'Star Wars Battlefront 2' Controversy: Fans React To EA Disabling Microtransactions

Last night, shortly before Star Wars Battlefront II officially launched for the world to enjoy (or not), publisher Electronic Arts shockingly disabled the microtransactions that had caused so much controversy in the weeks before the game even came out. EA flatly admitted player progression should be tied to player actions exclusively, not the player’s willingness or ability to spend money.

In a perfect world, players would go on to enjoy the game now that it is out for everyone and seemingly fixed. In the world we actually inhabit, things are a bit different. This change did not include a large-scale overhaul of the rate at which players earn unlockable content, it just removed the ability to jump ahead by spending money. It only did so temporarily, as EA promised microtransactions would return in the future after the game had been fixed.

Some players in the Star Wars Battlefront fan community on Twitter and Reddit are celebrating what they see as a victory against the greed of a large corporation. Others are picking it apart and coming to the conclusion that EA is only trying to avoid bad PR and people should still boycott the game.

“We shouldn't be celebrating and laying down the pitchforks. Not yet,” user ActualSlypear said. “You do know this is all to secure final sales before the release of the game, right?”

Some are going as far as saying EA only did this to get more people to buy the game so they can be exploited later.

“Knowing them, they're trying to lower our guard so that we buy the game, and once we do they will turn around and turn on micro transactions again,” user TantrikOne said. “Stay vigilant brothers and sisters!”

Meanwhile, on Twitter, fans are taking a similar tone to their colleagues on Reddit. By and large, they do not see this temporary solution as a comprehensive enough fix to the game’s progression system.

That said, plenty of people are still tweeting about buying the game on launch day and having fun with it. People want Star Wars, controversy or not.

It should be noted that anything bought with real money before the feature was removed can still be used by those customers, so the advantages have not been completely removed. In Heather Alexandra’s updated review for Kotaku, she called the change “a band-aid that hardly covers the game’s flawed progression system.” Until more changes come to the game, there will likely be controversy surrounding Star Wars Battlefront II for the foreseeable future.