Video game company EA is slowly switching its business model to recurring subscriptions. The company just launched Origin Access Premier for $15 per month or $100 per year. This subscription is only available on PC.
This isn’t EA’s first subscription. The company first launched EA Access on the Xbox One. For $5 per month or $30 per year, you can download a play old EA games as part of your subscription.
EA Access doesn’t include the most recent games. But you can play the latest Fifa, Madden and Battlefield games a few months after their initial releases. Usually, EA Access games don’t include any DLC or extra content.
In addition to full games, EA Access lets you try new EA games for 10 hours. You also get 10 percent off on EA digital purchases.
In 2016, EA launched a similar service on PC for the same price. In addition to a collection of EA games, the company partnered with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and other game companies. You can find indie hits, such as The Witness, Oxenfree and Trine 2.
And now, EA is launching a more expensive subscription tier. With Origin Access Premier, you get new EA titles a few days before launch day. For instance, you’ll be able to download and play Madden NFL 19, Fifa 19, Battlefield V and Anthem when they launch in the coming months.
Subscribers won’t have to pay for DLCs, or at least not as many. Games included in the subscription are deluxe editions (Fifa Ultimate Edition, Battlefield V Deluxe, etc.).
In order to convince people to subscribe right away, EA is adding deluxe editions of Battlefront II, Fifa 18, Unravel Two, Fe or The Sims 4 right away.
Other companies have launched subscription services, such as Microsoft with the Xbox Game Pass and Sony’s PlayStation Now. This is an interesting shift as game companies are getting ready for cloud computing.
While many people still buy games on DVDs and play on gaming consoles, the industry is slowly going to switch to cloud gaming. You will launch a game on a server in a data center near you and stream the video feed to the device in front of you.
It doesn’t make as much sense to own a game if you don’t even run it on your console in your living room. By creating recurring subscriptions and putting together gaming libraries, companies can increase recurring revenue.
When EA’s Origin Access service launched in 2016, it gave PC gamers the chance to try out a selection of games from ‘The Vault’ — an expanding catalog of EA titles — for a monthly subscription fee. One caveat was that, like PlayStation Plus and Games with Gold, the lineup wasn’t always filled with the most recent releases. However, with Origin Access Premier, a higher tier subscription originally unveiled during E3 and set to go live next week, you’ll finally be able to get your fix.
As a premium tier extension of Origin Access, ‘Premier’ still offers the same goodies as the default or basic tier — access to The Vault and 10% off on Origin Store purchases — but it’ll also give you unlimited access to fresh releases, and the chance to immerse yourself in said releases five days prior to launch.
But if scooping up games like Anthem, Battlefield V, Madden NFL 19 and FIFA 19 sounds like a tempting proposition, ready your wallets. EA’s admission price is $14.99 per month — or $99 for an annual subscription, which saves you $80. There are no changes for players subscribed to the basic Origin Access plan, which for the time being remains at $4.99 per month, or $29.99 annually.