Article:Electronic Arts, Expensive Absurdity

This page references a News Article from KSI.

Article

Electronic Arts, or better known as EA, has been known for price gouging its players and supporters in numerous ways over the years.

Most gamers groan at the mention of EA, followed by the notorious EA SPORTS… IT’S IN THE GAME.” EA has often been the centre of memes within gaming communities.

Beginning in the late 2000’s, EA has suffered many controversies. From acquiring other game studios to being accused of anti-consumer practices, EA is no stranger to being under public scrutiny.

In 2012 and 2013, EA was given the title of “Worst Company in America” by [Consumerist.] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumerist By 2018, things weren't much better, as USA Today (https://www.usatoday.com/ named it the 5th-worst company in the USA.

Part of the reason EA was put on this list was that the way they were developing their games at the time was set up like an assembly line. Pumping out titles quickly with no solid development behind them, fans were boycotting their favourite games and refusing to purchase new ones.

EA never recovered from that image. The reputation stayed with EA throughout the years, and with the buyout officially wrapping up in August, long-time supporters of EA’s bigger titles went online to share their opinions.

Specifically, some of this backlash came from The Sims community on various platforms, like Facebook and Reddit.

In March, shortly after the buyout was announced, The Maxis Team, which oversaw The Sims 4 production, announced they would be rolling out a new virtual currency that would allow creators to upload their own designs to a new storefront and earn a portion of that currency back.

The Sims 4, or TS4, is already known for being one of the most expensive games on the market. While TS4 is free to play, once a player purchases the expansion packs, game packs, stuff packs, and kits, it totals out to a whopping $1459 USD. Sometimes players are able to bundle the DLC’s together, or purchase through various seasonal sales.

The new in-game currency added to TS4 was called Moola. Similar to how microtransactions work in other games, you can purchase your first set of 200 Moola for $2.99, with the max amount being 5,500 Moola for $69.99.

For creators, they earn only 30 per cent back. So for every 100 Moola spent on their content, they earn 0.30 cents. This structure was created so EA could give back to its creators, but creators have already been establishing their content within The Sims community on platforms such as ModTheSims or CurseForge for many years, and utilizing spaces like Patreon to provide more for their loyal supporters.

While EA didn’t provide a statement as to their reasoning for the Moola, this was a huge shift in the way EA handles monetization, as EA gains most of its revenue from its live service model. Since Q1 of 2026, 75 per cent of EA’s revenue has been from live services such as battle passes and seasonal content from Apex Legends and EA Sports FC Mobile.

EA has been putting microtransactions into their games for a long time and has seen backlash before. When EA added loot boxes to Star Wars Battlefront II, it quickly resulted in the game becoming a pay-to-win model.

Players were frustrated online as powerful items were locked behind these loot boxes, throwing off the competitive scene as players either had to grind significantly or spend cash to obtain the items. The controversy led to EA altering the loot box system a little while after launch.

Even before TS4 added Moola, for the first time in Skate, microtransactions were added called “San Van Bucks.” They are used to purchase cosmetics within the in-game store. Some of the items are only available in bundle packs or as seasonal products for limited-time events.

The discussions online in forums such as [Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/PS5/comments/1j96pdv/ea_adds_microtransactions_to_skates_closed_alpha/) started when Skate was still in alpha, as players were sharing frustration that a free-to-play game was allowing players to purchase in-game currency before the game was even launched officially. It does support the developers but it also just leaves gamers feeling like a money bag for EA yet again.

EA is showing no signs of adjusting their prices for players in the coming months, as the price to create new games still continues to skyrocket. They are the 6th richest gaming studio, with companies like Nintendo, Xbox, and Sony ranking above, and Valve Corporation and Epic Games holding 7th and 8th.

Ultimately, it is up to gamers to choose how they spend their money when it comes to gaming. Players will support the games they love, and everyone has their favourite game they support.

But if that favourite game is with Electronic Arts, it might be best to wait for a seasonal sale, as it might cause an expensive absurdity to your bank account.

Additional Info

Written by: KSI Maxie

Publish Date: September 24th, 2026 @ 8:38 PM