Kotaku
After the shitstorm of dissension in the ranks of gamers upset over the possibility of EA's upcoming Battlefield: Bad Company including weapons that were only available for purchase via Xbox Live or in the special Gold Edition of the game, DICE senior producer Karl-Magnus Troedsson has come forward to announce that there will indeed be no exclusive weapons for sale. Reversing what EA told Crecente back on the 24th of last month, Troedsson reveals that while the Gold Edition does contain five exclusive weapons, purchasers of the regular version will be able to unlock all of the weapons by reaching the final rank in the game..
All guns are available to everyone. However, we want to give some exclusivity to those who buy the Gold Edition. They will get the five Gold Edition weapons from Day One when they put the disc in. People that don't buy the Gold Edition can get the five additional weapons by getting to the final rank in the game.
As for the remaining five weapons, those will be available to everyone free of charge via various marketing promotions run by EA, along the lines of 'Fill out this survey, get your gun code'. The fact that they were originally listed as purchasable via Xbox Live, according to Troedsson, was a simple miscommunication.
All of you noisy bastards who complained vehemently from day one should give yourselves a big pat on the back, as community voices were the reason the change was made.
It's really important for us to get across that we do listen to what people say out there. We don't have time to run around and comment on everything but we do listen to what people say out in the community. It's really important feedback and that's why we make changes like this.Just to verify all of this information, we got in touch with EA directly, and a representative for the company verified all of the above information, stating that the guns would never be available for purchase, and that the DICE folks, being big on community feedback, were testing the waters with the DLC idea. Turns out the waters were far too hot.
We Want Free Weapons! [IGN.com - Thanks Dave!]
Comments
Boycotts rule!
Sweet, this sounds like fair compromise. Nice to see a protest actually work.
But now what will the illegal imaginary arms dealers do?
Excellent news for gamers everywhere. This kind of bullshit should not stand. I'll gladly pay for content, but I won't get nickel-and-dimed for content I've already effectively purchased.
Thank god
One major problem down. Now they just need a PC version.
Fantastic! But what do we bitch about now!?
Not bad, now if Europe kicks up as much fuss over Rock Band this year would be sweeter
@excel_excel: You'll find something. This is the internet.
Sounds a little like PR backediting, but I won't complain.
Oh, and @NitrousO: You guys got BF 2142 and console owners didn't. Now it's our turn for an exclusive.
People think of weapons and weapon count too much like bullet points on the back of the box. Ever since Doom, it's been all about how many weapons you can have. It's got nothing to do with the actual utility of the weapon. 50 types of machine guns in CS (hyperbole) doesn't seem to deter people.
I want to see these people figure out a way to monetize new game elements, like classes and weapon sets that give a full blown legitimate game experience to people who *aren't* paying, in the sense that they still have a useful role, and yet isn't just a mindless copy of something already in. I mean, wouldn't TF2 work fine as a pay to play if the spy, demo, and sniper were pay-to-use classes?
Thank fucking god for bitching!
Seriously if we dont bitch when there is a reason imagine all the kind of butt-hurt we would be going through.
We should start a petition to bring back the parachutes!
Don't sweat it kids, they'll find another, more subtle way to do this while you're all too busy celebrating :)
Kotaku, you suck for not giving credit where credit is due...
[www.gamespot.com]
BEST HEADLINE EVER!!! *cheers in awe*
Ok guys, we got them by the balls. What do we whine about now?
I'm a little sorry that Kotaku didn't get behind this initiative.
He failed to mention the decline in profits they would see if they decided to keep the DLC as a purchase.
Good job boys and girls. I might give the game a look now.
Yay, now I might actually buy this game..
nice bitching. maybe prototype will get some fucking multiplayer if we keep this up.
@LonoSG:
Lono, you and the other guys over at Sarcastic Gamer are owed a big debt of thanks by the entire gaming community.
You have official permission to strut around like a peacock.
In case other Kotaku readers don't know it, this guy is one of the main instigators of this boycott which has just saved you some cash.
What? Marketing program? Sounds like they wanna send me spam in order to allow me to use the guns on the disc I bought....... I feel sick to the stomach - I almost liked it better when I was mad at them for charging extra for shit on the disc - now they just want me to participate in a "marketing program" which most likely involves giving at least my email address to someone who I would rather not give it to.
@Does Not Equal: I didnt even want 2142, just give me Bad Company :P
@Luke Plunkett: Yeah they forgot to add how you can only play half the levels in the non-gold edition ;P
@LonoSG: Hail LonoSG!!!
I was never part of the boycott(I don't buy their games anyway), but I'm suprised to see them back down on this one.
Very nice.
@NitrousO: Man, I wanted 2142. I'm still surprised EA didn't try to cash in on a console version. The 360 would have been able to run it, I'm sure. (The PS3 wasn't out at the time.)
@Cruithne: Thanks man, but honestly, we couldn't have done it without the fine members of the Sarcastic Gamer community that got Destructoid, Joystiq, IGN and X3F onboard.
you guys rock.
yay for boycotting, now if only they will develop games better on ps3
They must have read the Penny Arcade comic.
Good, but let's be real. Next time EA isn't going to show their hand. They'll try to charge for guns, but instead of teasing us with them they'll hide/withhold the guns until after release. This way they can rebrand the same thing as paying for "additional new content" rather than "unlocking existing content already on the disk you paid for".
Yes, the internet has won. EA made a smart decision, I'll now take a second look at Bad Company, but I doubt I'll give up my CoD4 for it.
@NitrousO: You don't want a pc version of bad company, really the game is nothing like our previous pc battlefields. It's a console bf just like modern combat in design. Pray for a real battlefield sequel for the PC in the future :)
I don't exactly count this as a "victory". It's sorta like this:
One day, gas is at $2.50/gal. Next day it goes up to $2.80/gal. Everyone complains - "Thirty cents in one day?!? that's ridiculous!!" Next day, gas goes down to $2.65/gal. It's still a net fifteen cent per gallon gain for big oil. Same thing is happening here - first the guns cost money, then people complain, now they're not exactly free - we have to participate in a marketing program of some sort to get them - most likely this means I'll be giving my name/age/address/email address, or some combination of those things to someone who I don't want having that info - I think I'll still be passing on this game.
Karl Magnus. I keep WANTING to read Karl Hungus. But thats probably just me.
Now I need that beta. Is it still going on?
If only people would band together and do this for those Rock Band DLC songs....
Good news for all gamers that this was stopped, though. It suggests to other companies that they not try anything similar in the near future.
The internet wins, our voices finally heard. Smart move EA/Dice, you earned some respect back from me. Now add clan support to BF:BC and we have a winner.
Winner winner chicken dinner. It's nice to see devs actually listen to gamers sometimes (or at least that even EA can be swayed by our backlash.)
This is why you complain people! Sometimes it actually makes a difference.
SARCASTIC GAMER FTW!!!!!!!!
Huzzah! That makes me happy. Way to go Dice!
Now...Let's get on those Internet service providers for switching to pay by the Gig services.
[gizmodo.com]
That's gonna make downloadable content and games that much harder to stomach if we know it'll tack on another ten bucks going over our Gig limit. Steam could get totally screwed. I think gamers should start a stink about that, nip it in the bud.
Gamers FTW!
Now, if only this type of strategy work on the Chinese government, we might see some progress for Tibet...
I didn't like the game at all. The destructible environments just made the parts that can't be destroyed (I can blow up a house but not it's picket fence or the guy behind said fence?) stick out like a sore thumb. Plus the controls don't feel very responsive and EA's servers are awful.
But I do like the fact that our bitching got something done. I can't believe anybody thought that was a good idea in the first place.
FUCK EA. FUCK THEM IN THEIR ASSES! The one DLC we'd be willing to pay for (a yearly madden roster update) is the one they won't give us. I really don't know what happened. They used to be THE premiere developers. Now they are a sad caricature of their former greatness.
Imagine what else we can accomplish if we bitch and moan a lot...now I feel like france
A battle won, but EA is a stubborn enemy. Congrats for the victory fellow gamers!
Good.
Special ("gold" "legendary") editions are for people who like schwaggy crap. I am not one of those people. I want the game. Not part of a game.
Forcing me (or strongly encouraging me) to buy a special edition so I get the full game is basically forcing me to pay money for plastic shit I don't want.
@What The Geek: Where do you live that gas is only $2.65/gal.? Here in Seattle, we pay $3.50!
Glad to hear that they are listening, something I didnt expect of any game EA put out there. But its comforting to know, had to throw a positive comment out there
Haha. About time they caved on gun costs. Now to make them lower the price of Rock Band in Europe!
hmm, so I still can have my exclusive weapon unlock code they gave me in e-mail and other players would unlikely have it. :D
Owned.
Question, though: what's the difference between having to pay to unlock something, and having to pay for extra content?
Granted, you may say that extra content is in addition to the original game, but how many developers openly state that they plan to continue DLC at a cost to the gamer?
So $10 to "unlock" four new COD4 maps would be heinous, but $10 to "add" four new maps that have been in progress since before launch is not?!
@LonoSG: This guy here is THE MAN, ladies and genttlemen. He, Doc, Dave, DDL, Volkov, etc., they started the boycott. They were the ones who brought down the Bad Company! Let idols made in their likenesses be paraded in the streets!
And go over to Sarcastic Gamer. :P [/shameless_plug]
Nice. Very well-done gamers!
@AverageJoes: Dunno, I loves me some Rock Band songs. Just about every week has something both unique and worthwhile to extend the longevity of my obsession.
@Ess:
the numbers were just sorta made up - I live in Jersey - it hovers around three a gallon here.
We did it we changed the direction of a company now if we can get EA to stop buying every company that competes with it.
@txshurricane: The point is continuation and support. The 'unlock' is saying that the content is already finished, but the sixty dollars you put down isn't good enough. Paying for content developed down the line means giving patronage to continued support of a product.
As always, one is free to ignore both and not make a purchase if one does not agree.
BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAD COMPANY, I CAN'T DENY
BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAD COMPANY, TIL THE DAY I DIE..
..sorry saw the album cover. ;D
Is Bad Company worth getting, I may check into it now.
Well god damn, now Im gonna buy this game.
You know... If I ever get around to making a game I'll just announce something insane about the game, then after the backlash is covered by tons of media sites I'll announce I am not doing it. I'll get to be the good guys while receiving tons of free publicity. These DICE guys are clever. ^_^
We can't let our excitement over this blind us to the fact that EA will still be charging us in some way by forcing us to fill out surveys and the like (very valuable information to them). I wouldn't be surprised if the plan all along was to announce that the guns would cost money, and when backlash came from the community, declare that "we won" and all we have to do now is fill out surveys and give them our private information. This is one of the oldest tricks in the book. We all did this as kids: "Mom, can I sleep over at Kim's house for the weekend?" "No...you can only stay Saturday night." This was a guaranteed way to get what you wanted in the first place, which was to sleep over Saturday. Please do not allow this to become an okay thing to do. Being forced to supply marketing information on top of paying for a game is complete and utter bullshit. This is not a pattern we want to see starting. I emphatically declare shenanigans, and hope you do too.
@jello44: Yeah, I've had that song stuck in my head since this crap all started.