Paid Loot Boxes May Not Come Back To 'Star Wars Battlefront 2,' Says EA Executive

At a time when the public has arguably become more receptive to the "Star Wars" brand than ever before, one of the franchise's most notable products appears to still generate buzz for the wrong reasons.

"Star Wars Battlefront II" has been the subject of controversy since before it was officially released because of a microtransaction-based “loot box” system that players, critics and even politicians felt was exploitative. Video game publisher Electronic Arts hastily removed the system from the game entirely a few hours before it launched, but the situation continues to draw headlines.

Rolling Stone reported Wednesday that EA chief financial officer Blake Jorgensen told investors that there's a slight possibility that microtransactions never come back to Star Wars Battlefront II.

Jorgensen’s comments came at the Nasdaq Investor Conference on Tuesday.

“We turned the [microtransactions] off as an opportunity to work on the progression system inside the game. We're continuing to do that. I think there's an update this week and again next week,” Jorgensen said. "Over time we'll address how we will want to bring the [microtransactions] either into the game or not and what form we will decide to bring it into."

When EA pulled the plug on Battlefront II’s paid loot box system, the official company line was that they would later come back into the game and after the progression system had been fixed. Prior to consumer criticism of EA, Battlefront II asked users to either play the game for unreasonable amounts of time or pay to unlock iconic characters like Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader.

Jorgensen parroted the promise that the progression system will fundamentally change somehow, but that has not happened yet.

However, regular updates might be on the way. The game’s official subreddit, which was once filled with criticism towards EA, has dissipated in recent weeks.

One factor that could weigh on EA’s decision to bring back microtransactions is the ongoing legal efforts by various government authorities to crack down on virtual gambling.

Rep. Chris Lee of Hawaii wants to ban the sales of games with loot boxes to anyone under 21, claiming such systems are designed to prey on the public in the same way as slot machines. The Belgium government has also taken a stand against loot boxes following the Battlefront II controversy.