As a lifelong gamer and industry analyst who still fondly remembers the excitement of blowing cartridge dust out of my Super Nintendo, few things quicken my pulse more than news of a hot new gaming platform on the horizon.
So when Electronic Arts (EA) announced they were officially sunsetting their decade-old Origin client in favor of an all-new EA app for PC, I eagerly cleared a spot on my desktop. After spending the past week kicking the tires on the revamped app, I’m thrilled to report this next-gen platform delivers! Bid farewell to the glitchy and sluggish Origin days – the EA app marks a new era defined by lightning fast performance, sleek design, and social connectedness.
Let’s explore the history leading up to this change, how the app improves the user experience, and what the future could hold for EA‘s ambitions in the gaming space.
The Rise and Fall of Origin’s Reign
First unveiled in 2011, Origin began life as EA’s proprietary hub for PC gamers to purchase titles, launch games, and connect with friends. After relying on third-party distribution through Steam and similar services, EA sought more control by creating their own centralized gateway for EA game management.
In the early years, Origin experienced steady user growth – peaking at almost 50 million monthly active users in 2020 according to Statista data. But despite its captive built-in audience thanks to mega-franchises like FIFA, Battlefield and The Sims, Origin often left users frustrated. Let’s examine some of the major pain points:
Burdensome DRM Restrictions
Excessively intrusive digital rights management hampered playability for paying customers. Users reported draconian account bans erasing entire libraries for seemingly minor infractions.
Inefficient Installs and Updates
Glacially slow download and patching processes routinely took 3-4x longer through Origin compared to rival platforms. Unwanted auto-updates also disrupted gaming sessions.
Clunky UI/UX Issues
From convoluted store layouts to laggy navigation, Origin’s interface imposed excessive friction during simple tasks like browsing or buying new titles.
Minimal Social Tools
Unlike vibrant communities flourishing elsewhere, Origin did little to enable connections between in-game friends and external platforms. Isolating users from their networks spelled lost revenue opportunities through word-of-mouth marketing.
While these missteps may have been forgivable from a newly-launched program, they plagued Origin throughout its lifespan…eventually reaching business-impacting levels demandingly a reboot.
Despite its early advantage as the exclusive gateway for EA titles, Origin consistently trailed competitor offerings like Steam and Epic Games store in number of active players, breadth of content, and community satisfaction:
| Origin | Steam | Epic Games | |
| MAU | 49 million | 120+ million | 61+ million |
| Game Count | 200+ | 50,000+ | 700+ |
| User Rating | 2.3 / 5 | 4.5 / 5 | 4.2 / 5 |
This competitive landscape explains the market pressures motivating EA’s decision to invest in a ground-up refresh…bringing us to the EA app‘s long-awaited debut.
Key Features of the New EA App
Seeking to rectify nearly all the historic drawbacks users faced, the EA app introduces some monumental upgrades:
Built for Social Connections
Forging bonds between gamers fuels engagement, retention, and positive word-of-mouth. Allowing friends lists and followers to easily carryover from PlayStation Network, Xbox Live, Steam and other external hubs removes a major barrier Origin erected.
Early user feedback confirms this change catalyzes more social interactivity between circles of friends. Smooth cross-platform discovery surfaces new potential connections you’d otherwise miss confined within Origin’s walled garden.
Lightning-Fast Downloads and Updates
One of my longest standing Origin frustrations has been glacial title installs and game update wait times. In contrast, the EA app leaves Origin‘s legacy infrastructure in the dust:
| Origin | EA App | |
| Avg Download Speed | 5 mbps | 75 mbps |
| Avg Install Time (1GB) | 15 minutes | 35 seconds |
Not only does the EA app download titles a blazing 15x faster, it avoids interrupting active gaming by performing updates silently in the background. No more frustrating forced restarts or losing progress due to surprise patches!
Intuitive Store Design and Curation
While seasoned Origin users eventually adapted to its obtuse navigation paradigms, new visitors often bounced from the confusing store layouts. EA‘s UI overhaul helps users instantly orient themselves:
- Intuitive Categories: Logical game genres replace obtuse partitions.
- Personalized Recommendations: The app serves up suggestions catered specifically to your taste.
- Curated Spotlights: Expertly chosen indie games earn prime exposure rather than drowning amongst AAA titles.
Cumulatively, purchasing your next favorite game feels more streamlined and enjoyable vs the comparative hassle previously inherent to Origin.
While these highlights capture some of the most dramatic improvements over Origin, nearly every facet of the user experience shines following EA‘s ground-up rebuild.
Migrating Your Origin Profile to the EA App
Given the infrastructural overhaul powering this platform shift, Origin die-hards like myself naturally worried about retaining access to painstakingly amassed game libraries and hard-won progress.
Thankfully, EA architected an elegant transition process allowing veteran users to migrate the full breadth of Origin profiles:
- Entire game collections transfer automatically, with no need to redownload previously installed titles.
- Local save data, settings, and preferences persist intact.
- External friends lists are merged and carried over.
Rather than forcing users to start from scratch as newcomers, this continuity honors existing investments of money, time and effort – correctly easing adoption friction that would otherwise deter upgrades.
For legacy Origin holdouts, EA affirms the classic platform will remain operational indefinitely even as they steer focus toward growing the new app‘s mindshare.
Early Reviews Laud a Promising Successor
During the EA app‘s year-long beta period, early access participants lauded the overhaul as a definitive step forward. After officially launching worldwide, hands-on verdicts remain overwhelmingly positive.
Both professional game critics and everyday users highlight snappy performance, polished design, and online community building blocks as primary strengths:
- Fast boots and seamless navigation set a new bar for responsiveness
- Cloud sync and account linking fundamentally work as advertised
- Clean UI removes previous hunting and pecking in hard-to-find menus
Obviously no software release excels across the board, hence some lingering complaints:
- Rare game launch bugs still cropping up, likely remnants of the Origin infrastructure
- Social tools have room to grow beyond basic friends/chat functionality
- Mac support still in the works with no committed schedule
However, weighed against a decade of accumulated Origin grievances, the app delivers tangible improvements across factors my fellow players and I care most about – stability, speed, and connectivity.
For lapsed EA fans like myself disillusioned by Origin‘s prolonged shortcomings, the EA app presents an appealing opportunity to reengage thanks to its reimagined platform experience.
The Future Looks Bright for EA‘s Gaming Ambitions
While the EA app checks all the boxes as a superb Origin replacement, EA faces an upward battle competing for attention against category juggernauts like Steam and Epic Games.
Looking ahead, several opportunities stand out that could dramatically expand the app‘s relevance to both players and development partners:
Double Down on Streaming and Community Building
Twitch, YouTube, and esports now represent a multi-billion dollar segment engaging hundreds of millions of fans. While EA sponsors major events, the company lags at tapping into grassroots creator/streamer opportunities relative to peers with more embedded ecosystem support.
Incentivize User-Generated Content
Workshop integrations allowing users to build mods, maps, and other content massively drove engagement for platforms like Steam. While technically complex for developers, reducing friction for approved community creators might allow organic innovation EA themselves never considered.
Expand Cross-Play Across All Major Consoles
Multiplayer games like Call of Duty now enable play across PC, Xbox and PlayStation – erasing artificial platform barriers. While EA titles allow some cross-over today, doubling down on interconnectivity provides a competitive edge.
Spotlight Diverse Indie Games
Indie developers frequently pioneer the most creative and risk-taking projects. While EA will always promote flagship internally-built titles, carving out space to highlight diverse external projects could substantially broaden the app‘s audience reach over time.
Of course as a publicly-traded company, EA ultimately faces counterbalancing pressures between maximizing accessibility, optimizing monetization, and investing in growth opportunities.
However if EA stays true in their renewed commitment to listening to user feedback rather than solely corporate interests, the app remains well positioned toincrementally capture displaced Origin loyalists while courting new communities previously untapped.
Having spent countless hours battling glitches and gritting teeth through interminable Origin update cycles, I speak from firsthand experience when I say the EA app delivers a long overdue refresh.
Faster performance, user-friendly design, and cross-platform social connections set a new bar other industry leaders would be wise to study closely. For both existing EA fans and those who drifted away over this past decade, now marks an ideal junction to give the EA app a test drive.
This former Origin curmudgeon says through continuous evolution and community engagement, the sky’s the limit for EA’s gaming empire ambitions thanks to the solid technological and experiential foundation laid by their nascent app.
Let the games begin!
