One of the big talking points last year was the Star Wars Battlefront 2 loot box and progression system problems. It caused quite a stir as gamers rallied against it and sales of the game underperformed. EA swiftly pulled the system from the game and it even prompted government bodies to start assessing whether loot boxes can be considered gambling.
For the past few months EA has been working on revamping the systems and today they have revealed the changes which will roll out on 21 March.
With this update, progression is now linear. 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.
You’ll keep everything you’ve already earned and unlocked. You will keep all of the Star Cards, heroes, weapons, or anything else you have already earned. What you have earned will still be available to use with this update regardless of how much or little progress you have already made.
Crates no longer include Star Cards and cannot be purchased. Crates are earned by logging in daily, completing Milestones, and through timed challenges. Inside of these crates, you’ll find Credits or cosmetic items, such as emotes or victory poses, but nothing that impacts gameplay.
Starting in April, you’ll be able to get appearances directly through in-game Credits or Crystals. The first new appearances are coming soon, meaning you’ll be able to grab new looks for your heroes and troopers directly by using either Credits (earned in-game) or Crystals (available to purchase in-game and through first-party stores). If you’ve ever dreamed of being a part of the Resistance as a Rodian, your chance is right around the corner.
EA and DICE state that as well as the changes above, more content and game modes will be continually added to Star Wars Battlefront 2 in the months ahead.
Whether the above changes are too little too late remains to be seen but EA will be hoping these changes will entice gamers back to the franchise. The new model is definitely more in-line with what gamers want to see, especially when it comes to the premium Crystals which costs real cash. At least these are tied to cosmetics and players will at least know what they are getting this time. These changes are a huge improvement and EA should have used this model for Star Wars Battlefront 2 from the beginning. Hopefully this will have been a lesson learned by EA and other publishers.
