How are sports video game ‘ultimate team’ card packs not as hot of an issue as loot boxes?
In: Culture
Games like Destiny and Fallout 76 are targeted at hardcore players. These players happen to be much more vocal about what they don’t like, so they were able to set the narrative.
FIFA is targeted at more casual players, who either don’t particularly care about the inclusion of those mechanics or aren’t as loud about disliking it. The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
Because AAA games have huge budgets, huge audiences, huge revenue, huge stakes. All of those factors drive — you guessed it — huge news coverage.
I think they are, but sports games have become more niche and just don’t get the spotlight.
I think it’s because that whole mode is like a fantasy football type deal. So instead of forcing you to budget and draft and all that shit, you just get “trading cards” essentially.
Where as the loot boxes most people hate (myself included) are for things like cosmetic outfits. Or in some cases (EA Battlefront 2) progression in the game was locked behind loot boxes.
Plus in most “Ultimate team” modes, they have a set “2 ultra rare, one uncommon, 4 random” type gimmick. Where as most loot boxes are just random stuff, usually garbage you didn’t want.
Or I’m entirely wrong and have no idea what I’m taking about, both are possible 😂
They are. Certain countries have banned the use of these specific mechanics.
https://www.theverge.com/2019/1/30/18203399/ea-fifa-fut-pack-points-banned-belgium-loot-box
Granted, Belgium in itself is a marginally tiny market, but they stick with it nonetheless.
The big UK committee dropped a bombshell last week pretty much vilifying and damning the practice of lootboxes. But the committee doesn’t make the actual call to ban it. Other countries (Germany, Holland and France if I’m correct) stated that they WANT to ban lootboxes, but do not have a legal framework for it yet.
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