DICE's Battlefront II

[General Howard]

Well, my game finished pre-loading, in the early hours of this morning. So, I'm ready for the launch at midnight, tomorrow night. But over the last day or so, I've come across and read a lot of posts on social media about the game and it doesn't sound all that promising. Obviously, I'm still looking forward to the game, but there's gonna be a lot of people who aren't happy with it.. And already that's starting to show through. But there's a number of things that I've seen/read that sound VERY disappointing to me:

 

- Lightsaber heroes can't activate/deactivate their sabers, like Luke and Vader could in Battlefront (2015) (Hold down on the d-pad). That was a great, little feature, honestly.

- During Lightsaber duels, the blades don't actually make contact or clash properly (C'mon, even Battlefront (2015) did this.. Albeit, not brilliantly.. But it did it, nonetheless)

- Players "run through" other players, during gameplay (For me, this will get pretty annoying, quite quickly.. As it takes away the authenticity and immersion)

- Heroes cost onwards of 40k+ credits to unlock (Fuck! Talk about a tedious grind and over-compensated progression system). Vader and Luke cost 60k.. Where's the fun, in endless grinding to get them?! 

 

These are only a minority of things, obviously. Hopefully, they'll be addressed and fixed in game updates/patches. But things like that, will spoil and ruin the fun for me. The Beta wasn't bad, but seemingly since then, not a great deal has changed or been improved. But on social media, people are already complaining (myself included, on just what I've read/heard). The REAL shameful thing though, is that a 14-year old game (JKA) will still be the "go to" Star Wars game for authentic lightsaber combat and a game in 2017 still, somehow, can't manage to beat it or at the very least, match it.  

[Teancum]

I was really looking forward to this game, but honestly, I have no time any more for endless grinding in multiple games. I'll pick it up when it's on a really deep sale, or maybe I'll just rent it from Redbox and play through the campaign.

[Circa]

Yeah this is the big controversy right now:

 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2017/11/12/fans-worry-star-wars-battlefront-2s-free-dlc-heroes-are-going-to-take-eons-to-grind-for/#d14c59036285

[Teancum]

And in that respect, I think I'll just stick to the 2005 Battlefront II for my fix. Graphics be darned, it's still an amazing game 12 years on, and mods mean I can play pretty much any way I want to.

[dg1995]

This game is a Joke, so is EA to Star Wars Battlefront fans.
Disney shouldn't have give Star Wars license to EA.(The worst company of America)


Now they have won the award of the most downvoted comment on Reddit.

[Boothand]

This game is a Joke, so is EA to Star Wars Battlefront fans.

Disney shouldn't have give Star Wars license to EA.(The worst company of America)

 

Now they have won the award of the most downvoted comment on Reddit.

 

-651 000!

[Barricade24]

Okay, I'm getting really darn tired of the heat the community is giving Dice. I agree that price of the heroes was way too high, and it is totally fine that the community spoke out on it, but do people not realize Dice has been listening? You wanted Prequel content? You got it. You wanted no more paid DLC? You got it. You wanted cheaper heroes, you got that too, and still people don't seem to be satisfied. No game is going to be perfect at start and we should be grateful that Dice is willing to work with the community as much as they are despite how toxic they can be. What people tend to forget is that the game will improve as time goes on, new stuff will be added, maybe instead of complaining for once, maybe players should be thankful for all the work Dice has done and how much they are listening to their players.

 

You don't like the game fine. At least give Dice some credit here and what people tend to forget is that since there is no paid DLC, they need to make additional money from something and they seem to have been quite careful and keep the balance fair.

[dg1995]

It's their own fault:

 

1.The first game was pretty poor and most of the people felt betrayed.

 

2.This game is still inferior to battlefront 2 classic.(No command posts,No vehicle spawn point were you can hop-in them)

 

3.Dice lying to people:"It's not pay 2 win." while that guy which paid 90$ for this game managed to beat the hell out of other players.(It's video is on the internet)

 

4.EA closed down Visceral and changed the direction of that linear single player game.

 

5.EA also shut down Galaxy in Turmoil project which was going to become a much better Battlefront game compare to EA ones.(An indie developer's game was surpassing Dice's)

 

6.And finally the microtransactions which was a pretty heated topic this year.

[Noodle]

Okay, I'm getting really darn tired of the heat the community is giving Dice. I agree that price of the heroes was way too high, and it is totally fine that the community spoke out on it, but do people not realize Dice has been listening? You wanted Prequel content? You got it. You wanted no more paid DLC? You got it. You wanted cheaper heroes, you got that too, and still people don't seem to be satisfied. No game is going to be perfect at start and we should be grateful that Dice is willing to work with the community as much as they are despite how toxic they can be. What people tend to forget is that the game will improve as time goes on, new stuff will be added, maybe instead of complaining for once, maybe players should be thankful for all the work Dice has done and how much they are listening to their players.

 

You don't like the game fine. At least give Dice some credit here and what people tend to forget is that since there is no paid DLC, they need to make additional money from something and they seem to have been quite careful and keep the balance fair.

 

The best thing people should do when a company acts in a way they disapprove is to back their words with their money, which I think is the reason why EA has listened to the numerous complains. Cancelling pre-order and announcing you're not buying the game are the smartest choices to do since it means they have to change their strategy if they want to secure a sale (like in every other business).

 

I personally think Dice has been handling this quite well, given that they have changed a lot of things in their business model (like no more paid DLC), I just hope they keep having an open dialogue with the consumers since that will help them try new ways to make money in a non-intrusive way. 

 

People seem to forger the only reason why paid DLCs and DRM are a thing is because many 'gamers', even those who so vocally complain, kept buying financially supporting them. 

[Circa]

Okay, I'm getting really darn tired of the heat the community is giving Dice. I agree that price of the heroes was way too high, and it is totally fine that the community spoke out on it, but do people not realize Dice has been listening? You wanted Prequel content? You got it. You wanted no more paid DLC? You got it. You wanted cheaper heroes, you got that too, and still people don't seem to be satisfied. No game is going to be perfect at start and we should be grateful that Dice is willing to work with the community as much as they are despite how toxic they can be. What people tend to forget is that the game will improve as time goes on, new stuff will be added, maybe instead of complaining for once, maybe players should be thankful for all the work Dice has done and how much they are listening to their players.

 

You don't like the game fine. At least give Dice some credit here and what people tend to forget is that since there is no paid DLC, they need to make additional money from something and they seem to have been quite careful and keep the balance fair.

Welcome to every gaming community ever. People will complain about anything. That's just how it is. 

 

I'm glad they are listening and changing things up. The main thing I'm still worried about is the pay to win aspect. Loot crates should only be cosmetic changes, not better abilities and weapons. They still haven't changed this and I doubt they will. I liked the season pass better than that. I'm glad to pay for season passes if they actually feel like they add to the game instead of complete it.

[Boothand]

Keep in mind that these "unlockable" characters are on top of the price you already have to pay for the game. They have removed the 'request refund button' from their site.

 

In this case, people should complain, but of course this doesn't mean that the people who worked on the game are at fault. But I'm a bit baffled at the controversial decisions EA makes at the marketing level. And I'm not so sure they're trying to do right by its consumers. I guess we'll see how this turns out soon.

[Teancum]

It's their own fault:

 

5.EA also shut down Galaxy in Turmoil project which was going to become a much better Battlefront game compare to EA ones.(An indie developer's game was surpassing Dice's)

 

I can follow you on all your other points, but we knew so very little about Galaxy in Turmoil that you can't realistically say it would have been better. No substantial gameplay was ever shown, even. And microtransactions aside 2017 SWBF2 looks amazing in every respect. I'm utterly convinced that I'll always adore the 2005 version more, but let's not get hasty and judge a game that has no real substance yet to be better.

[General Howard]

Okay, I'm getting really darn tired of the heat the community is giving Dice. I agree that price of the heroes was way too high, and it is totally fine that the community spoke out on it, but do people not realize Dice has been listening? You wanted Prequel content? You got it. You wanted no more paid DLC? You got it. You wanted cheaper heroes, you got that too, and still people don't seem to be satisfied. No game is going to be perfect at start and we should be grateful that Dice is willing to work with the community as much as they are despite how toxic they can be. What people tend to forget is that the game will improve as time goes on, new stuff will be added, maybe instead of complaining for once, maybe players should be thankful for all the work Dice has done and how much they are listening to their players.

 

You don't like the game fine. At least give Dice some credit here and what people tend to forget is that since there is no paid DLC, they need to make additional money from something and they seem to have been quite careful and keep the balance fair.

 

I can understand your viewpoint.. 'cos essentially, it just becomes a never-ending downward spiral. But you have to realise that EA/DICE royally fucked-up with Battlefront (2015) and then gave an extremely vaig and unconvincing response to the community's disapproval at the game's lack of content. An already, well-known point was then made even more prominent, by John Boyega, himself. Again, EA responded to him with a vaig and less than encouraging reply, by asking him if he'd played any of the various training missions in the game. Now, that's not a convincing way to get a star of one of the SW films (or the community, in general) on your side. However, despite its countless flaws.. I, for one, still played the game and did enjoy it, for the most part.

EA/DICE have now been given a 2nd chance, with Battlefront II, to learn from their previous mistakes. Again, for the most part, they've done that. But yet again, they're already starting to alienate their player base. Regardless of said changes they've said or have announced that they're going to make in the coming months. The fact that they even implemented the idea into the game, in the first place (Darth Vader & Luke both being 60k credits to unlock, each) proves that EA are just asking for controversy and conflict between the company and its player-base to take place. 

 

The fact of the matter is, is that EA/DICE have shitty model practices, that they still can't seem to learn from. This is globally well-known and is the reason why they've been voted the worst company for a number of years, now. Why should we, the community, idolly stand-by and allow EA to get away with the way their business model works, when ultimately, we're the ones who pay their salaries and make them a profit?! I don't know about you, but I won't just sit back and defend EA's business model. So, I will always voice my opinions and concerns to them, if there's something I don't agree with or like. If you don't, change can't be made and nothing ever gets done.

[dg1995]

It's funny that they have also lowered the amount of credits you gain per match and from completing story mode.

 

@ : Well said.

[DT.]

Well, I can't wait to play it. I only got a few mins to play as a b1 battle droid during beta.

[Circa]

Well, I can't wait to play it. I only got a few mins to play as a b1 battle droid during beta.

Same. I'm still excited for it. It's been too long since I played as a B1 and a Clone.

[JAWSFreelao]

It looks incredible and while it has flaws it's only going to get better. It just needs time. DICE also needs to work on creating a nostalgia feeling to attract the older fanbase- which, it's slowly understanding I think. It's just going to take time, this is DICE's second go-round. It's only going to be better from here on I believe.

[Circa]

It looks incredible and while it has flaws it's only going to get better. It just needs time. DICE also needs to work on creating a nostalgia feeling to attract the older fanbase- which, it's slowly understanding I think. It's just going to take time, this is DICE's second go-round. It's only going to be better from here on I believe.

Agreed. The devs had an AMA on reddit this week, and despite every answer they gave being mass-downvoted to oblivion, some answers they gave were somewhat promising (albeit vague in most cases). They have an interest in doing Galactic Conquest, which would be awesome. I feel like that wouldn't be able to happen until much further down the line when they have more planets to use for that. Taking over the galaxy won't be as cool if there are only a handful of planets.

[JAWSFreelao]

Little things in this game would go a long way to rebuild their relationship with customers and I think they're definitely extending an olive branch very well.

[General Howard]

It looks incredible and while it has flaws it's only going to get better. It just needs time. DICE also needs to work on creating a nostalgia feeling to attract the older fanbase- which, it's slowly understanding I think. It's just going to take time, this is DICE's second go-round. It's only going to be better from here on I believe.

 

I want to believe you're right and I sincerely hope you are. It is a better, more polished game, yes.. But the biggest thing that irks me right now, is the extremely poor lightsaber duelling experience. It's practically non-existent, currently. Hopefully it's fixed in the coming patches.. Otherwise, so much for showing the footage (and for what it was) of Kylo duelling Rey in Maz's castle and Vader duelling Luke, like they've constantly been doing. But yet again, I can't fault the sound work and the voiceovers are superb. Vader sounds much more like he should, now. (Did they get rid of the previous voice actor for him? I forget his name. Matt Sloan, was it?). But yeah, let's just hope it gets better and improves..

[Grab]

Extremly unpopular opinion: people who buy EA games deserve to be treated like that.

[Barricade24]

Looks like Dice and EA have pulled micro transactions all together. I think I should apologize as I play very few of EA games and as such am not totally up on their practices. I didn't totally understand the extent to what pay to win really meant. Now that I do, I totally understand why people have been upset about this, but since that is now fixed, hopefully that will make the game much more enjoyable.

 

I take it stuff like this is what EA is known for? Being pay to win?

[Circa]

Looks like Dice and EA have pulled micro transactions all together. I think I should apologize as I play very few of EA games and as such am not totally up on their practices. I didn't totally understand the extent to what pay to win really meant. Now that I do, I totally understand why people have been upset about this, but since that is now fixed, hopefully that will make the game much more enjoyable.

 

I take it stuff like this is what EA is known for? Being pay to win?

Well. Somewhat. They're mostly known for locking basic features behind DLC and microtransactions. Take SWBF2015 for example. They used DLC to finish the game, and some of the DLC guns were extremely overpowered, meaning you had to buy the DLC to use them and have a chance (although they nerfed them over time, the last guns still remain OP). I'm not too familiar with the EA sports games but I know they have a currency system in place. My little brother used to buy FIFA points all the time when he would get his allowance a couple years ago. I forget what you get with the points but it definitely never seemed worth it at all.

 

Anyway, here's DICE's statement they posted last night:

 

 

 

[General Howard]

Looks like Dice and EA have pulled micro transactions all together. I think I should apologize as I play very few of EA games and as such am not totally up on their practices. I didn't totally understand the extent to what pay to win really meant. Now that I do, I totally understand why people have been upset about this, but since that is now fixed, hopefully that will make the game much more enjoyable.

 

I take it stuff like this is what EA is known for? Being pay to win?

 

Pretty much, yeah. They're about the most renowned games company in the world for it. And in recent years, have made it more and more prominent. We all understand that a company has to make profit and revenue, but there are far more practical and better ways to go about it, than pulling that sort of BS and alienating its player-base/community. Because they're essentially shooting themselves in the foot, by doing that. Their mobile SW games are all the same, too. Urging you to spend and spend, to progress.. And that's one of the primary reasons why they have the globally bad reputation that they have. It's a shame, really.. 'Cos their games do have and show great potential. It's just bad and shitty business practices, that ruin what they could be.

[Mand'alor]

So..no one wants to talk about the single player campaign?