Few major game publishers have embraced iPhone and iPad game development like EA. Since the launch of the iPhone, EA has brought just about every one of its major franchises to iOS platforms, from "SimCity" to "Madden" to "Battlefield." And the games aren't just numerous, they're actually quite good. "Dead Space" on iPhone is a remarkably well-designed and graphically impressive game. The same goes for "NBA Jam." Clearly EA isn't cheaping out with these games, but I've always questioned why they managed to skimp on one feature: Game Center support. Now I know the answer.
EA announced yesterday that they are in the process of bringing Origin, the company's digital download marketplace, to mobile devices. This would allow users to create an Origin account and have an Origin friends list, akin Steam and Xbox Live. When playing EA's iOS games, you'd be able to see what your other Origin friends are playing and, where supported, join them in the middle of the game.
This all sounds great, if Apple didn't already have Game Center. Game Center has its own friends list, its own achievements, its own multiplayer matching system. Origin on iOS would be completely separate from this.
When Game Center launched, we were all encouraged by the unification of the online networks on iOS. You wouldn't need to have an Open Feint ID and a Plus+ ID. You could just have a single Game Center ID which would cover all games. Origin means the audience of iOS gamers will once again be split.
Now I'll be the first to admit that Game Center is far from perfect. It is extremely limited in terms of communicating with friends, but I'd rather one unified but limited service than a house divided. Remember when "Metal Gear Solid Online" launched and it required a separate user account from PSN for some unknown reason? That's the sort of thing we're talking about. The nightmare scenario is that other major iOS publishers, like Capcom, Halfbrick and Rovio ditch Game Center and opt to have their own individual services as well. Suddenly we're back to where we started, with the iOS gaming market segmented.
Thankfully there's an easy solution that EA could take: Have both. There are plenty of games that support Open Feint and Game Center. Why not support Origin and Game Center? That way people can still have a single friends list without having to worry about which account they're signed into.
Unfortunately, based on EA's insistence to not support Game Center to begin with, I'm hesitant to believe this is in the cards. Origin is scheduled to launch on iOS (and Android) later this year.