EA has been running its own digital games service under the name Origin since 2011, but not for much longer. Origin is being retired as a brand and replaced with a new app under a new (not very exciting) name.
As GamesBeat reports, EA is undertaking a rebranding exercise at the moment, which sees the focus put squarely on its own name. We've already seen the subscription service EA Access rebranded as EA Play and EA Play Pro, but now it's time for Origin to disappear. The new name EA decided to go with? EA Desktop.
According to EA senior vice president Michael Blank, "The EA Desktop app is being designed to deliver a frictionless and socially connected experience that is faster for players to get into their games." So it's not just a new name, it's a whole new app that's meant to get you gaming more quickly. That's going to land well with Origin users who have been accustomed to a slow experience.
The increase in speed is set to come not just from the EA Desktop app being faster, but a redesign that sees fewer clicks required to launch a game. EA is also making it easy to track time for a whole family using Playtime Controls, and of course, to link up your EA Play membership to access those games on your PC.
Existing Origin users don't need to worry. EA is ensuring all of your Origin details get transferred over to EA Desktop when it rolls out. For now, the software is in beta which anyone can sign up to access. Confusingly, the beta is being offered under the Origin brand still, but it should switch over in the near future.
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