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If you are still running the Origin client from EA, I just have to ask: What's it like living in the past, old man?! You need to get with the times and download the new EA app. This new launcher with the beyond generic name has been in development for well over two years at this point. It was announced as an update and rebranding for the Origin client on PC and, well, it's here. Yay?
EA says that the EA app (no actual capitalization on "app" in the official name) is their "fastest and lightest PC client to date." The EA app has a "streamlined design" that will let players "easily find the games and content" they are looking for. The EA app features automatic game downloads and background updates, as one would probably expect at a bare minimum for PC game clients these days.
The EA app will also allow for easy connection to other platforms like Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox. You can integrate friend lists if you choose to go this route.
If you have Origin installed right now, you can upgrade to the EA app rather easily. You just need to download the new EA app, run the installer, and it should remove Origin during the installation process. All of your games and content should just carry over, including stuff you currently have installed through Origin.
What isn't known right now is whether or not this EA app will also replace the current "Thin" version of Origin that is installed with EA games on Steam. We learned last week that the upcoming Dead Space remake will not require the Origin client. According to a report by PC Gamer, this isn't a clever way of saying that it will require the EA app either. It just flat out won't have any additional launcher besides Steam.
For older EA titles on Steam, it may still require Origin, or you can maybe get away with using the EA app. I haven't downloaded the new app myself yet to try it out, so maybe someone who has can shed some light in the comments about whether or not the EA app replaces the Thin Origin version installed with EA games on Steam.
Also EA app?... I thought the plan was to rebrand it as EA Play Store or something. EA app? What kind of corporate meeting made them reject EA Play? I mean, that's generic enough, and confusing with their subscription live service, but it's miles better than EA app...