EA Share Price Drops Amid Removal of 'Battlefront 2's' Microtransactions
It seems it is not only the gamers who will frown with the recent controversy surrounding the microtransactions of "Star Wars: Battlefront II."
After temporarily removing the game's microtransactions and making the Crystals only available strictly through gameplay, Electronic Arts (EA) suffered a drop in its stock price last Friday, the same day the game was officially released. Gamespot reported that EA shares fell by 2.5 percent, down to $108.82 by the time the market closed.
The company's stock price also went down for the entire month, thus far, by seven percent. Despite the dip, EA is still having a fantastic year overall, with its stock price up by 42 percent compared to last year.
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For their part, EA sent a document to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last week, shedding light on the removal of the microtransactions and how it will financially affect their performance. EA stressed that the "change is not expected to have a material impact on EA's fiscal year 2018 financial guidance."
Days before the game's release, DICE General Manager Oskar Gabrielson came out with a statement explaining their move to suspend all in-game microtransactions. "We've heard the concerns about potentially giving players unfair advantages. And we've heard that this is overshadowing an otherwise great game. This was never our intention. Sorry we didn't get this right," Gabrielson wrote.
He said that they have heard the fans' comments and feedback "loud and clear," which prompted them to turn off "all in-game purchases." The GM said that they will "spend more time listening, adjusting, balancing and tuning."
As for the microtransactions, Gabrielson clarified that the suspension will only be temporary. He said that they "will become available at a later date" after they are done making the necessary tweaks and adjustments to "Battlefront II."
Prior to the scrapping of the microtransactions, the Xbox Store revealed the prices of the Crystals and loot crates, which can be purchased by players using Crystals. Five hundred Crystals cost $4.99, and it can go up to 12,000 for $99.99. The crates, on the other hand, start a 110 Crystals and go up to as much as 200 Crystals.
