During the Electronic Arts conference call regarding its Q3 2009 earnings, Chief Executive Officer of the company, John Riccitiello revealed a number of bombshells, including the announcement of delays for BioWare's role-playing epic, Dragon Age: Origins, the open-world crime game, The Godfather II and their sure to be riddled with innumerable expansions flag-ship cash-cow, The Sims 3. With a strong focus on negative growth in the global economy, the conference call began with grim undertones, which were then underlined by a sequence of delays for highly anticipated titles. Each title has been delayed for differing reasons, and we've got details on each. As the call began, John Riccitiello, Chief Executive Officer of Electronic Arts noted that "Our holiday quarter came in below our expectations and we have significantly reduced our financial outlook for fiscal 2009, a clear disappointment." He then added:

We delivered on game quality and innovation in calendar 2008, with 13 titles rated 80 or above -- more than any third-party publisher. We expect to build on this great quality record in the year ahead while delivering more profitability.

Moving on to the title delays - Dragon Age Origins on the PC, the "spiritual successor" to Baldur's Gate will see a delay until the "last half" of 2009, with the launch of the title to coincide with the release of the game on console platforms. This move is sure to agitate RPG-purists, who expected a true successor to the highly excellent Baldur's Gate. A statement from Dr. Ray Muzyka, General Manager and CEO of BioWare had the following to say:

Dragon Age: Origins is shaping up to be quite amazing in its level of quality and polish. I'm really proud of our team, who are working very hard to make Dragon Age: Origins the biggest and most exciting BioWare game yet, and we will work to ensure it not only meets, but exceeds the expectations of our loyal audience of fans.

Dragon Age: Origins, The Godfather II
The The Godfather II sees a delay - with plans for "longer-lead" marketing campaign - allowing more aggressive promotion of the title, in a bid to get the public "excited" for the title. No updated release for the title has been formally announced, but we'll keep you posted as we learn more.

Finally, The Sims 3 will be pushed back until June the 2nd - which will allow a large, worldwide marketing campaign designed to promote the title more aggressively. In a statement, Ben Bell Executive Producer on The Sim 3 had the following to say:

The Sims 3 is an incredible game that lets you play with life, create art and show off your creations. In the game, players are inspired by endless creative possibilities like the new Traits and Lifetime Wish features which allow players to create Sims with real personalities and destinies. Players can then take their Sim into town to interact with other Sims in the game and capture the action on video to show off online.

The Sims 3
Meanwhile, Russel Arons, Vice President of Marketing at EA added that:

The June launch combined with the break-through game the team is building gives us the perfect runway to create awareness for The Sims 3. The Sims 3 will be the original IP summer blockbuster of 2009 as we build off the success of the best-selling PC franchise of all time to create awareness with both loyal Sims fans and new players.

Before opening the conference call to questions - Riccitiello noted that restructuring of Need For Speed series was a key step for the future, and affirmed his confidence in a Beatles based game from Rock Band developer, Harmonix. He also noted that a strong focus on the Nintendo Wii would be a wise future move, given the strength of the platform in the market.