EA being unprofessional

Posted this on Muthead, but will post here as well.

Hey guys, (not so) quick rant:

My name's Derek, I also go by DJONES online.

I was at the Jacksonville shooting in '18. After it happened I was really traumatized, and just screwed up mentally. I had no motivation to play Madden anymore.

I was really angry with how EA handled things. I thought a lot of aspects of the competitive scene were unprofessional. From having big tournaments in little gamer cafes with little to no security, to giving players the game early, to allowing exploits and glitches and promoting them as "skill".

I also felt some members of the community participated in cyber-bullying behavior, calling people weirdos and virgins online etc.

After the shooting, I decided enough was enough, and let EA, and some of the players know that their behavior was not acceptable. I probably could have said things differently, but I was extremely emotional (as we all were) about what had happened, and decided to speak my mind.

I then received a phone call from EA informing me that I had been suspended from competing in the MCS, and they said, "We want you to keep your skills sharp, and come back next year". I had no intention of playing Madden again, so I told them whatever.

Fast forward now 4 years later, I started playing Madden again a couple of months ago, and have really been enjoying it...but for someone like me, there is really no way to be a casual player.

I decided I wanted to try to compete again, and so I emailed Madden League Ops (competitive gaming division) apologizing for my behavior, and informing them I would be playing again. I also asked about my suspension, but received no response. I assumed since they said to "come back next year", that 4 years away would be enough, apparently not.

I have been labbing like crazy and I'm really locked in right now. Been beating all of the best players on Xbox, and participated in last weekends MCS ladders, and today's single elimination tournament.

Won all my games today, and was excited for the final 16 tomorrow, with only 2 games to win to make the live event. I then had my last win overturned, and was informed by tournament admins that I had been disqualified. I contacted them on Discord, and they said that their decision is final, provided no reasoning for it, and told me the only thing to do is email EA. I have not heard back from them yet. They would not tell me who it was that made the decision, or let me talk to anyone who could provide any information, other than the fact that I had been disqualified.

Just another example of EA acting unprofessionally in my opinion. It does not seem right to ban someone from the MCS for being emotional and saying stuff after a traumatic event like the shooting, and then to not have anyone be able to provide an explanation or be available to talk about it.

They are going to suspend me for saying things about player safety being essential, and cyber-bullying being unacceptable, but then guys like Skimbo (actually a decent person, everyone makes mistakes) calls people n-words on Twitter and they are allowed to participate? Makes no sense.

Anyway thanks for reading if you got this far. Appreciate you all.

You are so much better than EA.

Why do you want to participate in a tournament, where a company encourages child gambling? 
 

You said it yourself, you did not like how EA handle things. Fast forward 4 years later, things are not any different. EA is still a greedy company that puts out the bare minimum. Why put your full effort for a company that exploits there customer?

As I take it you said fuck you to EA and they just don’t care anymore… how is that being unprofessional? You burned that bridge.

It amazes me that a company can be around for so long and continue to pump out the same underperforming product year after year... and we buy it because they have a monopoly on NFL football. After playing 2K MyTeam for a while this past two months I personally think they would do a much better job, especially when it comes to competitive play and making the game playable for people who don't want to spend thousands of dollars.

Pikachu said:

You are so much better than EA.

Why do you want to participate in a tournament, where a company encourages child gambling? 
 

You said it yourself, you did not like how EA handle things. Fast forward 4 years later, things are not any different. EA is still a greedy company that puts out the bare minimum. Why put your full effort for a company that exploits there customer?

Ever been the best in the world at something?  It's not really something you get to choose to be.

kaotikords said:

As I take it you said fuck you to EA and they just don’t care anymore… how is that being unprofessional? You burned that bridge.

Having big tournaments at little gaming cafes with no security, playing favorites and giving top players the game early before other top players, allowing glitches and exploits in their tournaments, deciding to overturn my game yesterday, but then not providing an explanation or having anyone available to speak on the subject.