EA posted huge numbers on its most recent earnings sheet, led by hits like Apex Legends and FIFA. The company’s performance during the second quarter of its 2022 fiscal year was the strongest second quarter in EA’s entire history.
Apex’s earnings in particular were outstanding, a staggering 150 percent higher than they were during the second quarter of last year. It’s the most money players have ever spent in-game, partly because there were two collection events during the quarter, leading to a nice bonus for EA.
The game is basically printing money: Apex has now earned more than $1.6 billion and it’s closing in on making $1 billion a year. EA CEO Andrew Wilson confirmed on the earnings call that seasons nine and 10 both hit records for the most active players since season one.
Wilson also addressed the recent increase in viewership for Apex on Twitch. Viewers watched more than 130 million hours of season 10 gameplay, an increase of nearly 40 percent over season nine, according to EA.
EA has raised its revenue targets for the year by $225 million to a total of $7.65 billion, banking on the continued success of flagship titles like Apex. Its projection doesn’t include the massive potential of games like Apex Mobile, which is currently available in select test markets around the world. Apex Mobile will likely see a widespread release in 2022.
Given the game’s rosy prospects moving forward, investors floated the idea of increasing the pace of new Apex content, possibly by hiring more people. “Could we deliver more content?” Wilson said. “Possibly. Does that make sense? Maybe.”
