EA Sports cancels NBA Live 20

There will be one less NBA video game this year.

EA Sports announced Tuesday it has canceled NBA Live 20 to focus on revamping the series. It's the fourth time the video game developer has put the NBA Live series on hiatus in the past 10 years.

"We're not launching a new NBA Live HD product this season," EA chief executive Andrew Wilson told investors in a statement, according to Owen S. Good of Polygon. "Instead, we're expanding our vision, leaning hard into the new leading-edge platforms, and taking the time to ensure we deliver against the opportunity for our players."

NBA Live 19, which featured Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid on its cover, included the introduction of a female create-a-player option. It also allowed male and female players to compete together on the same team - a first for sports video games.

Wilson said EA Sports has the support of the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association as it looks to distinguish its series from the NBA 2K franchise.

"We're excited by what we've built so far, and yet we know the world is changing," Wilson said. "New platforms are coming that will bring social connection, accessibility, and player creativity to the fore. In a future of new possibilities, players shouldn't be content with a game built for today's realities and based on what we know to be possible; we feel we can go so much further with the new design."