Do we like Electronic Arts?
Video game publisher behind EA Sports FC, Madden NFL, The Sims, Apex Legends and Battlefield. Based in Redwood City, California.
Our score: 4 out of 10. Not one we'd back. It has a loot-box record, a fresh round of layoffs and studio closures, and a heavily indebted Saudi-led owner. Little offsets those.
EA is one of the biggest names in games. It makes EA Sports titles like Madden NFL, plus The Sims and Apex Legends. It's based in Redwood City, California. Andrew Wilson has been chairman and CEO since 2013, and EA's own site says he has been at the company for over 20 years.
The big change is ownership. In September 2025 EA agreed to a $55bn take-private by Saudi Arabia's PIF, Silver Lake and Affinity Partners. CNBC says Affinity is led by Jared Kushner, President Trump's son-in-law. The deal closed in August 2026, and EA came off the Nasdaq.
The buyout was financed with about $20bn of debt, underwritten by JPMorgan. Soon afterwards, on 21 October 2026, EA said it would cut about 3% of staff (around 400 jobs) and shut BioWare, the studio behind Mass Effect. The next Mass Effect and a new Sims project were cancelled, according to Variety and Gematsu.
Loot boxes are the long-running row. Dutch regulator Ksa fined EA over FIFA packs, and a Hague court backed it in 2020. In 2022 the Netherlands' top administrative court overturned the fine, ruling the packs weren't games of chance needing a licence. Campaigners also accused EA of exploiting kids.
We give it a 4. The games are loved, but the record is layoffs, studio closures, a loot-box fight, and a new owner loaded with debt and political ties. Our searches found no counterweight of clear good deeds.