Medal of Honor: Warfighter looks to have created some real problems for EA. Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter published a research note stating it could knock the studio's ambition of toppling Activision in the FPS market back several years.
"Warfighter's review scores may have destroyed chances for sequels in the all-important first-person shooter segment of the market," says Pachter.
"We were surprised that review codes for the game were not distributed ahead of its release, and regret not seeing this as a red flag. We believe EA may have delayed the release of the review codes in order to minimize any negative buzz surrounding the game ahead of its launch, and we think that this strategy backfired, with low reviews "piling on" after the first few reviewers dared to criticize what sounds to us like an average game."
"We think that low review scores will impair EA's (and the Medal of Honor brand's) reputation with those who pre-ordered the game or bought it as soon as it was released (likely some of EA's most dedicated customers), and believe EA alienated at least a small portion of these gamers."
Pachter also suggested EA's attempts to surpass Activision isn't going to come true anytime soon.
"Perhaps more importantly, EA has made it clear that it intends to pass Activision's Call of Duty in the first-person shooter category; given the impairment to the Medal of Honor brand, we think EA is unlikely to take Activision's mantle as the leading developer of first-person shooters for several years."
