Former EA and Microsoft exec, Peter Moore, says there are “serious questions” to be asked about video game hardware and whether or not there’s a future for the traditional home console system.
Moore – who held senior positions at EA, Microsoft, and Sega before leaving gaming altogether to join Liverpool FC in 2017 – reflected on the losses incurred whenever there’s a new console generation, suggesting that both “companies and gamers” are asking questions about whether or not players “really need to be spending what could be five, $600 on a bespoke piece of hardware just to play games”.
Newscast: Why are there so many games industry layoffs?“I think it’s a real serious question that’s being asked I’m sure in Tokyo, in Redmond, Washington, in Kyoto,” Moore told the delightful Wes Yin-Poole at IGN. “That’s what everybody’s working on right now, because when you start off that next generation, you’ve got to be ready to absorb billions of dollars in losses.
“And is the industry, given all the layoffs and everything we’re going through right now, is the industry ready for that? Look at Sony laying off 900 people – a lot there in the UK.”
After reflecting on the impact of AI, Moore added: “Are these companies willing to go another round of multi-billion? And at the same time, you’re gearing up for another cycle where gamers may not embrace the console and just say, you know what? I don’t need this, times are tough. I’ve got my phone, I’m enjoying what I’ve got on my phone. There’s plenty of games I can play. Failing that, of course I have my PC or my Mac, I can go do whatever I need to do there. And do I really need to be spending what could be five, $600 on a bespoke piece of hardware just to play games? So both the companies and gamers themselves are asking this question.”
Moore left EA to take up the CEO position at Liverpool FC back in 2017, moving away from a career in video games that began with Sega at the time of the Dreamcast and took in high-profile tenures at Microsoft and EA.
“Passion is essential for all of us at Electronic Arts,” wrote EA CEO Andrew Wilson in the official statement that confirmed Moore’s departure. “It’s what gets us up in the morning and drives us to do extraordinary things. And if you’ve ever met Peter Moore, you know that he quite literally wears his passion for Liverpool FC on his sleeve. So it’s with great excitement that we congratulate Peter on following his dream to become the next CEO of his beloved Liverpool Football Club.”
In 2020, Moore became an advisor to Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney and Wrexham AFC.