If you’ve been keeping tabs on the lead in to Star Wars Battlefront 2’s official release then you know that it’s been subject to unadulterated blow back from the internet.
After many learned of Battlefront 2’s inane progression system and pay to win mechanics, players took to reddit and other communities voicing passionate and often times verbose comments as to how and why the current systems in place need to change.
Said passion is almost palpable as of now with an official EA comment on the official subreddit for the game receiving the award for the most downvoted comment in reddit history.
Adding fuel to mockery infused fire, Blizzard released a series of cheeky tweets directed at games that implement pay to win systems earlier today. This was followed by a full on advertisement for Starcraft 2 becoming free to play which also made light of the current pay to win debacle.
All Ominous Blizzard
Here are some of the tweets that Blizzard released earlier today:
Number of pay-to-win mechanics in StarCraft II: 0
Free to Play – Now Live! pic.twitter.com/a02OYUCYZU
— StarCraft (@StarCraft) November 14, 2017
And the StarCraft 2 ad announcing its free to play status while retaining a play to win status:
We’re all for this sort of playful jab by Blizzard because the current systems in place with Battlefront 2 are downright disrespectful to the player.
Yes, Blizzard is a bit of a hypocrite because Overwatch does employ what can only be called a playful form of gambling in the way of cosmetic loot boxes.
But when loot boxes are taken to the point of being game changing and a system is put in place to create a progression environment that is unfriendly to players who play without spending additional money, a line has been crossed.
Gaming corporations are attempting to squeeze players for all they are worth, edging closer and closer towards a breaking point.
One could argue that this point has already been reached but the most egregious is what companies like EA are trying to accomplish by literally stunting the player’s experience in order to accomplish a greater amount of revenue.
Much like the initial Xbox One unveiling, this situation can absolutely be changed by players through channeling dissenting opinions online. And we do hope that EA listens not only in regards to Battlefront 2 but also upcoming titles such as Anthem and the next Battlefield entry.
Lover of games, tech, nature, and strange electronic music. Shaped by Sega, PlayStation, Nintendo, and Xbox – platform agnostic ever since. Currently overwhelmed by choice on my Xbox Series X thanks to Game Pass.