I think any expansion is a good idea for CA so long as they maintain the integrity of their organization. For example, Coca-Cola is constantly trying to expand its empire with new products (C2, vanilla coke, etc.), though they continue to survive and prosper because of the appeal of their original product.

This is a simple business decision. The question is whether or not CA will abandon its foundation for new ventures. A hugely successfull franchise off-shoot may become a franchise of its own. If CA then embraces this new direction and turns away from its original product line, then we may bitch.

As a young gamer I has enormous respect for EA games until they overdiversified and sacrificed their quality for quantity (ever heard of Sword of Sodan?).

Diversification and expansion should be encouraged and welcomed by all members of the community. With a larger reserve of capital, more brand name recognition, and a wider audience, CA can pour money into its founding product line and experiment with new products that may delight us even more.

On a similar note, if CA maintains the integrity of its historical accuracy in Spartan total Warrior, this may actual be a pretty cool game.

Congratulations CA. I wish you the best on this venture and hope it brings you great success.

Regards.