EA Sports’ planned celebration of Madden NFL 21 has been delayed due to the ongoing nationwide protests. It was meant to happen yesterday (June 2).
EA took to Twitter to make the announcement, stating that it stood “with our African American / Black community of friends, players, colleagues and partners”. It also announced its focus is currently on “actions we can take to drive change against the unjust treatment and systemic bias that is plaguing the nation and our world”.
Read the statement in full below.
An official statement from EA SPORTS pic.twitter.com/MKdgJjvKJB
— Madden NFL 20 (@EAMaddenNFL) May 31, 2020
EA is one of many game companies that have come forward to show solidarity to the ongoing protests. Companies such as Bethesda, Naughty Dog, Twitch and Astro Gaming have also taken to social media to voice their support.
See their tweets below:
#BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/Hg1VIdEqmi
— Bethesda (@bethesda) June 1, 2020
— Naughty Dog (@Naughty_Dog) June 1, 2020
#GeorgeFloyd#BreonnaTaylor#AhmaudArbery#TonyMcDade#BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/9pvnWiuQNM
— Twitch (@Twitch) May 30, 2020
— ASTRO Gaming (@ASTROGaming) May 29, 2020
Yesterday’s planned celebration of Madden NFL 21 was heavily rumoured to be the unveiling of Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens as the cover star for the game. The player casually announced it during a video interview last month.
Madden NFL 21 is set to release on PC, PS4, Xbox One and Google Stadia on August 28. It’s also set to come to next-gen systems PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. EA Sports showcased its first Madden NFL 21 gameplay last month during an Inside Xbox presentation. It also announced during the presentation that players will be able to “upgrade Madden NFL 21 from Xbox One to Xbox Series X at no additional cost”.
Sony also recently pushed back its PS5 games reveal event in order for “more important voices to be heard”. It was originally scheduled to take place this Thursday (June 4). A new date for the event has yet to be announced.