Hasta La Gadget!

EA’s kicking off its free-to-play mobile strategy with an iOS version of the much-anticipated Madden NFL 25. Available now via the App Store, the popular gaming franchise arrives on the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad as a gratis download, though there are (naturally) a slew of in-app purchases that Electronic Arts is hoping you’ll splurge on. For example, there’s an All Madden Bundle priced at $100. As far as gameplay goes, the publisher says this year’s Madden on iOS has been improved with much better touch controls, which should go hand-in-hand with stuff like Ultimate Team and its trademark official licenses for all 32 squads. Speaking of which, we’re really wondering who’s listed as the starting QB for the New York Jets…

Filed under: Cellphones, Gaming, Tablets, Apple

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Source: App Store

Haven’t got your fill of all things next generation? Well, stay tuned because Gamescom 2013 promises to shed a little more light on the coming console war and we’re bringing the news to you live. While Microsoft’s shied away from throwing a full blown presser here in Cologne, Germany, rival Sony’s still got some PlayStation 4 (and Vita) secrets to share with the world at 10AM PST / 1PM EST today. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves: Electronic Arts is also doing it up properly for this Euro-centric industry tradeshow, hosting its own live event at 7AM PST / 10AM EST. You can catch all the news as it happens at the times below.

• 1PM EST to 2PM EST: Sony press briefing liveblog
• 10AM EST to 11AM EST: EA press briefing liveblog

Filed under: Gaming, Software, HD, Sony

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In holiday 2011, while fans of both the Call of Duty and Battlefield series were gearing up for virtual war, the publishers behind each megafranchise were gearing up for a different type of virtual war. With the launch of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Activision’s in-game social network — dubbed “Call of Duty Elite” — went live. Just prior, alongside the launch of competing title Battlefield 3, EA introduced its “Battlelog” system. And thus began a parallel virtual war for fans’ loyalty, battled via user numbers and engagement metrics. It’s a pretty boring war, but its armaments are the games many of us know and love.

The first-person-shooter social network war continues to this day (in silence, of course), with EA recently stepping up its rhetoric surrounding this October’s entry, Battlefield 4. Since E3, where some new Battlelog features were shown for the first time during EA’s presser, the company’s released its first big Battlelog marketing video (seen below). But we wanted more details about what the first next-gen version of Battlelog will look like, and what EA’s DICE studio has been able to accomplish with new hardware.

Filed under: Cellphones, Gaming, Handhelds, Tablets, Internet, Software, HD

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It’s E3 time, people, and the launch of a pair of brand new consoles has the gaming world abuzz with the possibilities they bring. The success of those platforms isn’t just about the black boxes, however. Gaming publishers like Electronic Arts are building many of the games people will want to play on Xbox One and PS4. So, when we got the opportunity to speak with EA’s CTO Rajat Taneja and COO Peter Moore about the company’s plans for next-gen, we jumped at the chance.

Rajat regaled us with tales of all the back-end work going into preparing Origin for next-gen, and chatted about the challenge of scaling up to accommodate all of the new users that will come with the new consoles. Naturally, that led to a discussion about the company’s single identity framework that allows gamers to access their EA account on any gaming platform. Meanwhile, Peter talked of the importance of Origin’s single login service, EA’s ability to produce games that take full advantage of the new capabilities of next-gen consoles and even how the lesson’s learned from the problems with Sim City will be applied to future games. You don’t have to take our word for it, though — check out the pair of videos after the break to hear for yourself first-hand.

Filed under: Gaming, HD

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When EA reps took the stage at Microsoft’s Xbox One unveiling event a few weeks back, they were part of a very small group of game companies represented. The world got a first look at EA’s new sports game engine, Ignite, and a tease of what to expect come this holiday, but we’re betting there’ll be even more interesting stuff presented during the company’s press briefing this afternoon at E3 2013. A closer look at Battlefield 4 and a thorough detailing of EA Sports’ various annual franchises are locks, as is a second premiere of Respawn’s new game Titanfall. What’s got us really excited is a possible Mirror’s Edge sequel reveal. Find out with us in real time with the liveblog just below the break.

Filed under: Gaming, Software, HD

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