Electronic Art Inc's (EA) second quarter financial results out on Oct. 30, say a lot about how the company is doing and what it intends to do. The results show that the developer and publisher company is upping its expenses for Research and Development (R&D). This suggests a definite nod to the development of next-generation gaming.
The increase in R&D is an indication that the company is preparing games for the next-generation consoles--Xbox 720 and PlayStation 4, Examiner reported.
"If you look at the numbers, the three month outlook reveals EA is investing a total of $314 million in Research and Development, with then next closest department being Marketing and Sales, which is costing $212 million," Examiner reported.
The six month outlook figures showed an investment of $604 million into R&D expenses. Increase in the R&D expenditure is directly proportional to the development of next-generation gaming projects.
Microsoft's Xbox 720 and Sony's PlayStation 4 have been rumored to be in development though there has been no confirmation from the respective companies.
"For us, 2012 is all about Xbox 360-and it's the best year ever for Xbox 360. While we appreciate all the interest in our long-range plans for the future, we can confirm that there will be no talk of new Xbox hardware at E3 or anytime soon," Microsoft had officially announced March 16.
But various instances of leaked documents and rumors still persist in surfacing on the Internet.
"A few months back, around June, a 56-page document allegedly containing information about Microsoft's next console leaked out onto the web. Aside from the fact that the document listed believable (impressive, but still believable) specs, perhaps what lends it the most credence is that it has since been yanked down by Covington & Burling LLP, an international law firm that represents -- you guessed it -- Microsoft," TechnologyGuide reported Oct. 10.
Sony has been focused on its PS3, unveiling a "Super Slim" version of PS3 in September. But that has not stopped rumors. TechnologyGuide cites a Kotaku report published earlier in the year which says that the PS4 will have "stringent anti-use game measures and will offer no backwards compatibility for PlayStation 3 games."