Forever friends

Perhaps one of the biggest stories of the past three months has been EA’s, ahem, unprecedented partnership with Microsoft. The vast majority of the publisher’s lineup is either being marketed in conjunction with the Xbox One, has timed exclusive content on the Redmond-based manufacturer’s machine, or is outright exclusive to the upcoming console. It’s an odd strategy for a third-party firm – especially one that has historically aligned with Sony.

Despite all of this, though, the company maintains that it has a great relationship with the Japanese giant. "We're changing nothing in our policy about being platform-agnostic," said EA labels president Frank Gibeau. "One of the things that struck me this week is how a tactical deal with one of our platform partners has been blown out and perceived as strategic tilt – that’s a messaging error on our part. There is no strategic tilt.”

Gibeau continued that, aside from Titanfall – which is an EA Partners game – the publisher sees both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One as instrumental to its future efforts. “If you look at the previous generation, we did tactical deals with both Sony and Microsoft throughout the cycle,” he added, suggesting perhaps that the Californian company will extend some love to the former’s new format in due time.

"Sony has been executing exceptionally well on the next-gen transition,” he said. “Their hardware's hot, they're clear and disciplined and consistent with their policies, [and] they are showing some amazing things with indie [developers]. Overall, I couldn't be more pleased with how they're executing."

Are you irritated by EA’s allegiance with Microsoft, or have you come to expect exclusivity partnerships at this stage? Let us know in the comments section below.

[source computerandvideogames.com]