EA recently pulled microtransactions from Star Wars Battlefront II after the hugely negative backlash endured by the game around launch. It was initially suggested that it was a temporary measure, but no doubt some people had hoped the decision would be made permanent. As most of you probably have already figured out, that's not likely to be the case.
Speaking during a recent investors call, EA's CFO, Blake Jorgensen, told shareholders that the company is "not giving up on the notion of MTX [microtransactions]."
A suitable follow-up question is therefore obviously: when will we see them again? "We haven't decided yet," he replied.
"We're really watching how people are playing the game. We're trying to understand are there certain modes where MTX may be more interesting than not? What are the consumers saying about it? How are the consumers playing the game? What do the metrics look like? We're learning and listening to the community to decide how best to roll that out in the future."
The pressure is certainly on for the company, with reports circulating that EA's stock has dropped significantly, in the process wiping out more than $3 billion USD. Couple this with lower than expected sales for Battlefront II, and no doubt the publisher will think very carefully about its next move.