Outrage as Free-to-Play Shooter Developer Introduces Charges for Players

Free-to-play shooter enthusiasts are up in arms as a popular developer announces plans to start charging players for premium features in their game. The free-to-play shooter genre is known for its lucrative nature, with companies raking in millions from in-game purchases like skins and other microtransactions. While the game itself is free, players often willingly spend money on smaller items to enhance their gaming experience.

Changes to Battle Passes

One of the most common purchases among regular players are seasonal battle passes, which allow them to unlock exclusive items as they progress in the game. Most games offer both a free and premium battle pass, with the latter providing more rewards as players level up. In many cases, players can earn the premium version by playing the game and using in-game currency.

However, Apex Legends has recently announced a significant shift in their approach. Moving forward, premium battle passes can only be obtained by purchasing them with real money, abandoning the previous system where players could buy them with in-game currency.

Under the new system, the premium battle pass will cost $9.99 (around £8) and will have half the levels, changing every six weeks. This means that dedicated Apex players could end up spending around $80 (approximately £64) per year on what used to be free content. The price of a year's worth of battle passes now equals the cost of an average full-price game, adding insult to injury for many players.

Despite the backlash from players, the developer, Respawn, has yet to respond to the outrage. While some studios have reversed unpopular decisions in the past, it remains to be seen how Respawn will address the situation with Apex Legends.

If you're interested in exploring more about free-to-play games, you can check out our Zenless Zone Zero review.