Electronic Arts: Difference between revisions

Multiple games published by EA in recent years have garnered significant controversy over what is essentially legal gambling. This is most commonly seen in EA sports titles and their "''Ultimate Team''" modes, which has players using in-game currency that can be purchased with real-world money to buy card packs, in order to potentially get high-value player cards. This monetization method, considered by many to be "predatory", most notably introduced controversy within the modern release of ''Star Wars Battlefront 2'', wherein the most powerful character in-game, Darth Vader, could only be obtained through this lootbox system.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dingman |first=Hayden |date=10 Oct 2017 |title=How loot boxes are turning full-priced PC games into pay-to-win games of chance |url=https://www.pcworld.com/article/407482/loot-boxes-ruining-gaming.html |url-status=live |access-date=31 Mar 2025 |website=PCWorld |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260122024918/https://www.pcworld.com/article/407482/loot-boxes-ruining-gaming.html |archive-date=22 Jan 2026}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Purchese |first=Robert |date=10 Oct 2017 |title=Star Wars Battlefront 2 has a loot crate problem |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/star-wars-battlefront-2-has-a-loot-crate-problem |url-status=live |access-date=31 Mar 2025 |website=Robert Purchese |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251113073209/https://www.eurogamer.net/star-wars-battlefront-2-has-a-loot-crate-problem |archive-date=13 Nov 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Fahey |first=Rob |date=13 Oct 2017 |title=Thinking outside the loot box |url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/thinking-outside-the-loot-box |url-status=live |access-date=31 Mar 2025 |website=Games Industry |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260206121255/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/thinking-outside-the-loot-box |archive-date=6 Feb 2026}}</ref> It was not until several weeks after the backlash that EA would tone down these lootboxes by changing loot pools.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Machkovech |first=Sam |date=1 Nov 2017 |title=Star Wars: Battlefront II changes its loot box plans… but is it enough? |url=https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2017/10/star-wars-battlefront-ii-changes-its-loot-box-plans-but-is-it-enough/ |url-status=live |access-date=31 Mar 2025 |website=ArsTechnica |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251113052311/https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2017/10/star-wars-battlefront-ii-changes-its-loot-box-plans-but-is-it-enough/ |archive-date=13 Nov 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=O'Connor |first=James |date=13 Oct 2017 |title=After beta controversy, DICE has better clarified the 'loot crate' and progression systems in Star Wars Battlefront 2 |url=https://www.vg247.com/after-beta-controversy-dice-has-better-clarified-the-loot-crate-system-in-the-final-version-of-star-wars-battlefront-2 |url-status=live |access-date=31 Mar 2025 |website=VG247 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250905064209/https://www.vg247.com/after-beta-controversy-dice-has-better-clarified-the-loot-crate-system-in-the-final-version-of-star-wars-battlefront-2 |archive-date=5 Sep 2025}}</ref> Lootboxes remained within the title until ''[[Disney]]'' directly instructed EA to stop because of gambling concerns.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Needleman |first=Sarah E. |last2=Fritz |first2=Ben |date=17 Nov 2017 |title=Electronic Arts Pulls Microtransactions From ‘Star Wars Battlefront II’ After Fan Backlash |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/electronic-arts-pulls-microtransactions-from-star-wars-battlefront-ii-after-fan-backlash-1510936871 |url-status=live |access-date=31 Mar 2025 |website=The Wall Street Journal |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251228182703/https://www.wsj.com/articles/electronic-arts-pulls-microtransactions-from-star-wars-battlefront-ii-after-fan-backlash-1510936871 |archive-date=28 Dec 2025}}</ref> <!--Honestly deserving of an article considering the sheer insanity of EA here--><!--Concept section: