Back in February, EA told IndustryGamers that it was establishing a studio in Salt Lake City, Utah to create a “groundbreaking” new project. Today, EA has formally opened the doors of EA Salt Lake with a ribbon cutting ceremony attended by Utah Governor Gary Herbert and several Utah government officials. The groundbreaking project is nowhere to be seen just yet it seems, as EA Salt Lake will be creating Hasbro-licensed titles under the EA Play brand, including further games under the Monopoly and Littlest Pet Shop franchises.
“We’re honored to stand elbow-to-elbow with Utah Government officials as we show off our new studio in Salt Lake City,” said Jon Dean, EA Salt Lake, Executive Producer. “As a company that takes great pride in its people and the amazing video games they create, today’s open house celebrates all of that hard work with the team and their families with fun activities from studio tours to game demos and art projects for the kids.”
“This move means we were able to build a state-of-the-art facility that fits the development studio needs, while also allowing our employees to work out of a more convenient location in downtown Salt Lake,” said Chip Lange, SVP of EA’s Hasbro Division. “We’re hopeful that EA’s growing commitment and investment in the Salt Lake area will accelerate the region’s development into one of the industry’s hottest game development centers.”
The new studio is a 20,000 square foot custom facility built to house EA Salt Lake’s 100 employees and to “promote the creation of innovative video game content.” The building includes suspended lighting, 30 foot high ceilings, and prime views of the surrounding mountain ranges and city parks. The previous development facility at Bountiful, Utah has been closed with all staffers moving to Salt Lake City.
The team is responsible for some of EA’s most successful casual titles to date. Their Hasbro-licensed titles have sold more than 8 million units combined worldwide. Their NERF N-Strike title was the number 2 Wii title of 2008, and the Littlest Pet Shop franchise has sold almost 4 million copies worldwide. Currently, the team is developing Monopoly Streets and Littlest Pet Shop 3: Biggest Stars for release later this year.
