The Veilguard Poor Sales Due To It Not Live Service

Summary

• Dragon Age: The Veilguard missed sales projections by 50%
• EA CEO believes it would have done better as a live service game
• Wilson suggested games need shared world features for broad appeal.

Last week, publisher Electronic Arts mentioned that BioWare’s latest game, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, missed sales projections by a whopping 50%. Was the game’s lackluster performance due to a bad story? Outdated gameplay mechanics? Apparently, it was because it wasn’t a live service game.

This was something mentioned by EA CEO Andrew Wilson in the publisher’s latest quarterly earnings report.

EA CEO Thinks Dragon Age: The Veilguard Would Have Fared Better Commercially If It Was Live Service

In the earnings report, Wilson mentioned, “Dragon Age had a high-quality launch and was well reviewed by critics and those who played. However, it did not resonate with a broad enough audience in this highly competitive market.”

Wilson explains his reasoning by talking about the “blockbuster storytelling strategy.”

earnings report

“Our blockbuster storytelling strategy is built on three strategic objectives: first, create an authentic story experience for the core audience; second, build innovative groundbreaking features; and third, emphasize high-quality launches across both PC and console.” Wilson shares.

Adding to that, “In order to break out beyond the core audience, games need to directly connect to the evolving demand of players who increasingly seek shared world features and deeper engagement alongside high-quality narratives in this beloved category.”

I’m not a game developer or even the CEO of multi-billion company or anything, but I have a hunch that Dragon Age: The Veilguard’s shortcomings have nothing to do with it being a live service game. But hey, what do I know, right?

With Wilson’s statement, I am now kind of worried that EA will force live service elements into the new Mass Effect currently in development at BioWare since they think this is what gamers want.

Our review of Dragon Age: The Veilguard was quite favorable, though it never mentioned how it would have been a better game if it had live service elements in it.