EA’S MADDEN NFL 06 HAS RECORD NUMBER OF FIRST WEEK FANS

EA SPORTS Gridiron Title Scores Big at Retail

Redwood City, Calif – August 18, 2005 -- Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS), today announced that, based on internal data, Madden NFL 06 scored big at retail in its first week in stores and sold-thru more than 1.7 million copies, making it the biggest week one launch of a Madden NFL Football game in the franchise’s sixteen-year history.

"Gamers were demanding the best Madden NFL Football ever this year and the response at retail indicates that we delivered the game that everyone wanted,” said EA Vice President of Marketing Todd Sitrin. “Consumers have voted with their dollars, and the vote is in – this is the best version of Madden NFL Football ever.”

"EA ups its game for the best Madden yet," said Matthew Kato, Senior Editor of Game Informer magazine." They delivered substantial innovation to the Madden franchise, making Madden NFL 06 a must-have title of the year."

"You'd think the big news in the locker-room this week was the start of the preseason, but all everyone could talk about was the new Madden game,” said Ahman Green, All Pro Running Back for the Green Bay Packers. “Everyone had to check out their new ratings and the new features in the game."

Based on internal tracking, EA estimates:

• Madden NFL 06 had the biggest week one launch in the history of the franchise, selling more than 1.7 million units.

• NCAA® Football 06 was the #1 selling video game on the PlayStation®2 computer system in July 2005.*

• With double digit sales percentage increases this year, both Madden NFL 06 and NCAA Football 06 are tracking well ahead of last year’s launch sales.

• Within a month of NCAA Football 06 shipping and with Madden NFL 06 on store shelves only a few days, EA SPORTS™ football fans have played more than 1.5 million games through the PlayStation 2 console and on Xbox Live®** on the EA SPORTS Nation.

“The strong starts of NCAA Football 06 and Madden NFL 06 set the pace for a strong EA SPORTS lineup of titles this fall. Up next from EA are FIFA Soccer 06, Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 06, NBA LIVE 06 and the rest of our EA SPORTS lineup,” added Sitrin.

In its 16th year and with more than 45 million copies sold, Madden NFL Football continues to stand out as the most popular football videogame franchise of all time with a combination of innovative new features and the most authentic football gameplay. Developed in Orlando, FL by EA Tiburon Madden NFL 06 is now on the PlayStation 2 console, the Xbox® video game system from Microsoft, Nintendo GameCube™, Nintendo DS™, Game Boy® Advance, and mobile. The PC version will be available August 17 and the PSP™ (PlayStation®Portable) system launches later in September. Madden NFL 06 is rated “E” (Everyone) by the ESRB and has an MSRP of $49.99 for the PlayStation 2 console, Xbox, Nintendo GameCube and PSP, $39.99 for PC, and Nintendo DS, $29.99 for Game Boy Advance and Madden NFL Football for Mobile will range from $3.99 to $9.99, depending on the handset and terms of usage. For more information check out www.madden06.com.

Developed in Orlando, Florida by EA Tiburon, NCAA Football 06 is available for the PlayStation 2 console and Xbox.  The game is rated “E” (Everyone) by the ESRB and has an MSRP of $49.99 for both console versions.  The game’s official website is www.ncaafootball06.com.

*Total US Units sold in July 2005 according to The NPD Group, Inc.

**INTERNET CONNECTION required for online play. Not all features available with all platforms. For information on the online play features for either Madden NFL 06 or NCAA Football 06, go to www.easports.com.

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