At this year's E3, Electronic Arts unveiled its new EA Originals initiative, which looks to support independent game developers in their projects.
It can be remembered that in last year's E3, one of the main attractions in EA's press conference was Unravel, a game featuring unique visuals by Coldwood Interactive, which received assistance from EA to bring it to consoles. Unravel has since been released for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC on Feb. 9, showing the partnership being able to push through with the promise to get the game out to players.
EA Originals is a continuation of that partnership with Coldwood over Unravel, and it looks to support even more indie game developers.
At the E3 stage, EA Studios executive VP Patrick Söderlund discussed the three pillars of the EA Originals initiative. The first is bringing unique and innovative gaming experiences to the masses, and the second is providing small developers with the support that they need for their projects in terms of development, marketing and publishing.
The third pillar is offering security to indie game developers by allowing them to receive all the profits for the game that they created, which is, needless to say, a valuable thing for small studios that are just starting out in the industry.
After Söderlund finished his presentation, Klaus Lyngeled of Sweden-based Zoink! Games stepped onto the stage to present Fe, which is the first game under the EA Originals initiative.
In Fe, players control a small creature that resembles a fox through a dark forest. The creature woke up along in the forest, and it is up to the player to help it through the world.
According to a Zoink! developer, Fe represents a personal narrative about the relationship with nature. The other creatures and animals that players will encounter in the game will each have a unique song, and learning the songs will allow players to access more parts of the world.
There are no words to be seen in the open-world title, only the music, which will provide the themes and emotions or the game. Players will also have to be careful of the Silent Ones, which are beings that are capable of silencing the forest.
Electronic Arts, in advance of E3, published a list of all the games that will be available in small events in London and Los Angeles dubbed as EA Play. Included in the list are Battlefield 1 and Titanfall 2, both of which were a part of the company's presentation at E3.
