This really was just a matter of time. I mean, we all knew that EA has been wanting to have its very own MMORPG studio. Its really the only major horse that EA has been missing from its stables. All we can hope now, is that the acquisition will help give Mythic access to greater resources (helping out an already great game studio) instead of the bureacracy of a larger uber-corporation stifling the smaller company.

Ever since the massively multiplayer online role-playing game World of Warcraft was released in fall 2004, Electronic Arts has looked on with envy as rival Vivendi has raked in millions. In March, the French media conglomerate’s game division–which lost 203 million euros ($241 million) in 2004–reported a whopping 244 million euro ($289.9 million) one-year jump in earnings for the calendar year 2005.

The jump in revenue was thanks largely to WOW, which is developed and published by Vivendi subsidiary Blizzard Entertainment. The game now has over 6.5 million subscribers worldwide, filling the company’s coffers with a hefty regular revenue of gold.

Not one to let an unexploited market pass it by, Electronic Arts today announced that it has entered an agreement to acquire the Virginia-based development studio Mythic Entertainment. The new studio will be renamed EA Mythic, and it will focus on producing MMORPGs. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

EA drops Warhammer on Mythic - PC News at GameSpot

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