Electronic Arts Inc has announced the formation of a new competitive gaming division that will be tasked with building up esports support for the publisher’s vast array of games.

“For many of you, the passion for games is defined by competition – a relentless focus on being the best, and leaving your mark on the games you love,” EA CEO Andrew Wilson wrote in announcement on the company’s website. “It fuels many of the amazing things we see from millions of you playing EA games each day. As this passion continues to grow, we’re committed to creating even more opportunities for you to connect and compete.”

Wilson explained that EA’s new competitive gaming division will focus on supporting three main pillars (via ea.com):

• Competition – To create highly-engaging competitive experiences with our games, officially supported by Electronic Arts.
• Community – To celebrate, connect and grow our community of players across all levels of expertise.
• Entertainment – To develop live events and broadcasting that bring the spectacle of competition to millions of people around the world.

Leading the new division will be company COO Peter Moore, who will serve as Executive Vice President of the competitive gaming division in addition to his current role.

“There is no one better in our industry to lead this new effort than Peter,” Wilson said. “He was an early pioneer in championing competitive gaming programs, such as the FIFA Interactive World Cup and the EA SPORTS Challenge Series, and Peter’s personal passions for the player experience, sports and competition, make him a tremendous leader for this new division. Peter’s team will partner with our development studios, marketers and publishing teams to bring this new platform to life.”

While none of EA’s games match the esports fervor of games like League of Legends, the publisher does own an immense library of game IPs, including some of the biggest franchises in gaming like Battlefield and FIFA.

EA has been accused in the past of watering down the complexity of some of its games in favor of mass appeal, such as with the recent release of Star Wars Battlefront. Battlefront has been criticized for its lack of depth, making it a poor candidate for competitive gaming.

The publisher’s new competitive gaming division could be seen an answer to that sort of sentiment.

photo credit: IMG_0331 via photopin (license)