A Reuters report reveals that EA will no longer be paying weapons manufacturers money for the likeness of their products in their games.
"We're telling a story and we have a point of view," EA's President of Labels Frank Gibeau told Reuters."A book doesn't pay for saying the word 'Colt,' for example."
It's an interesting turn of events as EAs strategy will be tested in court as Bell Helicopter are challenging the use of their helicopters in the Battlefield franchise. EA preemptively went to court on the issue, and the outcome (due in June) is likely going to govern the road ahead.
The most amusing part of the article was this quote: "It gives publicity to the particular brand of gun being used in the video game," said Brad J. Bushman, a professor at Ohio State University who has studied video game violence. "On the other hand, it's linking that gun with violent and aggressive behavior." So weapons manufacturers are afraid of bad publicity for appearing in a video game? Guns linked with violent and aggressive behaviour, you say? Shocking.