Electronic Arts’ move into private ownership, backed by private-equity firms and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, has left the publisher carrying about $20bn in leveraged-buyout debt. Experts told Eurogamer that the resulting pressure to make roughly $1.8bn in annual interest payments could make debt repayment the company’s overriding priority, potentially affecting investment in new games, research and development, and staff.

A finance professor said leveraged buyouts let purchasers acquire major companies without providing all the capital themselves, while the acquired company bears the repayment burden. He said EA may seek to streamline operations by concentrating on its most profitable products, cutting unprofitable areas and reducing expenditure; this could include layoffs, although EA had not announced any and had not responded to Eurogamer’s request for comment.