of the video is done entirely in German, so if you aren’t bi-lingual, you may not get much out of it, save for more gameplay video, which is probably the only reason interested parties would be checking out the almost 40-minute video.

    With that, here’s an extended look at the gameplay features players can expect when they load FIFA 14 on the PS3:


    For my money, hearing the frantic German banter as the players try to get the upper hand is worth the price of admission.

    As for the video, has EA shown enough to secure your purchase? What about if you bought FIFA 13 last year? Have you seen enough to warrant another $60 purchase? FIFA 14 will be available on PS3, Xbox 360, and the PC on September 24 (in North America; the 26th for Europe). It will also be available for the next-gen consoles shortly after their respective launches.

    [Lead image courtesy]

  • FIFA 14 Gets “Legendary Footballers” on Xbox One

    At its press conference today at Gamescom, Microsoft announced that every pre-ordered Xbox one Day One Edition console in Europe will come bundled with a free copy of FIFA 14. It’s quite a gambit for Microsoft to pay for that many copies of FIFA, but the company hasn’t stopped there. It has also obtained exclusive content for the Xbox One version of FIFA 14.

    FIFA 14 on the Xbox One (and the Xbox 360) will come with special “legendary footballers” for Ultimate Team mode. The exclusive players include Pele’, Patrick Viera, Freddie Ljungberg, Ruud Gullit and Gary Linekar. Ljungberg and Gullit will be the first “legends” added to the game, coming sometime “later this year.”

    “We’re thrilled to bring legendary footballers to ‘FIFA 14’ Ultimate Team on Xbox,” said Matt Bilbey, SVP at EA Sports. “Only on Xbox will you be able to terrorize defenses with a dream partnership of Messi with the legendary Pelé.”

    Though the language in Microsoft’s announcement is a bit squirrelly, the announcement does not mean that Ultimate Team mode for FIFA 14 is exclusive to Xbox consoles. The mode will be available on other consoles, though players will not get to add the Xbox-exclusive “legendary” players to their roster on PlayStation 4 or Wii.

    A trailer previewing the exclusive players has been released along with the announcement. It is not clear whether all the players shown in the trailer are exclusive to Xbox.

  • Free-To-Play FIFA PC Game Coming to Brazil & Russia

    Publisher EA this week announced that it will soon release a free-to-play version of its popular FIFA video games – but only for Brazil and Russia. FIFA World will be out for PC in those countries sometime in November.

    FIFA World will have more than 600 clubs from more than 30 licensed leagues, including the Russian Football Premier League and 19 officially licensed clubs from Brazil. The game will include the “Ultimate Team” mode found in FIFA 14, and will be built around it. Players will be able to create their own teams, presumably purchasing top players to fill out their squad.

    “Brazil and Russia are priority markets for EA Sports and especially our FIFA brand,” said Matt Bilbey, group general manager at EA Sports. “We are excited to bring to these markets a custom-built, free-to-play PC experience developed around FIFA Ultimate Team. FIFA World will be a fun new way to play FIFA for new fans.”

    EA has also announced an closed beta for FIFA World has begun. The game will not feature the graphics quality of FIFA 14, as it has been tooled to be accessible for “average spec” PCs, including laptops.

    EA has already experimented with a successful free-to-play FIFA game in South Korea, FIFA Online 3. Access to that game will soon be expanded throughout southeast Asia and China.

  • FC Barcelona, EA Sign Three-Year Deal

    FC Barcelona, EA Sign Three-Year Deal

    FC Barcelona and EA today announced they have agreed to a three-year partnership deal. Under the deal, EA Sports will be the “official video game partner” of FC Barcelona. The club will be getting exclusive features in the upcoming FIFA 14.

    EA revealed that it has taken 3D head scans of 17 FC Barcelona players, including Xavi Hernandez, Gerard Piqué, Cesc Fàbregas, Dani Alves, and Andrés Iniesta. The athletes will have these scans incorporated into their digital versions in FIFA 14. In addition, Barcelona’s home pitch, Camp Nou, will be a “featured stadium” in the video game.

    Barcelona star Lionel Messi has already been announced as the global cover athlete for FIFA 14. His role in FIFA 14 marketing will now expand to other advertising and social media “activities.”

    “Joining a world class football club like Barcelona as an official club partner is a fantastic opportunity for EA Sports and our fans,” said Matt Bilbey, SVP at EA Sports. “We will create a deeper connection with their passionate, global fan base, and use our games as a platform to engage supporters all around the world for years to come.”

    EA and Barcelona also announced that a “range of interactive activities” for fans will result from the new deal. This includes a mobile gaming trailer for Barcelona fans at some home games. A FIFA 14 tournament between Barcelona squad members has also been announced for later this year.

  • Kyrie Irving Will be on the Cover of NBA Live 14

    Video game publisher EA hasn’t put out an NBA Live game since 2009. NBA Live 13 was to have been released last year, but was abruptly cancelled in September. Despite EA Sports‘ lack of NBA titles over the past few years, the publisher is still insisting that NBA Live 14 will hit next-generation consoles this fall.

    In a sign that suggests the game actually is on the way, EA announced today that Kyrie Irving will be the cover athlete for NBA Live 14.

    Kyrie Irving on NBA Live 14

    “I’m so proud to be the face of this franchise as it makes its much-anticipated return,” Irving said. “I’ve been on the court with the development team and I’ve seen first-hand some of the amazing things EA Sports is doing with NBA Live 14. The fans are going to love it.”

    Irving was the overall first pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. During his short career for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Irving was named the 2012 NBA Rookie of the Year and a 2013 NBA All-Star.

    In addition to the announcement, EA has released a short teaser trailer featuring Irving. The trailer claims to show “actual in-game footage” from NBA Live 14. Though the graphics on the digital Irving look nice, the synchronized audience clapping in the background suggests there may still be work to be done on the next-gen title.

  • NCAA Will Not Renew EA Contract, NCAA Football 2014 to be the Last NCAA Game

    The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) today announced that it will not renew its contract with EA Sports for the use of its name and logo in NCAA Football titles. Though the current contract lasts until June 2014, the organization stated the announcement was made early so as to allow EA time to deal with the fallout. The NCAA stated in its announcement that “given the current business climate and costs of litigation, we determined participating in this game is not in the best interests of the NCAA.”

    As a result of the announcement, the NCAA said that the NCAA Football 2014 video game, which was released just one week ago, will be the final one to use the NCAA’s name and logo.

    The NCAA’s decision could be related to a recent lawsuit and pressure on the NCAA to cut student athletes in on the revenue the organization gains from licensing NCAA broadcasting and video games rights. The NCAA stated that it its “confident” in is legal position and that it has never licensed the names or likenesses of student athletes for use in EA’s video games. However, student athletes that are suing the NCAA have argued that their height, weight, hair color, and jersey numbers were used in NCAA video games. From the NCAA statement:

    The NCAA has never licensed the use of current student-athlete names, images or likenesses to EA. The NCAA has no involvement in licenses between EA and former student-athletes. Member colleges and universities license their own trademarks and other intellectual property for the video game. They will have to independently decide whether to continue those business arrangements in the future.

    Though the NCAA hasn’t made it entirely clear, this announcement seems to indicate that there will be no future NCAA video games, at least until the organization’s legal troubles are over. EA Sports has been contacted for comment, and an update will be provided if the publisher makes a statement.

  • Gareth Bale Chosen For Cover Of FIFA 14 UK

    On this year’s cover of EA’s FIFA 14, Lionel Messi is the feature athlete. However, instead of just featuring one athlete, EA is putting twosoccer players on the FIFA cover: the aforementioned Messi and one standing behind him. These cover vary region to region, and for those in the United States who will be buying FIFA 14, their cover will feature Mexico/Manchester United forward, Javier “Chicharito“ Hernandez. Instead of revealing all the covers at once, however, EA employed a staggered approach, which brings us to the latest reveal.

    In their latest post, EA announced that Gareth Bale of the Tottenham Hotspur will be joining Messi on the cover of FIFA 14 that will be available for consumers in the UK, Ireland, and the Middle East. The cover in question:

    FIFA  14 UK

    As EA points out, Bale’s credentials are incredibly solid, “The two-time PFA Player of the Year is one of the Barclays Premier League’s most accomplished talents and widely regarded as one of the best players in the world.” There’s also a preview video that features some of the motion-capture moments that went into the character creation:

    FIFA 14 will be released in the United States on September 24, however, the UK version featuring the Gareth Bale cover won’t be released until the 27th. It will be available on the PS3 and the Xbox 360.

    (Lead image courtesy of Gareth Bale’s Twitter)

  • NHL ’94 Will Be A Playable Feature In NHL 14

    Aside from improved goalie play, EA’s upcoming NHL 14 is going to feature something that may, in fact, overshadow the primary feature: a playable version of NHL ’94, a game that finished second in ESPN’s “Best Sports Game of All Time” rankings. To celebrate the 20th anniversary, EA is giving players a high-definition throwback version, complete with rosters of the era, which means players like Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux will be available. Oh, and the awesome star icons that highlight players will also return. To celebrate the awesome news, EA released a great trailer that certainly gets the hype meter going:


    While I certainly loved everything I saw, the MIDI-powered siren towards the end of the trailer hit my inner tuning fork.

    While the game will have updated graphics, which means no 16-bit glory, it will feature most of the gameplay attributes that came with the original NHL ’94:

    Forget all the rules. Penalties? Get out of here! Offsides? Nope! Icings? Not a chance! Just old school NHL ’94­-style gameplay that uses classic button controls to deliver big hits, real fights, dirty dangles and sick snipes! You can even celebrate those moves with a new take on classic goal celebrations… NHL ’94 Anniversary Mode showcases its hockey video gaming roots through a retro presentation including blue ice, classic star-shaped player indicators, 16-bit arena powerbars, no adboards, and throwback organ music.

    NHL 14 will be available on the PS3 and Xbox 360. It’s due to hit the shelves on September 10.

    [Lead image courtesy]