Publisher Electronic Arts’ infamous defense of Star Wars Battlefront II‘s microtransactions on Reddit has earned a spot in the Guinness Book of World records.
The creator of “surprise mechanics” (sorry, we can’t let go of this one) truly surprised players when Battlefront II launched with some heroes locked behind a painful progression system, prompting backlash. An EA representative then attempted to assuage players’s concerns by releasing the following statement on Reddit:
The intent is to provide players with a sense of pride and accomplishment for unlocking different heroes. As for cost, we selected initial values based upon data from the Open Beta and other adjustments made to milestone rewards before launch. Among other things, we’re looking at average per-player credit earn rates on a daily basis, and we’ll be making constant adjustments to ensure that players have challenges that are compelling, rewarding, and of course attainable via gameplay.
We appreciate the candid feedback, and the passion the community has put forth around the current topics here on Reddit, our forums and across numerous social media outlets. Our team will continue to make changes and monitor community feedback and update everyone as soon and as often as we can.
The post was downvoted into oblivion, and what followed was months of mea culpas. Developer DICE has since scrambled to win players back, and recently opened up about restoring fans’ trust in the studio.
“Not a week goes by without us thinking, ‘Imagine if we hadn’t launched with loot boxes the way we did,’” Design Director, Dennis Brännvall told Games Industry.
Unfortunately for DICE, although Battlefront II has come a long way since then, the aforementioned “accomplishment” is going to stick with it forever.
