It is not easy for Electronic Arts to smoothen the way for the live-service model of Battlefield 6. Players are groaning in discontent over the latest BF Pro bonus pathway through what appears to be ten tiers of rewards all developed for the extremely short duration of just seven days. This one-time aggressive timeline has sparked a wave of criticism across community hubs like Reddit, where veterans of the franchise argue that the requirements are mathematically impossible for the average player to achieve without opening their wallets.
The main dispute is that, in fact, the event is “pay-to-complete”. Players will need to spend ridiculously high hours completing specific in-game challenges at the same time if they are clearing ten tiers in one week. In fact, it is only with Battlefield Coins that the majority of the community, especially those who have full-time jobs or families, can afford to pay their way to the final reward. Such design choices are seen not as rewards for engagement but as high-pressure tactics to make microtransactions inevitable within a game already demanding a premium $70 entry and $25 “Pro” subscription.
Even worse, the very quality of rewards themselves has not justified the grind. The last unlock, a character skin that is supposedly unique, has been mocked by fan opinions that claim the design is not very original, with some pointing out rather ominous similarities with what can already be found within the whole Call of Duty franchise. Such lack of inspiration, combined with the paywall within a paywall model of the BF Pro service, led to a very rapid decline in sentiment among players. Many users now say they will fully forgo future seasonal passes because of an “unbearable” progression system, where monetization far exceeds value in terms of player time.
This new scandal is arriving at a really sensitive moment for DICE and EA. With Battlefield 6 already struggling to have its fair shot at the player base against games like ARC Raiders and, of course, the ever-powerful Call of Duty, it puts the studio under tough pressure to right their course. This may be the moment to amplify potential new changes within Season 2, yet current fears of missing out (FOMO) combined with high XP requirements imply that the two are hugely different: what is wanted by developers and what players expect to be a fair gameplay loop just does not seem to coincide with each other.
