EA App vs. Origin - Who did it better?
So, after the Origin workaround got removed, I have not had the desire to play much of EA titles. Why? Because the EA app launcher is a mess that has never worked right for me.
Game overlay:
Origin - Worked fine in every game that supported an overlay. Chats, friends list, game invites, options to join games. All was there. Even a rudimentary web browser.
EA app - Serves to only display friends list and chats. Does not allow for joining games, feels clunky to use. And worst of all, it has never worked properly for me in older games, like Mass Effect 3 and Dragon Age Inquisition, so I can never host lobbies that my overseas friends can join anymore, since those games require a working overlay to manage the in-game invite function.
Friends list:
Origin - Had support for up to 400 friends, if I recall correctly. A healthy number. I had around 200 friends on Origin. - Very similar to how Steam and other launchers manages the friends list.
Supported game invites and joining games by right-clicking on the friend you wanted to join/invite, or joining games directly with the nice blue button.
EA app - Has a hard-cap of 99 friends! - This is some real BS, which means a lot of re-adding if old friends wants to catch up.
No support for joining/inviting friends' games. - This functionality is present in every other game launcher available. Steam, Epic, Ubisoft and so on.. All of them supports game invites and joining through the friends list. Hell, even the CONSOLES has a join/invite function through the friends list.
Come on EA, we live in 2025. This functionality should be a given.
UI
Origin - This was probably the weakest point of the old Origin launcher, where the UI was pretty much the same throughout its lifespan from 2011 and all the way up to the end. But it was functional enough, and easy to use and understand.
It did not have a nice dark mode though, as it was mostly white, and the performance was all over the place, with frequent hangs.
But it had a much more comprehensive settings menu.
EA app - Looks nice and modern, and performs rather well.
It feels more complicated to use compared to Origin, and the limited launcher settings tab is hidden behind your name.
Library
Origin - Showed every game you owned, including those that were part of the EA Play program, if you had previously been a subscriber. This made it easier to re-subscribe since all the games were in your library to download and play for a later date.
Origin also supported trial version of games.
EA app - Does not show all the games all the time, no trial versions, and any EA Play game you had in Origin is not present.
Overall Experience
Origin - Functioned as any other game launcher on PC. Intuitive to use, and had every function you needed from a game launcher. Granted, it was prone to hanging and crashing, but when it worked, it worked really well, and it felt like an EA version of Steam, in every good way possible.
9/10 - It had its issues, but it was a serviceable game launcher.
EA app - Has not been a great experience in the slightest. The launcher is too limited, and lacks any form of basic functionality you would expect from a game launcher on PC. It feels more like a storefront page with a game library and a tiny friends list tacked on.
3/10 - While it looks and performs well, it does not serve its functionality as a game launcher should. My personal recommendation is for EA to implement a 400 friends cap and the functionality to invite/join games through the friends list, as ANY NORMAL GAME LAUNCHER HAS. That would be a start at least.
Any thoughts from you guys?
