Since I have been back from Casual Connect Europe in Hamburg I have had wacky dreams.  Maybe a bit of jet lag induced.

Here is a dream I had last night.  EA (Electronic Arts – ERTS) gathered a bunch of Maxis alumni to discuss reviving old Maxis IP to help the EA bottom line in 2010. For the meeting, EA re-opened the old 2121 N. California office.  The execs were a mix of old and new: JR, Probst, Braun, and even Sam Poole!  The alums were all of the gang from back in the day, working on stuff that got canned after the acquisition of Maxis by EA.  Games like Sim Mars, The Mindwarp, SimBee, Sim Castle, and the Elliot Portwood titles.

Sim Mars and Castle art

So there was lots of deliberation, digging through the vaults, and the Maxis team and EA execs found the perfect games to update and revive.  We talked about what it would take to refresh them, and how to make them hits in today’s market.  The game concepts, themes, designs, branding, gameplay and everything about the GAMES were ideal to make lots of money for ERTS shareholders.

So, it was settled.  Great games were planned.  QED.  Ship it. 

Not quite.  Then, the EA execs start arguing. 

 - “Jewelcase, cardboard, or DVD Box?”.
 - “When can we book a retail endcap?”
 - “Is this feature list text to long to fit on a game package?”
 - “What is the CoGs for CD versus DVD?”.
 - “Is our key retailer shelf allotment booked through 2011?”.
 - “Has the price of oil driven up delivery costs?”

Then the EA execs turned to me and asked: “Rick, what do you think? Given all these concerns, is it still worth producing these games?”

And I said, “Don’t ask me.  All my games have been digitally distributed for the past ten years”.