EA's Origin Access Premier Debuts on July 30

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Electronic Arts knows media is dominated by subscriptions. Relatively few people buy albums, movies, or even books anymore because they can pay a monthly fee to access more entertainment than even the most voracious bingers would be able to consume. EA is betting the same business model will expand to games, and it's reportedly planning to launch its Origin Access Premier service on July 30 to get in on the action.

EA CFO Blake Jorgensen revealed Origin Access Premier's launch date during an earnings call on July 26. The service was revealed at E3 2018 as a new membership tier for the existing Origin Access offering, which lets you pay $5 per month or $30 per year to access select titles and play some games before they debut. It's not a bad deal, but it's limited in scope, which is why it'll become Origin Access Basic when Premier debuts.

EA previously said that Origin Access Premier will include all new EA titles, rather than whatever games the company figures it can't sell for $60 anymore, for $15 per month or $100 per year. Just remember that as with any subscription service, as soon as you unsubscribe, everything you've paid for will be gone. That probably isn't an issue if you only play through a game once--or don't plan to cancel--but it's worth noting.

Also on July 26, EA published a new support page explaining what people can expect from Origin Access Premier. The service will also provide unlimited access to new games five days before they officially debut, give you a 10% discount on games you decide to buy from Origin, and let you play titles from The Vault. Origin Access Basic will offer similar perks, but only let you hop in to pre-release titles for 10 hours.

Now is probably the best time EA will find to launch Origin Access Premier. The company has a lineup of flagship titles just waiting to debut: Madden NFL 19, FIFA 19, Battlefield V, and Anthem are all set to debut within the next six months. People who are into sports games and first-person shooters might be more willing to play all those games if it costs $15 per month or $100 for the year instead of the full $60 at retail.

Nathaniel Mott
Nathaniel Mott
Freelance News & Features Writer

Nathaniel Mott is a freelance news and features writer for Tom's Hardware US, covering breaking news, security, and the silliest aspects of the tech industry.

6 Comments Comment from the forums
  • dave.wilkins0
    As a somewhat ancient gamer (Chopper Command originally infected me with the gamer gene) I almost insist on physical copies, for the reason that I still like to go back and play those old games from time to time (NES, SNES, 64, PC, xbox, whatever.) I have a Netflix subscription I barely ever use as it is, no way I'm signing up to pay to play a game that I could own, but choose not to in order to save a few bucks. Perhaps that's a hangover from my days as an Economist.
    Reply
  • Greg_80
    I for one would love the service. I pay the money for Netflix, because I can access good original programming vs. paying Disch a ton of money for channels I don't use. Same with games, it will pay for itself with just two AAA titles.
    Reply
  • alan_rave
    $15 per month for AAA games – it sounds perfect.
    Reply
  • redgarl
    The idea is not bad, but it would need to be more than EA games. However, just imagine if you were not able to buy Battlefield, and had to pay 15$ a month for playing it. If you are playing it for a year, that means 180$. This is where it is getting downright greed.
    Reply
  • KD_Gaming
    @redgarl it says right in the article $100 for 1 year subscription. Anyone that goes long term month to month isn't very smart.
    Reply
  • practicalbatman
    EA can chug dicks.
    Reply