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Electronic Arts

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Electronic Arts (EA) is an American video game developer and publisher, who published the Dungeon Keeper series of games. It is also the owner of the Dungeon Keeper IP.

History[]

EA acquired Bullfrog Productions in 1995. Peter Molyneux became a vice president of EA and head of its European branch,[1][2] but became dissatisfied with the corporate aspects of the job. During the development of Dungeon Keeper, Molyneux decided to quit Bullfrog, which EA believed would be a distraction, so he was banned from the offices. As a result, development moved to his house for the final year or so.[3] When Dungeon Keeper was released, Molyneux left Bullfrog and EA.

Around the time the PlayStation 2 was released, EA began to focus more on console games than PC games. They were also in talks with New Line Cinema for the rights to The Lord of the Rings, and with J. K. Rowling for the rights to Harry Potter. They obtained the rights, which spelt doom for Dungeon Keeper 3; Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings were famous franchises, and Dungeon Keeper was still experimental. The project was cancelled in favour of those money-spinners.[4]

In 2013, an iOS and Android Dungeon Keeper game was announced.[5] Developed by another EA subsidiary, Mythic Entertainment, it was released early the following year. The game was widely and heavily criticised for its reliance on microtransactions.[6][7][8]

Subsidiaries[]

Electronic Arts Victor[]

Electronic Arts Victor (エレクトロニック・アーツ・ビクター株式会社 (かぶしきがいしゃ) , EAV) was a joint-venture between Electronic Arts and Victor Entertainment, a producer and distributor of entertainment products. It was 65 per cent owned by EA and 35 per cent owned by Victor Entertainment. The company published Dungeon Keeper and Dungeon Keeper Premium in Japan.[9][10][11]

In December 1997, EA acquired Victor's 35 per cent share, dissolving the company.[12] Dungeon Keeper Premium was released that month,[11] making it one of the very last games published by EAV.

Electronic Arts Square[]

Electronic Arts Square (エレクトロニック・アーツ・スクウェア株式会社 (かぶしきがいしゃ) ) was a joint-venture between Electronic Arts and Square, a video game developer and publisher. They published Dungeon Keeper 2[13] and re-releases of Dungeon Keeper Premium in Japan.

The venture dissolved on 31 March 2003.[14]

Electronic Arts UK[]

Electronic Arts UK was Electronic Arts' UK studio. They are mentioned in the Dungeon Keeper Premium credits as having been involved with it, along with Electronic Arts Victor, or later, Electronic Arts Square.

Dene Carter mentioned in his Dungeon Keeper Resurrection Diary that Peter Molyneux went to their offices one day in February 1996 to speak to a committee.

By 2001, most of Bullfrog's teams had been subsumed into Electronic Arts UK.[15] Despite this, Theme Park Inc. was a Bullfrog-branded game. Following Theme Park Inc.'s release, Bullfrog was merged into Electronic Arts UK.[16]

In 2008, the studio's name was changed to EA Bright Light. The following year, it was stated by the studio's head Harvery Elliott that he was brought there to revive a Bullfrog franchise.[17] This never happened, however, and the studio closed in 2011.

Electronic Arts UK are best known for the original Harry Potter video games.

Trivia[]

  • Mark Healey likened EA's takeover of Bullfrog to being assimilated by the Borg.[18]
  • Electronic Arts logo original

    Original EA logo, as seen in Dungeon Keeper Premium. It was used in the 1980s and 1990s

    EA Games logo

    The EA Games logo replaces the original logo in later releases of Dungeon Keeper Premium

    Japanese releases of Dungeon Keeper (such as Dungeon Keeper Premium) emphasise the game's connexion to Electronic Arts by having Electronic Arts branding (as opposed to Bullfrog Productions branding), and even feature an Electronic Arts loading cinematic, which is not present in western versions. It is prefixed to the intro. As the game is from 1997, the logo featured is the original one, not the contemporary one seen above; the cinematic features three balls colliding and transforming into the shapes seen in the logo, and the scene then transforms into the logo itself. However, packaging of newer releases of Dungeon Keeper Premium feature the EA Games logo instead of the original one, though the original is still seen in the EA cinematic in the intro. The original logo can also be seen on the boxes and discs of certain western releases, such as the EA Classics release of Dungeon Keeper Gold. Other releases' packaging sometimes feature other EA logos, depending on when they were released.
  • The original logo's square represents an E and the triangle an A, but the circle represents not an O, but a globe, symbolising EA's global aspirations.[19]
  • Actual EA releases of Dungeon Keeper include the EA Classics release of Dungeon Keeper Gold and the EA Best Selections release of Dungeon Keeper Premium. Many versions, especially budget re-releases, of the former were released by a third party.

References[]

  1. ↑ "In The Chair With Peter Molyneux". Retro Gamer. No. 71. Bournemouth: Imagine Publishing. pp. 82–89.
  2. ↑ Jason Schreier (11 March 2014). The Man Who Promised Too Much. Kotaku. Archived from the original on 20 January 2016. Retrieved on 10 November 2022.
  3. ↑ "The Making Of: Dungeon Keeper". Retro Gamer. No. 143. Bournemouth: Imagine Publishing. pp. 64–69.
  4. ↑ Ernest W. Adams. The Story Behind Dungeon Keeper 3. Retrieved on 10 November 2022.
  5. ↑ Mike Fahey (21 August 2013). Dungeon Keeper Returns... As A Mobile Game. Kotaku. Retrieved on 10 November 2022.
  6. ↑ Luke Karmali (10 February 2016). Dungeons 2 is the Dungeon Keeper Remake We've Been Waiting For. IGN. Retrieved on 10 November 2022.
  7. ↑ Dungeon Keeper review (5 February 2014). Retrieved on 10 november 2022.
  8. ↑ James Vincent (10 February 2014). Dungeon Keeper mobile remake deemed 'unplayable' due to in-app purchases. Independent. Retrieved on 10 November 2022.
  9. ↑ Weekend Summary【'97/6/20版】 (Japanese). PC Watch (20 June 1997). Retrieved on 4 March 2025.
  10. ↑ Weekend Watch【'97/8/15版】 (Japanese). PC Watch (August 1997). Retrieved on 4 March 2025.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Weekend Summary【'97/12/19版】 (Japanese). PC Watch (19 December 1997). Retrieved on 4 March 2025.
  12. ↑ Electronic Arts Annual Report 1999 pp. 13–14. Electronic Arts (1999). Archived from the original on 26 December 2022. Retrieved on 4 March 2025.
  13. ↑ ダンジョンキーパー2 (Japanese). PC Watch (August 1999). Retrieved on 5 March 2025.
  14. ↑ 米Electronic Arts、スクウェアと合弁事業解消 EAスクウェアからエレクトロニック・アーツへ (Japanese) (19 February 2003). Archived from the original on 6 June 2009. Retrieved on 4 March 2025.
  15. ↑ "Revisiting Bullfrog: 25 Years On". Retro Gamer. No. 110. Bournemouth: Imagine Publishing. December 2012. pp. 60–67. ISSN 1742-3155.
  16. ↑ SlipSlot (10 May 2020). The History of Bullfrog & How Their Games Began. Opium Pulses. Retrieved on 11 April 2025.
  17. ↑ James Orry (20 July 2009). There's hope that EA will revive classic Bullfrog IP. VideoGamer.com. Archived from the original on 22 February 2015. Retrieved on 3 April 2025.
  18. ↑ "In The Chair With Mark Healey". Retro Gamer. No. 139. Bournemouth: Imagine Publishing. pp. 92–97.
  19. ↑ EA Logo (Electronic Arts Logo). 1000logos.net (13 December 2024). Retrieved on 28 March 2025.

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