Ubisoft recently gave us a teaser for the upcoming open-world Star Wars game by Massive Entertainment. The skinny on the new Star Wars title are far and few in between but we do have new info suggesting it might include monetization.
Exputer spotted a Ubisoft job listing looking for a monetization specialist. The job posting was published two weeks ago. According to the job description, the hired individual will be contributing "to the financial success of our games, shaping strategies that boost profitability while respecting our players and the essence of each game."
More importantly, the post implies that Ubisoft will hire the monetization specialist on two titles: Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, which was delayed indefinitely, and the unnamed Star Wars game.
Gamers have long had a negative perception of microtransactions and this hasn't changed at all. It doesn't help as well that several games like Diablo Immortal implement predatory microtransaction features that lead to players spending huge sums in-game to progress.
Star Wars Battlefront II had an infamous implementation of loot box monetization. Players who were willing to spend real money got substantial gameplay advantages. EA was forced to revamp the microtransactions after significant backlash from the community.
Other games have gotten negative feedback for their microtransactions including FIFA 23 and Gran Turismo 7. Overwatch 2 is also looking to revamp its microtransactions and battle pass after getting negative reactions from its player base.
If we're being honest, it doesn't come off as a huge surprise that the upcoming Star Wars game will have microtransactions. Ubisoft has implemented such features in its games like The Division 2, Rainbox Six Seige, and Rainbow Six Extraction. If it's any consolation, the microtransactions in these said games are purely cosmetic only, which don't give paying players gameplay advantages.
We're hoping Ubisoft has learned from the failures of other microtransaction-filled games, specifically Star Wars Battlefront II.
Speaking of Star Wars, fans can look forward to playing Star Wars Jedi: Survivor on March 17.
