LogIn50% lower than Electronic Arts' projected results.
Electronic Arts has published the preliminary results for the third quarter of fiscal year 2025, officially confirming that BioWare's Dragon Age: The Veilguard has not only failed critically but financially as well, revealing that the game has sold only around 1.5 million copies in the first two months since its launch on October 31 last year.
BioWare
According to EA's statement, the studio had initially anticipated mid-single-digit growth in live services net bookings but now projects a mid-single-digit decline. The majority of this change is attributed to EA's "Global Football" games, which had seen double-digit net bookings growth for two consecutive fiscal years but experienced a slowdown as early momentum in Q3 FY2025 failed to carry through to the end. The decline is further compounded by The Veilguard's poor performance, as the game had engaged approximately 1.5 million players by the end of 2024, nearly 50% below the publisher's expectations.
As a result, EA has revised its net bookings outlook for FY2025, projecting net bookings of around $2.215 billion for the third quarter and an updated range of $7.000 billion to $7.150 billion for the full fiscal year 2025. For the third quarter, EA expects GAAP net revenue to be approximately $1.883 billion, with GAAP diluted earnings per share estimated at around $1.11.
"During Q3, we continued to deliver high-quality games and experiences across our portfolio; however, Dragon Age and EA SPORTS FC 25 underperformed our net bookings expectations," commented Electronic Arts CEO, Andrew Wilson. "This month, our teams delivered a comprehensive gameplay refresh in addition to our annual Team of the Year update in FC 25; positive player feedback and early results are encouraging. We remain confident in our long-term strategy and expect a return to growth in FY26, as we execute against our pipeline."
Following the publication of the press release, Electronic Arts' shares dropped about 11.5% in extended after-hours trading:
CNBC
Read EA's full statement here and don't forget to join our 80 Level Talent platform and our new Discord server, follow us on Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Telegram, TikTok, and Threads, where we share breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.