Star Wars Battlefront II (Nov 17)

[Commander Clueless]

Things like FUT, GTA Online, Mass Effect 3 etc... all had a much larger impact than Overwatch. For years publishers have wanted to port over every ****ty business practice they can think of in the mobile space into their mainline franchises. They just never had the balls or the chance. By removing the season pass, they see a window of opportunity. Never mind that season passes do not work out mathematically, especially if your goal is to keep as many people hanging around the casino as possible.

I fully expect Titanfall 3 to have burn cards and Shadow of War style titan pilots/chassis. Same thing with Anthem. They want 'uncapped' unlimited monetization, where they can sell you the same thing over and over again. It's why you can pay 2 win in Shadow of War online with lootboxes, and now here with the egregious star cards. It's only going to get worse. They will come up with as many avenues as possible to monetize (want more garage spaces for Titans? pay up!) while diluting the pool with crap like sprays and victory poses. You think the daily reward crate is EA being nice? Hah. It has a much more nefarious purpose than that.

Blizzard is good people, for the most part. They managed to make an excellent, polished $40 game with only cosmetic transactions. The same approach when put into practice by scumbags like EA though.... hoo boy. They don't have any shame.

Now watch me open this loot box to complete your daily mission, comrade.

Good point, especially with GTA Online. AAA companies had been flirting with the infinite revenue stream for some time, and now they took the plunge.

I love Blizzard, honestly, but despite Overwatch being relatively innocent (ish) in comparison, I can't help but feel it's popularity helped the lootbox surge happen.


Also, not to nitpick, but Overwatch was the full $60 on console because....reasons?

 

[Tatar Shots]

While Overwatch's system is far more benign than what we're seeing now, it's popularity was likely the stepping stone that these big companies (including joined-at-the-hip Activision) needed to make this crap mainstream.

Blizzard may have unintentionally triggered the gaming apocalypse from the looks of things.

EA's ultimate team is the driving factor for lootboxes. They made $800 million from Ultimate Team alone last year. Lootboxes work exactly the same as card packs

 

[Commander Clueless]

EA's ultimate team is the driving factor for lootboxes. They made $800 million from Ultimate Team alone last year. Lootboxes work exactly the same as card packs

Holy crap.

Yep, that'll do it alright.

Something tells me lootboxes are here to stay.

 

[KingBran]

Good point, especially with GTA Online. AAA companies had been flirting with the infinite revenue stream for some time, and now they took the plunge.

I love Blizzard, honestly, but despite Overwatch being relatively innocent (ish) in comparison, I can't help but feel it's popularity helped the lootbox surge happen.


Also, not to nitpick, but Overwatch was the full $60 on console because....reasons?

It was the Game of the Year edition with lots of "extras"... AKA the stuff you can get in a loot box lol. Costumes and such. Plus came with like 10 "free" loot boxes.

 

[Papa Francouz]

Stopped reading right there. Considering how wrong you are in your complaining about it. I think you would benefit greatly from actually playing the game.

You vote with your wallet, my friend, and I will never vote for a pay-to-win model being a part of a $60 game. I suggest you do some more research into the anti-consumer policies and shady business practices EA has enacted with this game before responding. The gameplay may be fun, but by playing the game you’re letting EA know that you support these business models.

You’re just being obstinate at this point, though, so I doubt you’ll take the time to look into what’s really happening here in order to understand how you purchasing this game is detrimental to the gaming industry at large.

 

[aleshemsky83]

Holy crap.

Yep, that'll do it alright.

Something tells me lootboxes are here to stay.

If I read right, ubisoft actually makes more from microtransactions than from all digital game sales combined

Now, they likely has to do with the massive cut digital storefronts take out of the sale of games (which they apparently dont get from microtransactions), but still surprising.

 

[Pilky01]

Difference is Ultimate Team was a completely new mode that didn't affect anything else that had always been a part of the games.

The way they're shoe horning micro transactions into Battlefront is like if they locked all the Champions League teams behind a paywall and you can't use them at all unless and until you either spend more money or grind away at the game for 40 or 50 hours.

 

[KingBran]

You vote with your wallet, my friend, and I will never vote for a pay-to-win model being a part of a $60 game. I suggest you do some more research into the anti-consumer policies and shady business practices EA has enacted with this game before responding. The gameplay may be fun, but by playing the game you’re letting EA know that you support these business models.

You’re just being obstinate at this point, though, so I doubt you’ll take the time to look into what’s really happening here in order to understand how you purchasing this game is detrimental to the gaming industry at large.

You just don't get it.

That's like saying I love every app on the apple store because I have an iPhone. I don't use the micro-transaction feature - that means I don't support it. Playing the game does not say I support that business model. Anyone who buys the crates say they support it.

Think about it. If people didn't buy the crates, that system wouldn't exist. I don't buy the crates.

Just like if nobody buys a certain app on the app store it wont last long but the iPhone can still sell a lot. Get it?

 

[XX]

You just don't get it.

That's like saying I love every app on the apple store because I have an iPhone. I don't use the micro-transaction feature - that means I don't support it. Playing the game does not say I support that business model. Anyone who buys the crates say they support it.

Think about it. If people didn't buy the crates, that system wouldn't exist. I don't buy the crates.

You are absolutely endorsing what this game does with microtransactions if you buy it. You are voting with your wallet.

 

[KingBran]

You are absolutely endorsing what this game does with microtransactions if you buy it. You are voting with your wallet.

How? Please explain how not spending money on micro-transactions supports micro-transactions?

Pretend everyone who bought this game did not pay for a single micro-transaction. Do you think the heads of EA are going to say "Wow! The game is selling so well but nobody is participating in the micro-transactions! But they bought the game so they must love them anyways, lets spend more time, resources and money to build this set up for the next game!"

You think that's what would happen?

 

[aleshemsky83]

You vote with your wallet, my friend, and I will never vote for a pay-to-win model being a part of a $60 game. I suggest you do some more research into the anti-consumer policies and shady business practices EA has enacted with this game before responding. The gameplay may be fun, but by playing the game you’re letting EA know that you support these business models.

You’re just being obstinate at this point, though, so I doubt you’ll take the time to look into what’s really happening here in order to understand how you purchasing this game is detrimental to the gaming industry at large.

I agree. There was a great comment on reddit about how when EA would inevitably tweak the insanely high unlock requirements or the insanely low rewards (which they likely anticipated they would have to do so set them ludicrously high and low to start with), die hards would just respond that the criticisms were "outdated" and that they "fixed it". And like clockwork thats exactly what happened.

The lootboxes give competitive multiplayer advantaged. Pay to win? Check. All the heroes are not available from the start, and require insane grinding to unlock, unless you buy enough credits. On disc DLC? Check.

Look, I'm not one of those reactionaries that wants to save my vidyagames, I don't preorder, and I pick pretty carefully what games I buy, when I hear something like this, it instantly kills my interest for a game.

 

[XX]

Difference is Ultimate Team was a completely new mode that didn't affect anything else that had always been a part of the games.

The way they're shoe horning micro transactions into Battlefront is like if they locked all the Champions League teams behind a paywall and you can't use them at all unless and until you either spend more money or grind away at the game for 40 or 50 hours.

Try 4,500 hours or $2,100 in crates to get everything

 

[XX]

How? Please explain how not spending money on micro-transactions supports micro-transactions?

You gave them money for the base game. At best, you are saying to them that you don't mind this sort of shit in games. You can try to weasel your way out of it all you want, but it's the truth. If you buy an iPhone, you aren't endorsing every app that runs on it, but you sure are endorsing the labor practices used to build that phone and all of the policies of Apple.

 

[KingBran]

You gave them money for the base game. At best, you are saying to them that you don't mind this sort of **** in games. You can try to weasel your way out of it all you want, but it's the truth. If you buy an iPhone, you aren't endorsing every app that runs on it, but you sure are endorsing the labor practices used to build that phone and all of the policies of Apple.

You are changing what you are saying here. Buying it means I support EA and the games they make that I buy.

Yes, I support Battlefront II. Its an amazing game. But I don't spend money on their micro-transactions. Not buying them means I don't support them. If nobody buys them, they won't keep making them.

The truth is where you spend your money is what you support. You think if someone buys an iPhone that means they support EVERYTHING that Apple does. Most people who have an iPhone don't have an iMac.... and guess what, iMac's sell a lot less than PC's because people don't pay money for them. But somehow you think buying an iPhone means everything else Apple does should be sold on the same level.

That makes no sense and what you claim is "truth" is actually false.

 

[XX]

The truth is where you spend your money is what you support.

You bought a game where the entire progression system goes through a lootbox system based around microtransactions and pay2win mechanics. You absolutely support it.

 

[KingBran]

You bought a game where the entire progression system goes through a lootbox system based around microtransactions and pay2win mechanics. You absolutely support it.

Ahhhh someone else who hasn't played it but think they know how it works.

Nope. That's not the entire progression system. I still have "less than 8 hours" on my trial (they give you 10) and I have played maybe an hour of multiplayer. Through just playing for an hour I have unlocked Vader, Leia, about 6 crates and 8 star cards.

So many micro-transactions to progress in the game. (that's sarcasm)

That's what people who aren't playing the game but are criticizing it are failing to understand. You don't HAVE to pay anything to be competitive. Like... at all. If someone is impatient sure, they can spend real money. But you even earn "scrap" which you can use to unlock specific cards without "gambling" on crates. Seriously... play the game before you make such claims.

 

[XX]

Ahhhh someone else who hasn't played it but think they know how it works.

Nope. That's not the entire progression system. I still have "less than 8 hours" on my trial (they give you 10) and I have played maybe an hour of multiplayer. Through just playing for an hour I have unlocked Vader, Leia, about 6 crates and 8 star cards. So many micro-transactions to progress in the game.

You bought crates or are straight up lying through your teeth. What you are describing is mathematically impossible otherwise. You would have had to have beaten the campaign before the reward nerf took effect and then also bought the heroes after their price drop for what you are describing to be even remotely plausible. You can't hide from math, as much as you want to. To be honest, this entire thing is just f***ing bizarre to see someone do. I would have way more respect for you if you just owned your position rather than whatever this is.

The entire system goes through the crates, as you said, so you didn't actually address my point at all. The amount of scrap earned from crates is minimal compared to the number needed to unlock weapons, weapon upgrades, upgrading star cards etc... People have done the math on this using the release build. I even posted said numbers in the thread. From here, it looks like you're purposefully ignoring them.

I've played both the trial and the beta. I absolutely know how it works. That's why I'm disgusted and choosing to not support this shit unless they address it in a meaningful way.

 

[Papa Francouz]

I agree. There was a great comment on reddit about how when EA would inevitably tweak the insanely high unlock requirements or the insanely low rewards (which they likely anticipated they would have to do so set them ludicrously high and low to start with), die hards would just respond that the criticisms were "outdated" and that they "fixed it". And like clockwork thats exactly what happened.

The lootboxes give competitive multiplayer advantaged. Pay to win? Check. All the heroes are not available from the start, and require insane grinding to unlock, unless you buy enough credits. On disc DLC? Check.

Look, I'm not one of those reactionaries that wants to save my vidyagames, I don't preorder, and I pick pretty carefully what games I buy, when I hear something like this, it instantly kills my interest for a game.

On-disc DLC used to be the immediate turn-off for me when it came to potentially buying a game. I refuse to spend extra money to access the entirety of a game when it could have been accessed right from the start, especially after I’ve already paid full dollar for the game.

This whole progression-is-tied-to-loot-boxes debacle, though, this is another immediate turn-off for me, and it’s probably even worse for consumers than on-disc DLC, or day 1 DLC, or however else they try to spin it.

I’m pretty similar in my gaming purchases in that I don’t preorder games at all anymore, and I’m very picky about what I actually buy. It seems like with every passing year the landscape gets rougher to navigate, unfortunately. As a big Nintendo fanboy, I’m praying that the Big N stays out of this type of thing until I’m too old to game. It’d break my heart to see them turn to these shady business practices.

 

[Dolemite]

My $.02 about the game so far.

 

[sabresfan129103]

So I have a question that I can't seem to get an answer to. It seems loot boxes are universally hated by all. It seems every single person on the internet would never purchase one. I never would either. That said these companies seem to make a shit done of money off of these things. My question is: Who are the people who spend money on this stuff?

 

[KingBran]

You bought crates or are straight up lying through your teeth.

I am not lying. I got crates for unlocks playing the 3 missions in the campaign and some of the multiplayer battles. Those came with credits and scrap that I have used to unlock other cards and they reduced the price of the hero's so I bought Vader and Leia.

I am not home right now but I will be more than willing to show you that I have "less than 8hrs left" for the trial and take screen caps of what I have unlocked and all the star cards I have.

This is EXACTLY the problem with people who haven't even played the game and are going off of old whiny youtube video's or articles. They changed the prices of the hero's and you get progress unlocks and crates for performing certain actions or advancements.

Don't call me a liar you jerk! I AM ACTUALLY PLAYING THE GAME! You are not. Everything I said about what I have unlocked and how long it took me is 100% true.

 

[KingBran]

So I have a question that I can't seem to get an answer to. It seems loot boxes are universally hated by all. It seems every single person on the internet would never purchase one. I never would either. That said these companies seem to make a **** done of money off of these things. My question is: Who are the people who spend money on this stuff?

Rich kids? People with jobs who have no time to spend hours to play and unlock stuff and don't care to spend a few dollars here and there? I don't know but that's my guess.

 

[XX]

So I have a question that I can't seem to get an answer to. It seems loot boxes are universally hated by all. It seems every single person on the internet would never purchase one. I never would either. That said these companies seem to make a **** done of money off of these things. My question is: Who are the people who spend money on this stuff?

Whales with disposable income and kids with access to their parents credit cards. One person reportedly spent $15,000 on Mass Effect boxes. It's meant to appeal to you in the same way that gambling does. Previously, franchises like Battlefield and Battlefront have avoided the worst aspects of lootboxes but that has all changed.

I am not lying. I got crates for unlocks playing the 3 missions in the campaign and some of the multiplayer battles. Those came with credits and scrap that I have used to unlock other cards and they reduced the price of the hero's so I bought Vader and Leia.

I am not home right now but I will be more than willing to show you that I have "less than 8hrs left" for the trial and take screen caps of what I have unlocked and all the star cards I have.

This is EXACTLY the problem with people who haven't even played the game and are going off of old whiny youtube video's or articles. They changed the prices of the hero's and you get progress unlocks and crates for performing certain actions or advancements.

Don't call me a liar you jerk! I AM ACTUALLY PLAYING THE GAME! You are not.

You are straight up lying because Vader and Leia are 25,000 credits total, and that was after a 75% price cut. There is no way to earn that amount in the time you are describing. It is impossible. You either bought crates or you are a full blown liar.

 

[aleshemsky83]

So I have a question that I can't seem to get an answer to. It seems loot boxes are universally hated by all. It seems every single person on the internet would never purchase one. I never would either. That said these companies seem to make a **** done of money off of these things. My question is: Who are the people who spend money on this stuff?

Its my understanding that the majority of people don't spend much money on it, but like f2p, there are a select few that just blow stacks on them, aka whales.

But thats what I hear. Now, there are certain game modes where you just have to spend cash period or its not playable. NBA2k mycareer mode is a character that you take online, and if you don't spend money you're going to spend dozens of hours just to get your character past 70 overall, so it varies.

 

[KingBran]

You are straight up lying because Vader and Leia are 25,000 credits total, and that was after a 75% price cut. There is no way to earn that amount in the time you are describing. It is impossible. You either bought crates or you are a full blown liar.

Yup. Took me about an hour and 15 mins to get 25,000 credits.

It's not impossible at all. YOU HAVENT PLAYED THE GAME. I have and I really could care less if you believe me. You are just like the others who want to hate something so bad that you won't listen to someone who has actually played the game. You just have an agenda.

It is absolutely possible to earn that amount of credits in that amount of time with earning the in game-game rewards.

Again, I could care less if you believe me. You can just keep blindly hating because apparently that's what you want to do. I will continue to have fun with Battlefront II and playing the best looking Star Wars game to date. It's really fun!