Significant number of EAMythic layoffs & a move to Fairfax, Va

[Ryna]

I thought this might be useful here since not all of you read UHall...

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Right on the heels of hearing from Chris Rabideau (UO Producer) that the entire Ultima Online Development Team is going to be shipped off to Virginia, we're now getting word from sources at EA/Mythic of significant layoffs that took place today too (October 24). Aaron Linde over at Destructoid has the most comprehensive story to date about it, so I direct you to a quote from his article titled Restructuring, layoffs forthcoming at EA, Mythic Studios: <blockquote> Owing to sagging profits and and a less-than-firm grip on their once invulnerable spot at top of the third party heap, Electronic Arts is looking to make some changes in their corporate structure, starting with Mythic and their Redwood Shores studio. An internal email from a trustworthy source who wishes to remain anonymous reveals that John Riccitiello, CEO of Electronic Arts, has tasked every studio and company within the monolithic publisher with getting their rising costs in line with revenue, which in plain English means layoffs. &lt;P&gt; The email from Mythic VP Rob Denton was sent to all employees of Mythic and details some of the plans to reduce costs by cutting jobs as well as some actions already taken. Headcount will be managed through "attrition, performance management, stricter hiring guidelines and layoffs". Over the next two months, the Ultima Online team will be moving from EA Redwood Shores to Mythic's Fairfax, VA studio to streamline operations. Meanwhile, a number of employees at both studios have already been let go as of earlier today, with more to follow as EA tightens its belt in the coming months. </blockquote>For more details, make sure to check out the complete article &lt;P&gt; As UO Stratics gains more information and details about these developments we will make sure to let you know. Stay tuned.

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[imported_Cysphruo]

That's crazy, they know nothing of how uo needs to be ran, it can still be as profitable if not more profitable as it once was.

 

[Guest]

Lets just hope that at least some of the current employees who do know something about how to make UO work relocate to VA, other wise we're going to be seeing a completely new staff coming in and trying to pick up where everyone else left off without a clue of how to make anythign work.

 

[mdacc#one]

I have to say, first time I've seen over 20viewers on rares foruem at one time lol. Well folks don't go crazy over this regardless of what all these nay sayers are trying to do. As I have repeatd many times before, look at SIMS on line, follow their subscription and you'll have your answer on the future of UO. SIMS on line has less than 30,000 subscribers and yet the game is still being supported by EA. We are at least 2.5 times bigger still. This game is not loosing money by any means. Sure they have lower profit margins but thats what restructuring is for. Closing down Redwood site is a good move if they can cut their operating budget by millions. Don't forget, at 70,000 subscriptions thats 700k per month and almost 9 million per year. I don't think EA considers that chump change. This type of situation happens all the time and yet most large companies pulls through it.

 

[Guest]

I agree, everyone needs to stop assuming the worst simply b/c a company decides to make changes which should benefit it.

 

[Ryna]

A slight update on the 5 on friday...

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Posted to uoherald.com's Five on Friday: <blockquote><span class=osi>

<font size=+1>FoF: Falling Fundament</font>
Jeremy Dalberg
26 Oct 2007 19:29:38

"What is the barding difficulty formula?" </p>

The Stratics Page on barding difficulty is accurate. The formula listed on that page only gives you an approximate difficulty, however, because Animal Lore doesn't necessarily show you all of a creature's skills - Parry, for example, doesn't show up in that list, but the creature may have skill points in it, affecting its total difficulty. So while the formula itself is correct, players don't necessarily have all the data they'd need to use it</p>

The actual barding difficulty listed in the Animal Lore gump, however, is accurate. So there's no need to go through the formula in the first place!</p>

"Whatever happened to Changing the Doom Artifact Drop System ?"</p>

Leurocian and Wilki just got this ready today, and it's being tested. Once we're sure it's solid, we'll get it out to you! (Click the link in the question for details on approximately how the system will work.)</p>

"Do we really no longer have a QA team?"</p>

There is a rumor going around to this effect, and it's simply not true. As a matter of fact, I'm sitting right next to some of them. (Some of them are on the other side of the country, although That will soon change </p>

With the team's move, there are going to be a lot of rumors, a lot of speculation, and a lot of doom and gloom. Please, take everything you hear with a grain of salt, and don't be too quick to predict the death of UO. People have been doing it for just about ten years now, and it's still kickin'.</p>

"Is [insert your favorite dev here] going to be moving?"</p>

This is a decision each person is going to be making over the next several weeks. There won't be any official announcement until everything has shaken out and everyone is comfortable with their plans. Moving across the country is a big decision, and I don't want anyone to feel pressured, or under a microscope.</p>

"When does the Invasion of Magincia start?"</p>

We're planning for it to begin early next week. We'll announce it on the Herald ahead of time, so keep your eyes peeled.</p>

Have a great weekend, everyone, and watch out for bits of falling sky! </p></blockquote>

Jeremy </p>

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[red72]

well also there used to be a game ran by ea called motor city online that they closed but i dont believe that there was a charge per month on that game but i loved it so im always afraid there gonna do the same to uo

 

[imported_Cysphruo]

that's part of the problem is that people dont stick around, i understand taking a higher paying job but we need poeple who have been with uo