When you look back at games like the original Dead Space or Mass Effect, it's easy to see titles with the potential for being big sellers as remastered editions or remakes with extra HD graphics. However, EA doesn't see it that way... not one bit.
The company's chief operating officer, Peter Moore, revealed to IGN that EA actually isn't in the happy of rehashing old IP with a fresh coat of paint. The COO of one of the largest AAA publishers stated...
Remakes, because of who we are, and this broad portfolio of intellectual property...you add all that together, I don’t know where we find the time to do remakes, […] We’re a company that just likes to push forward.
As much hate as EA gets for all of the decisions that they make within the electronic entertainment sphere that many deem are anti-consumer and completely uncalled for, I think it's safe to say that what Peter Moore is saying here is 100% correct.
While many companies, including Sony and Microsoft, have opted to re-release HD versions of games that have only just come out within the span of a year, Electronic Arts has actually strayed far away from the HD remaster circle.
The company has spent majority of the eighth-gen on their annual releases such as Madden NFL, NHL and FIFA, but they've also dabbled into new brands such as EA Sports UFC. The worst they could be accused of in terms of HD remastering is cross-generational titles, like Battlefield 4 and Battlefield Hardline. Otherwise they haven't dipped into their illustrious pool of IPs to re-release them with a fresh coat of HD textures and slightly improved geometry.
According to Moore, companies dabbling in the HD remaster sector are just trying to cash-in on a property's popularity and not necessarily to push the property forward, telling IGN...
For a lot of companies, remakes are a way to drive revenue. It’s sub-cost, it’s an IP that’s there, you can remaster, and that’s great. We don’t do that here. I don’t think that’s ever been in our culture.
For all the things that Moore has said that could be proven demonstrably false – such as him claiming that gamers worrying about on-disc DLC is nothing more than a conspiracy theory – here I think he's actually right. I don't remember EA bringing back their old titles for an HD remake.
It's somewhat commendable coming from a company like EA, but at the same time I'm sure there are a lot of fans of the original Mass Effect who are probably sad that they won't be seeing an HD version of the trilogy on the Xbox One and PS4.
Of course, there's always the backwards compatibility route that can supplement the lack of an HD remaster right proper. Moore even had some comments to share about backwards compatibility, stating...
In the old days, backward compatibility was to convince your mom to buy the new console -- not that you were ever going to use it, […] Once you got it? Those things went in the drawer, or on eBay
Sorry, I missed that last part while playing Super Mario World from the SNES... it's a classic and still worth owning to this day.
Nevertheless, despite Moore's quip about begging mommy for a console with backwards compatibility support, EA will support the Xbox One's backwards compatibility mode when it goes live this holiday season.
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