EA Tempted By The Dark Side: Charges $1100 For Mobile Game Characters
How frustrating it must be for traditional game studios to spend years developing a triple-A title which only sells for $60 while fly-by-night mobile studios can get away with $100+ "micro" transactions via their Bejeweled clones. You could almost sympathize with a company like Electronic Arts for finally succumbing, through seething envy, to the Dark Side.
As reported by redditor /u/AlbertMyers, EA has introduced 2 new characters (Krennic and Deathtrooper) to their mobile CCG-RPG Star Wars Galaxy of Heroes. These characters are only available through Citadel Packs ($20 each.) Due to the way the game is structured, the characters must be 'upgraded' to max level via shards to be usable. The total cost of this averages out to $1100. A more detailed breakdown of just what you're buying is available on the reddit post. Disgruntled players have had to turn to reddit and other third party sites since EA has been deleting all posts on the subject from the official forums.
Mobile games like Star Wars Galaxy of Heroes can be played (and even enjoyed) for hundreds of hours without spending a dime. Paying usually accelerates progress and is required only if one intends to compete at the very high end. Galaxy of Heroes has a generous amount of free content including PvP matches and single player campaigns. High price macro-transactions are aimed at a small percent of players with addictive personalities or self control issues. It is an open industry secret that many of the most popular mobile games, including ones I enjoy for free, are funded by a small percent of mentally vulnerable 'whales', many of whom cannot responsibly afford to fund their habit.
