Earlier this week, the internet became abuzz with news of Ghost Recon: Breakpoint’s featuring overly egregious microtransactions. At the title’s early access launch, an innumerable amount of time-saver items were available to purchase with real money. This included nearly every in-game item, such as skill points, XP boosters, weapon upgrades, cosmetics, and many more. According to a recent post on the Ubisoft Forums, these micotransactions launched prematurely. In fact, certain in-game purchases weren’t intended for Breakpoint’s release at all, having been designed for players who arrive post-launch and want to quickly catch up. To alleviate the error, the publisher has removed a host of items from the in-game store.
In the Ubisoft Forums post, the company addressed the microtransactions issue, stating that the error has since been resolved. A section of the post, listed under “Time Savers,” features below:
We are aware that during the Early Access of Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint on October 1st, some Time-Savers items (Skill Point bundles, XP Boosters, parts bundles for advanced weapon upgrades) were available for purchase for a few hours in our Store but this was not our intention and was an error on our behalf.
These items were designed as an optional way for players arriving later to the game (Post-Launch) to catch up with those who have been playing for longer and enjoy our co-op and challenging end-game experiences. These Time-Savers have since been removed from our Store for now.
Time-Savers were not designed to grant any advantage over players choosing not to use them. Additionally, Ghost War PVP has been carefully balanced to ensure that no matter your experience as a player, no one has a critical advantage based on their progression.
What didn’t receive elaboration is when these microtransactions will return, and whether or not they will have been adjusted when the time comes. One thing Ubisoft did want to clarify is that Breakpoint does not warrant classification as pay-to-win.
According to the forum post, the development team at Ubisoft Paris had two key philosophies in mind during development. For one, Breakpoint would avoid “pay-to-win elements.” Two, players who steer clear of in-game purchases would “not see their experience affected.” By just playing the game, everyone should be able to feel as though they are unlocking skill points and a wide variety of loot in as satisfactory a manner as possible. Has this much been accomplished? We’ll know for sure in the weeks ahead.
Ghost Recon: Breakpoint is out today for the PlayStation 4, PC, and Xbox One. Fans can pick up a Breakpoint tome, doubling as an art book and reference book, on October 31st. Preorders for the Future Press-published work are currently live online.
[Source: Ubisoft Forums]
