Star Wars: Battlefront II has inspired a number of loot-box economists to post estimations of how many hours it will take to unlock every star card item that gives perks to your characters. One story claimed (on SWTORstrategies.com, which is down due to overwhelming traffic) you would need to spend more than 4,500 hours or $2,100 to unlock all of those digital items. That’s not the case, according to producer John Wasilczyk.
“We’ve seen the speculation about how long it takes players to earn things, but our averages based on the Play First trial are much faster than what’s out there,” Wasilczyk explained in a comment on Reddit as part of a question-and-answer session with fans. “But as more players come in, that could change. We’re committed to making progression a fun experience for all of our players.”
Battlefront II officially launches November 17, but a lot of people are playing it right now as part of its Trial release on Xbox One’s EA Access and the PC’s Origin Access programs. Those subscription services give people 10 hours of game time, and people are starting to come away from that experience with the impression that DICE designed the online multiplayer to favor people who spend extra money.
Fans have also noticed that Battlefront II puts some limits on the amount of credits players can earn in a day. In the Star Wars shooter, everyone in a match earns the same amount of in-game currency for participating. This means you could just enter matches, just keep your character moving to avoid getting booted for inactivity, and continue to earn credits. The daily limit combats that, but it could also have the effect of encouraging people to spend money if they want to progress their characters faster.
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DICE says those kinds of limits will change.
“Nothing should feel unattainable and if it does, we’ll do what it takes to make sure it’s both fun and achievable,” said Wasilczyk. “As we update and expand Arcade mode, we’ll be working towards making sure that players can continue to progress without daily limits.”
