Star Wars Battlefront 2 loot boxes undergo changes, following criticism

Electronic Arts has reworked Star Wars Battlefront 2’s loot crates in light of user feedback, the publisher shared on its website. Once the game launches in mid-November, several progression-related items and weapons will be obtainable through regular play, not random loot drops as they were in the beta.

“The Beta gave us a welcome chance to test all of our systems in action and tune things up for better balance,” the blog post reads. “A few weeks back, we mentioned we were going to take another look at how the progression system works.”

As a result, EA detailed a handful of tweaks it’s made to loot crates:

• Epic Star Cards, which allow players to use extra abilities or weapons, will no longer be confined to loot crates. Players will either have to craft them, or acquire them by buying the deluxe editions of Battlefront 2.
• Players will have to increase their in-game rank in order to upgrade their Star Cards using crafting materials, which are still found in loot crates.
• The majority of class-based weapons will be unlocked through regular play as that class. There will also be loot crates limited to certain classes, which will include parts and Star Cards to create new items and gear with.

These changes address many of testers’ biggest complaints about Battlefront 2’s beta build. Star Cards were confined to random loot drops, which meant that players could either spend hours grinding for them or just purchase crates in bulk outright. As Star Cards are the primary place for players to upgrade their fighters and ships, making them available exclusively through loot crates stuck players as a pay-to-win progression system. Shortly after the beta ended and players voiced their concerns, EA promised it would look into addressing them.

Star Wars Battlefront 2 launches on Nov. 17, at which point we’ll see just how the nature of the game’s microtransactions sit with players.