EA “thinking about” bringing FIFA’s Ultimate Team concept to Battlefront
Based on recent comments from EA’s CFO Blake Jorgensen, Battlefront may soon get a mode similar to FIFA’s Ultimate Team.
Jorgensen discussed this idea in yesterday’s Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference as part of a bigger plan to bring the Ultimate Team concept to more franchises.
“As we’re looking at some of our other large franchises, like Battlefield or Battlefront, our Star Wars game, that are very similar in the depth of play—we can possibly add a similar mechanic to that,” Jorgensen said. “We’re spending a lot of time thinking about it. It’s not for tomorrow, but in the next couple of years you’re going to see a lot more of that in our portfolio.”
The driving force behind the line of thinking is the fact that Ultimate Team is bringing in $800 million in revenue, according to Jorgensen. He also noted the mechanic increases overall player engagement with the game.
I initially missed this yesterday in my coverage of the event; however, GamesIndustry.biz did notice it. To listen to Jorgen’s talk in full, head on over to EA’s Investor Portal.
An Ultimate Team screen in FIFA 16.
For those unaware, Ultimate Team is a mode where you build a team of players. These players are earned by unlocking card packs via in-game coins. In turn, these coins are unlocked by either playing in-game matches or by using real-world cash via microtransactions. The mode began in FIFA, but has since spread to other EA Sports franchises, such as Madden and NHL.
Personally, I find the concept of adding an Ultimate Team mechanic to Battlefront to be somewhat troubling. This is because it may cause aspects of the game to become pay-to-win (or at least create a perceived pay-to-win element). As such, it could cause a unnecessary discrepancy among players and unrest in the community. Microtransactions simply aren’t a fun thing to deal with, especially when you’re already dishing out $60 or more for the game itself.
On the flip side, I do understand that EA is a business and their goal is to make money. With its $800 million in revenue, Ultimate Team has proven to be a successful avenue for that. There is also the possibility that an Ultimate Team aspect in Battlefront will drive more players to play the game more often.
Still, I really do hope the microtransaction part of Ultimate Team doesn’t make it’s way into future Battlefronts. I don’t think we’ll see it in the Battlefront sequel (as Jorgensen said it’s planned for “the next couple of years”), but it may end up being unavoidable in future editions of the franchise.
(Top image by Cinematic Captures. Check out their Flickr page for more awesome Battlefront screenshots. Second image source. Bottom image taken in-game.)
