Don’t call it a victory – nobody wins forever in the Star Wars universe – but there’s still reason to cheer in Star Wars Battlefront II today. EA has announced that it’s overhauling the entire progression system for the game. Readers will recall that outrage over the game’s lockbox gambling was the final chunk of kindling in the monetization dumpster fire that finally blazed over into mainstream media coverage at the end of 2017. (The “a sense of pride and accomplishment” line was being quoted in government hearings last month.)
“With this update, progression is now linear,” EA declares. “Star Cards, or any other item impacting gameplay, will only be earned through gameplay and will not be available for purchase. Instead, you’ll earn experience points for the classes, hero characters, and ships that you choose to play in multiplayer. If you earn enough experience points to gain a level for that unit, you’ll receive one Skill Point that can be used to unlock or upgrade the eligible Star Card you’d like to equip.”
Everything you’ve already unlocked, you keep. You can’t buy lockboxes anymore; crates now come only from logging in and actually playing the game, and the crates won’t drop Star Cards. In effect, all purchases are now direct purchases with no gambling or RNG component. The update is coming on March 21st, though in April, players will be able to buy cosmetics using in-game currencies and real cash.
“In addition to continued balance patches, we will also add a number of modes to Star Wars Battlefront II in the coming months, offering several standout, brand-new ways to play. Some of these, like the recently released limited-time Jetpack Cargo, are radically different than anything you’ve experienced in the game before, and we’re excited to surprise you with what we have planned.”
A total re-design of #StarWarsBattlefrontII's progression system is coming next week. Find out what the future holds: https://t.co/AkHK0mBQ9w pic.twitter.com/0uzEK6t85R
— EA Star Wars (@EAStarWars) March 16, 2018
