Skip to main content

Microtransactions are coming back to ‘Star Wars Battlefront II’

Star Wars Battlefront II‘s launch was the most controversial gaming story of 2017, with publisher Electronic Arts’ decision to include gameplay-focused loot boxes and microtransactions angering fans looking to play the online game in the traditional manner. The controversy has affected Electronic Arts’ bottom line, but microtransactions are still coming back to the game.

Electronic Arts CFO Blake Jorgensen told the Wall Street Journal that Star Wars Battlefront II sold about 9 million copies during the last few months of 2017, which is 1 million short of the publisher’s expectations. This is substantially lower than the sales of the first game, and Jorgensen blamed the loot box controversy for the lower figures.

Recommended Videos

Jorgensen also revealed that microtransactions would be returning to Battlefront II in a few months, though it’s unclear what form they will take.

Currently, the progression system in Battlefront II is still painfully slow for all players, as it was clearly designed with the paid loot boxes in mind, and the decision to temporarily removed microtransactions failed to adequately address this issue. In a recent blog post, developer DICE revealed that it is working on a “revamped progression system” that was designed with the feedback of players.

More details will be shared in March, but it isn’t clear when the change will actually be implemented. A new season of content is also in the works, and in February, players will be able to try out the Jetpack Cargo game mode for a limited time. It’s an eight-on-eight mode where all players have jet packs, which should add a level of vertical movement and speed we haven’t seen in the game yet.

We actually enjoyed Star Wars Battlefront II when it first released, praising new characters introduced in the campaign as well as the sheer amount of content compared to the previous game. Its story isn’t anything to write home about, but with the addition of free post-launch missions, it offers a good sense of closure and feels at home in the franchise’s canon. Also, Han Solo also has a beard, so there’s that.

Star Wars Battlefront II is available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.

Gabe Gurwin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
Andor season 2 will reveal the origin of one iconic Star Wars location
Cassian Andor looks behind him while he walks in Andor season 1.

Andor season 2 will be an even bigger and more expansive space adventure than its predecessor. In a recent interview with Empire, Cassian Andor himself, actor Diego Luna, teased that the critically acclaimed Star Wars series will go to even more places and planets in its second season than it did in its first. "We move in space more than ever — the amount of planets and sets you’re going to get to see," Luna promised. "There are some familiar and new locations."

According to Andor creator Tony Gilroy, the show's sophomore season will even travel to one of the most important locations in Star Wars history: Yavin 4, the moon where the Rebel Alliance's headquarters are stationed during the first Death Star's destruction at the end of Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope. "I mean, we have to end up in Yavin, right?” Gilroy teased. "So, we’ll tell the story of Yavin. No one has quite dealt with Yavin the way we will be doing it.”

Read more
Disney has pulled a 2026 Star Wars film from its schedule
Daisy Ridley as Rey in The Rise of Skywalker.

We may have to wait a little longer for more Star Wars. Variety is reporting that Disney has pulled the Star Wars film that was previously scheduled for December 18, 2026, from its schedule. Ice Age 6 has moved into that spot in the calendar.

There was never an announcement of what this project would be, but Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy had been announced to direct a film that followed Daisy Ridley's Rey in the aftermath of the events of The Rise of Skywalker. Steven Knight was slated to be the screenwriter but left the project earlier this year.

Read more
Andor season 2 is coming sooner than a lot of Star Wars fans thought
Cassian stands by a hillside in Andor season 1.

It looks like Lucasfilm may have accidentally revealed the long-awaited premiere date for Andor season 2, and on the Disney+ mobile app, no less. Early Saturday morning, some eagle-eyed users noticed a new date attached to the bottom of the app's Andor streaming tile. The date in question promises that Andor season 2 is coming April 22, 2025.

It isn't just possible but likely that this Disney+ update was made earlier than Lucasfilm planned. Not only was it added to the streaming service's mobile app with no accompanying announcement or comment from Lucasfilm, but Disney is also in the midst of hosting its D23 Brazil convention this weekend. The event has already given fans their first look at Diego Luna's Cassian Andor in Andor season 2, and it's possible that the show's return date was being saved for D23 Brazil as well.

Read more