EA has been filing a flurry of patents lately, from patents for improving loading screen wait times, to patents aimed at changing in-game advertising. Recently the gaming giant added another patent to the list. This time, however, the patent focuses on improving the mobile sports gaming experience.
Over the last few decades EA has become almost synonymous with sports video games. In fact, the company's sports wing, EA Sports, was responsible for a huge chunk of EA's third quarter earnings last year. With this in mind, it's no surprise the company is looking to continue improving its sports games' framework and find new ways to better adapt the games for mobile devices.
Much like the in-game communication patent EA filed in early February 2021, this most recent patent is designed to improve the gamer's experience in a unique way. Basically, EA is aware that many mobile games are played while users are on the go and therefore don't typically have the time to play a match that lasts as long as a real-life soccer game. The solution offered in the patent is to design a system that randomizes and simulates the game playing itself out, and then presents moment to moment decisions to the players.
This means the player wouldn't control the athletes as they run around the field for the whole game, but when the AI controlled teams get to a point where they're interacting with one another, the player takes over. Much in the way players can fast forward and skip through replays and intros in EA's soon to be returning College Football series, the mobile technology would likely allow players to view the moments they are not in control of their team in an accelerated manor.
Of course, this would probably limit the amount of strategizing currently involved with most sports games. Instead of getting their team in the right position and setting up a perfect angle to score, the player would simply be dropped into the scenario where they're trying to make the shot. Further, with large swaths of the action happening beyond the player's control, it could feel more like watching a video rather than playing a game, a charge often levied against the worst of the Sonic The Hedgehog games.
Still, these newly proposed mechanics, such as the opportunity to play an entire three period NHL match while waiting for the train, is an enticing one. Of course, the patented mechanics could be months or years away from making their way into an actual game, if they ever do at all. But since EA recently renewed its deal with the UFC and NHL, players can rest easy knowing there will be many more EA Sports games for years to come.
Source: USPTO