Well, SWBFII is NOT a free to play game. It's a full price ($60 - $80, depending on where you are) AAA title that wanted you to spend more money. The catch: you spent real money on crystals that were used to buy loot crates. Said crates had a chance of containing credits used for unlocks. In most cases, you'd probably end up with a bunch of duplicate items you could convert into a handful of credits.
In addition to that, players did some number crunching and found more bullshit: it'd take up to 40 hours of playtime to earn enough credits to unlock just one character. When the backlash began, EA tried to do some damage control:
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| Over 600 000 downvotes! Congrats on setting another record with your greed, EA! Reddit post |
Of course, it didn't work. So, the developers lowered the prices of characters by 75%, and changed how loot boxes worked. They even disabled in-game purchases for now, but they'll be back another day.
Despite EA Games being an impressively bad company, they're not the only ones doing this shit. Blizzard, Capcom, NIS, Infinity Ward, and other companies have released "complete" games at $40 - $80, then tacked on another $20 - $200 worth of "additional content." Sometimes, that content is locked on the software you bought.
Are you tired of this bullshit? Well, then it's time to do something about it.
When awful shit is done, complain appropriately
Don't like how a company's handling a game? Then let them know about it. But, do it properly. Don't lie or start rumors. Don't resort to personal attacks, death threats, hacking, doxxing, or theft. You're trying to call the company out on their garbage, not make yourself look like an asshole.
Got that? Alright. Here's what you can do:
- Avoid official forums. They're home to shills and apologists who will accuse you of being an entitled, overly-critical baby. They'll justify any cash grab, lie, or excuse the company throws at them. Also, the people in charge of the forums aren't always involved in a game's development. At best, they might offer to pass your complaint to the appropriate department; at worst, they'll censor your posts or ban you for "trolling."
- Go for social media and blogs. Companies have to pay more attention to these things, since they can't just censor and ban you like they can on their own forums. Social media posts and blog articles can spread very quickly, too. If the information spreads far enough, a company will have to do some explaining or backtracking if they want to keep making money.
- Even if you don't plan to buy a company's games, spread the word if they're being fuckheads. If they're going to put this shit in their games to make money, the companies you buy from will try it, too!
This does work. After the SWBFII fiasco, the developers had to make changes to the game to avoid losing too many sales. On top of that, Belgium and Hawaii have decided loot crate systems are predatory and a form of gambling. Not sure how they'll rule on these in free to play games, or crates you're awarded through gameplay, but they took notice!
Nice, huh? Now, on to the next step...
Stop supporting exploitative content
I'm super guilty of dropping money on "cheap" DLC in the past. I'd buy a game, and then see all those extra goodies. And I'd buy the ones I liked because it'd only be $0.25 - $5 for things! Not much, right? I mean, it beats having to buy an expansion pack for $30, doesn't it?
No, it really doesn't. Expansion packs take a while to develop, add a ton of new things to a game, and may even change how it functions. When you've spent $60 or more on DLC in the form of character recolors, shiny guns and hats, or mystery boxes that shit out an item you already have 10 of, a $30 expansion pack isn't so bad!
If that doesn't irritate you, here's something that should: the season pass. This is the developer's way of saying "we don't have DLC yet, but you can pre-order it and have it as soon as we release some!"
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| If you pay $100 - $110 now, you'll get all the DLC later, even the stuff you don't want! What a deal! CoD: WWII Steam page (Autumn Sale, 2017) |
And then you get the companies that combine expansion packs and DLC. Take a look at Sims 3. If you want to own EVERYTHING the game has to offer, you will need over $74 000! Good luck!
"But, Azul! You don't have to buy that stuff if you don't want to!" I guess. But, some multiplayer games split people up based on DLC owned, meaning I won't be able to play with my friends who do have the DLC. That's bullshit. And some DLC characters and items break the base game or are almost required to get through new stages and game modes. That's also bullshit.
"But, the devs need to make money somehow!" Really? Let's say their game cost $140 million to make. That's everything that went into developing, promoting, licensing, and publishing the game. Said game costs $60, is super hype and sells 4 million copies in a few days. So, $240 million in sales. They made money without DLC.
Free to play games are a little different, as the devs DO need to make money somehow. I'm fine with sales of emotes, cosmetic changes, and merchandise. You know what I'm not fine with? The "pay now to keep playing" and "pay to win" mechanics.
"Well, it's no different from those old arcade machines." It is, actually. If you were good, you could get through a full arcade game on a single credit. The machines also gave you a unique experience that you couldn't get at home at the time (badass guns, force feedback steering wheels), and didn't spam you with ads or money begging. Not a single arcade machine locked stages with "pay $2 or wait 24 hours" horsecrap, either.
So, how do you stop supporting this shit? Well, don't buy it. Don't drop money on mystery boxes/loot crates, especially if you can get them for free. When a "pay now or wait" or "pay to win" wall comes up, close the game, then delete it.
With DLC, avoid season passses. You have no guarantee that the DLC will be worth the price. If there's some DLC you like, wait for sales and packs/bundles. Individual items tend to be hyped up when they're released so you'll buy them at full price.
If you still feel like you've been screwed too many times, then it's time for drastic measures...
Stop buying from shitty companies
You've seen it, and maybe even experienced it: a company repeatedly fucks their player base through lies, excuses, and greed. Everyone screams and complains, and the company might correct things. It all blows over...then players rush out to buy the next game and rage when it turns out to be another steaming turd.
What everyone should be doing is not buying from these companies. Look at EA! After Ultima IX, The Sims 3, Dungeon Keeper Mobile, Mass Effect 3, and SimCity, you'd think people would've had enough. But, nope! They'll buy into the hype of a new game and throw more money at EA. And then they're surprised when EA screws them over again!
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| "The game is coded in such a way that it must be played online. Offline play would require significant engineering work." SimCity screenshot |
Guess what? If you keep buying crappy games from developers and publishers, they'll continue giving you more crappy games because you keep buying them. And don't fall for their "this next game's gonna be awesome" bullshit; they say that about every game they make because they want you to buy them. Ignore these developers and find some other games to play.
And that's all, folks! Until next time.
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