The new EA app has finally been released for everyone, having spent just over two years in beta testing. EA says the app "will soon replace Origin" as the place to play EA games on PC, and that it's the company's "lightest and fastest" PC software client to date.
Originally, EA released its EA Play client shortly after it merged EA Access and Origin Access into a single subscription service back in 2020. The app wasn't given a full release date, but now, EA has officially announced that its EA Play app is out of beta and ready to download.
If you download the EA Play app, you'll probably notice that it has some pretty close similarities to the Xbox Game Pass app. Given that EA Play is included as part of an Xbox Game Pass subscription, that doesn't feel like an accident. Here's a shot of the Xbox Game Pass app as it currently stands.
By way of comparison, here's what you see when you download the new EA app.
Of course, certain design principles dictate that it's good to put some features front and center, but still, it's hard not to note a more than a passing resemblance between the two apps. At any rate, EA says the new design for its app makes it easier to find the games you're looking for, as well as to enable automatic downloads and background updates to keep things running smoothly.
You can also import friends lists from services like PlayStation, Steam, and (you guessed it) Xbox, so you can fill out your friends list more easily. Maybe it's time I upgraded my friend's list from the 2 I have right now. Once you've got a bunch of friends on the app, you'll be able to see what they're playing, so you can judge them for spending so much time in Madden.
If you're still on Origin, EA says you should receive an invite to jump ship and download the new app soon, although you can, of course, just download it yourself right now if you like. Playing on Mac? You're still stuck with Origin, it seems, and EA isn't providing a timeline for when the EA app will be compatible with macOS. Sorry about that.
