It's a stark contrast causing a stir: While Electronic Arts celebrates its balance sheet success with the sales of Battlefield 6, CEO Andrew Wilson receives a record bonus for it – and precisely in the studios that built the game, employees were previously let go. According to a recent SEC filing from EA, Wilson received total compensation of $38.7 million for fiscal year 2026, an increase of approximately 27 percent compared to the previous year.
How the Record Bonus is Composed
The figures in detail: Wilson's base salary is $1.3 million, supplemented by stock packages worth $28.48 million, a cash bonus of $6.5 million, and $2.37 million in other benefits – including personal security and the use of a private jet. Wilson is not the only EA executive to profit handsomely: The CFO, CPO, CLO, and President Laura Miele also received significantly higher bonuses than in the previous year, according to multiple reports. In total, media reports suggest that bonus payments to the leadership team amounted to over $60 million. Among the reasons cited by EA is the success of Battlefield 6, which the company states was the best-selling full-price game of 2025 in the USA.
Layoffs at the Very Studios That Built Battlefield 6
What fuels the controversy: In the wake of this compensation round, layoffs occurred at the studios involved in Battlefield 6 – including Criterion, DICE, Ripple Effect, and Motive. EA has not publicly disclosed exact figures for the affected positions, but several outlets such as Kotaku, PC Gamer, and Massively Overpowered consistently report cutbacks in the very teams that were significantly involved in the game's success.
Not an Isolated Case: Why This Has Caused Discontent at EA Before
Pay disparity and layoffs in the same breath are not a new phenomenon among large publishers, but they appear particularly pronounced at EA: Just recently, days-long server issues with Battlefield 6 caused frustration in the community, while EA remained largely silent on the causes. At the same time, according to the latest Discord Q&A for Season 5, the studio is already preparing new content – resources that, in the view of some critics, should actually be flowing into more stable servers and more staff. From our perspective, this case exemplifies a fundamental problem in the AAA industry: The economic success of a game rarely reaches the developers who actually built it – but primarily the management.
Source: Massively Overpowered, PC Gamer
What are your thoughts on EA's pay disparity? Discuss with us in the comments whether bonus payments like these influence your purchasing decisions.
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