Brain behind The Sims and Spore leaves EA

Will Wright and Electronic Arts split up. The creator of The Sims and Spore, among others, starts the company Stupid Fun Club, which is half EA and half Wright. There he will mainly focus on new forms of entertainment.

Will Wright founded the Maxis company with his partner Jeff Braun in 1987 and released the blockbuster SimCity in 1989. SimCity was the start of a long series of simulation games, which included SimAnt, SimCopter and updated versions of SimCity. In 1997, Maxis was sold to publisher Electronic Arts, but Will Wright remained with the firm. The creative mind within EA was responsible for the biggest blockbuster to date: The Sims. With over 100 million games sold, The Sims is one of the best-selling franchises in the world. The Sims 3 is due out in June 2009. In 2008 EA released the game Spore and again Will Wright stood at the cradle of the concept. Spore will also be released in editions for the Wii and DS.

After twelve years of service, Will Wright goes his own way: he leaves EA. Wright will work full time within his newly founded company Stupid Fun Club. According to its founder, the new company offers plenty of room for new ideas and acts as a think tank for people who want to offer new forms of entertainment. The ideas that arise within Stupid Fun Club should be applied in different areas such as games, movies, the internet and toys. In addition to Will Wright, EA is a fifty percent shareholder in Stupid Fun Club; in addition, EA has obtained the rights to release games based on ideas and concepts that arise within Stupid Fun Club.