Battle passes are fine when done right. Deep Rock Galactic, for example, adds all the cosmetics from the pass into the random loot pool after the season ends.

Most battle passes fucking suck though. Like in overwatch where you pay for the privilege of unlocking things through dozens of hours of gameplay.

[–] thatWeirdGuy@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Ye, ghostship gaming has nailed it. Some items even go into the store and can be bought with earned currency.

The game is so good that I'm serious considering buying some dlc to support them.

[–] Nelots@lemm.ee 3 points 1 year ago

I don't play the game a ton anymore, but back when I was super into it, I bought all four of the DLC out at the time for that exact reason. I rarely even use the cosmetics included, I just think the devs are awesome.

[–] BmeBenji@lemm.ee 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I see where you’re coming from, but if the game is designed in a way where it feels like it’s trying to convince me that playing the game for a larger amount of time is worth a reward and not rewarding in its own right then something is definitely off

[–] Nelots@lemm.ee 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

So you're against unlocking things through play? Stay away from the rouge-like genre then, you would hate it.

Just about any game that is designed to be played more than once (i.e. not story games like the Witcher) will have some sort of in-game rewards to keep it fresh. Like the Binding of Isaac where you have over a thousand different items to unlock through gameplay. But live service games need a way to keep their game fresh for even longer than most. Themed unlockable cosmetics are a great way to do it. As long as they're not capitalizing on FOMO, I do not see any problem with it.

[–] BmeBenji@lemm.ee 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I’m not against unlocking things through play, I’m against unlocking things through play-time and that includes “experience points.” Cool stuff should be unlocked in the game, not once the game determines you have played it long enough to have earned something.

For example, unlocking new weapons in Dead Cells because you found them, even if by random chance, is better than unlocking new skins in DOOM Eternal because you played (not won or lost, just played) the same level enough times over to have “earned” them. Wasting time is not an accomplishment.

Yes, unlocks by random chance also technically could be considered unlocks by sufficient play-time, but I’d consider that different because you should be able to accept that you will never unlock certain items.

[–] Nelots@lemm.ee 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Yeah, I disagree completely and I don't think we're going to see eye to eye on this lol. If I complete a mission in Deep Rock Galactic and am awarded a random cosmetic, I can't see how that's better than gaining EXP for a battle pass and unlocking a reward I actually want. Especially when there is no way to buy battle pass tiers (so no time-gated pressure to spend money for a cosmetic you really want) and the loot is mixed into the other loot pools at the end of the season anyway (so no FOMO).

...is better than unlocking new skins in DOOM Eternal because you played (not won or lost, just played) the same level enough times over to have “earned” them

Also, in DRG, the vast majority of both your regular and battle pass EXP come from successfully completing missions. You might get a hat or two if you play and lose a hundred games (you still get a tiny amount of EXP for enemy kills and stuff), but the vast majority of all your battle pass loot is obtained after actually winning games. So that's not even relevant for this game.

The only negative thing I will say about battle passes as a concept is that they're currently in every fucking game ever. Just like loot boxes, one person thought up a neat idea and everybody else and their mother hopped on board and are riding that shit to hell and back. Really doesn't encourage innovation.