On the night before the full launch of Star Wars Battlefront II, EA made the decision to remove all microtransactions from the game. This was following a massive outcry regarding randomized loot boxes and pay-to-win mechanics that rewards those who paid real world money. The controversy went far beyond the scope of gamers. It garnered the attention of non-gaming media outlets, government officials, and even had a massive negative impact on EA’s stocks.
The statement made by developer DICE at the time of the removal indicated that microtransactions would return in some form eventually, after they had the opportunity to make changes to the game. “The ability to purchase crystals in-game will become available at a later date, only after we?ve made changes to the game.” This line led many to believe that EA was still looking to monetize the release, and judging by persistent support and plans for all future additional content to be free, it’s hardly surprising to think that they would want to some kind of revenue stream in the game. At the 37th Nasdaq Investor Conference, EA CFO Blake Jorgensen responded to inquiries about how the company was handling the backlash regarding microtransactions in Battlefront II.
Clearly we are very focused on listening to the consumer and understanding what the consumer wants and that’s evolving constantly. But we’re working on improving the progression system. We turned the microtransactions off as an opportu...