Electronic Arts has joined the chorus of companies that will temporarily shut down operations in Russia following the invasion of Ukraine. EA will no longer sell any content, games or virtual currency in Russia or Belarus while the conflict continues The publisher announced this on Friday.
“We have made the decision to stop selling our games and content, including virtual currency packs, in Russia and Belarus while this conflict continues,” EA said in a statement. “As a result, our games and content will no longer be available for purchase on our storefront in the Russian region on Origin or in the EA app, including through in-game stores. We are also working with our platform partners to remove our titles from their stores and halt the sale of new in-game content in the region.”
This isn’t the first action EA has taken in Russia in recent weeks. The company also removed Russian teams from its sports video games fifa 22 and NHL22.
Electronic Arts also says it is currently trying to understand how best to help the region, particularly its colleagues and partners who remain there.
On Wednesday, Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykhailo Fedorov called on gaming companies like Microsoft and PlayStation to pull out of the Russian market and support the people of Ukraine. In addition to EA, several other companies including Microsoft, CD Projekt Group and Bloober Team have announced that they will no longer sell in Russia.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began in late February when Russia launched an unprovoked attack on the country. They have been there since the fighting began thousands of victimsincluding many civiliansand almost a million civilians have fled the country. The attack has led to sanctions against Russia from many countries around the world. Big companies like Shell, BPand Apple have also ceased to operate in the country along with entertainment companies such as Disney, Warner Bros. and Paramount.
