Electronic Arts Reviews

I worked at Electronic Arts full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – Great perks, fun products and environment, good peers.

Cons – Pay scale is lower than traditional ranges, advancement can be difficult, politics can be difficult to navigate for those not interested in that type of environment, re-organizations occur too frequently.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

I worked at Electronic Arts full-time for more than 7 years

Pros – I worked for EA for 5 years. I'd still be there if they hadn't outsourced my position. It was my dream job and it was was everything I could have ever wanted it to be and then some. I worked my tail off but seeing advertisements for products on TV and being able to play those products first hand was VERY motivating.

Cons – The company likes to outsource to pad the bottom dollar line which is a shame. Across the planet, EA employees everywhere are some of the most skilled and dedicated people Ive ever had the pleasure of working with. Offshorer's dont care and they cause quality to suffer.

Advice to Senior Management – Getting rid of John Riccitello was a great first step. Step 2, TAP BACK INTO EMPLOYEE OWNERSHIP AND BUY IN BY STOPPING THE OFFSHORING OF JOBS!! Clone Larry Probst and keep the guy as CEO!!

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I have been working at Electronic Arts full-time for more than a year

Pros – +Working with the development team is fun even in crunch
+DD's and designers are passionate about the games they work on
+Entry level employees are encouraged to speak up during the development process
+Managers do try to encourage workers to maintain a decent work/life balance

Cons – -QA middle managers slow the game development process down
-QA is addicted to the process and number of bugs , not Quality
-Crunch time can go to the extreme sometimes
-Feature Creep is a weekly occurrence after alpha
- Middle managers are every where, who are not on the same page

Advice to Senior Management – Audit the management system from QA to DD's and clean it up

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I have been working at Electronic Arts full-time for more than 8 years

Pros – A excellent place to work if your interested in established brands. Great benefits, excellent offices, and fun environment.

Cons – Slow to adopt new platforms, or new brands. Poor control over spending and high volume of work.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I have been working at Electronic Arts full-time for more than 8 years

Pros – Lots of good people to work alongside and learn from. Some interesting projects. Pay is good for Utah.

Cons – Company emphasizes making hits (often based on sequels and licensed IP) over making original, creative, inventive fun content.

Advice to Senior Management – Trust your teams more and take some creative risks like the indie studios do.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

I worked at Electronic Arts full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – - If your passion is video games, this is one place to consider. You might work on a classic game, such as Madden, which is now a 30 year old franchise.
- Unique perks when a major game launches
- Your parents, and people in general, will be able to connect with you vis-a-vis what you are working on.
- As with all large organizations, your experience will vary greatly depending on what you make of your opportunity

Cons – - As with all large organizations, your experience will vary greatly depending on what you make of your opportunity
- EA was constructed and run as a portfolio company for many years. While this approach has its own merits, it can also make it more difficult for middle managers to be effective.

Advice to Senior Management – - Fewer silos would be better.

I have been working at Electronic Arts full-time for more than 7 years

Pros – Compensation is commensurate with job expectations. Creativity and thinking outside the norm are encouraged. Strong benefits package and the Redwood Shores campus is very nice with onsite cafe and gym.

Cons – Gamer culture can get a little annoying if you aren't a hard core gamer yourself. There have been a number of reductions in force followed by employee growth followed by more cuts. It can get tiresome looking over your shoulder all the time.

Advice to Senior Management – Stop making expensive acquisitions and investing in trends that fizzle out, (Nintendo Wii, Facebook games) and stick to what the company does well and has a long term future.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

I have been working at Electronic Arts as a contractor for more than a year

Pros – Nice people to work with - there's creative types, gamer geeks and some genuinely cool people! Execs are mostly pretty down to earth and approachable. I liked the cafe and the "green" campus at Redwood Shores! Seriously good facilities!

Cons – Same old big company bureacracy, and boy... everyone is a contractor! Contractors get treated like sub-humans/Zombies as the analogy goes in Gaming!

Advice to Senior Management – When you ask your middle-managers for advice, take it. And think about taking risks every once in a while, even though the reality is that gamers will still play your games.... but they will also switch if something better comes along!

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I worked at Electronic Arts full-time for more than 8 years

Pros – Working in video games and sports is a positive if you don't enjoy either don't bother, food is catered during long hours

Cons – Pay is terrible, long hours. Took the experience I had gained at EA and took it to another job and was immediately making double. Sure pay is better for engineers and higher ups

Advice to Senior Management – Quit promoting yes men who don't know the industry

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

I worked at Electronic Arts full-time

Pros – You will never get bored
The people are amazing - fun & intelligent to work with
The perks/office are awesome
Depending on your job function you will be challenged
Long days/weeks sometimes - not a 9-5 job

Cons – Not a lot of transparency in why things are happening
Not for someone who likes stability in their role or daily schedule
Very young company, so working with inexperienced people can be tough at times

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend