While I liked what I played of the Star Wars Battlefront II beta, it’s understandable why a lot of people are upset at how the beta seemed to emphasize loot crates when it came to player progression, and the fact that it’ll be purchasable by real-world money has a few people noticeably worried. 

It seems EA has heard the uproar. Over on the publisher’s official website, a post went live today thanking the fans for playing the beta and for offering their thoughts. According to EA, they are “continuing to listen” to the fans outside of the beta when it comes to gameplay (Strike mode, etc.) and of course, loot crates. Additionally, character progression is explained as well, which is thankfully, good news.

Rest assured, we’re continuing to listen to you coming out of Beta. We’re taking a look at some of the most discussed topics, from Crates and progression to Strike mode (which we’re considering changing to a best of three), the Specialist’s Infiltration ability (which might be a little too overpowered) and more. Oh, and the First Order Flametrooper needs some work – we agree he could use a little more… firepower. We are also looking into more ways to allow players to stay and play together as a team – for launch, we’ll have a new feature for you that rewards all players in a spawn wave. These are just a few examples of how your feedback is helping to shape the game.

We know you have a lot of questions about Crates and progression, so we want to clarify a few things, as the complete system was not in the Beta and will continue to be tuned over time:

• There are many things you can earn in the game, including weapons, attachments, credits, Star Cards, Emotes, Outfits and Victory Poses.
• As a balance goal, we’re working towards having the most powerful items in the game only earnable via in-game achievements.
• Crates will include a mix of of Star Cards, Outfits, Emotes or Victory Poses.
• Players earn crates by completing challenges and other gameplay milestones, or by purchasing them with in-game credits or Crystals, our premium currency.
• If you get a duplicate Star Card in a crate, you will get crafting parts which you can then use to help upgrade the Star Card of your choice.
• And lastly, you have to earn the right to be able to upgrade Star Cards and unlock most Weapons. You can only upgrade or unlock them if you have reached a high enough rank, which is determined by playing the game.

We also have heard some players are looking for a way to play where all players will have the same set of Star Cards with flattened values. Like everything else, we will be continually making necessary changes to ensure the game is fun for everyone. We will work to make sure the system is balanced both for players who want to earn everything, as well as for players who are short on time and would like to move faster in their progress towards various rewards.

It seems a certain EA Community Manager was right when he said “nothing is final.” I gather, I’m not the only one happy that the most powerful items can only be obtained by ranking up, and actually playing, and not, y’know, using a ton of cash to buy a ton of loot crates in the hopes of getting lucky.

Has the damage been done? What else can EA do to ensure to gamers that Star Wars Battlefront II won’t feel like a pay-to-win title? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.