Now that Blizzard’s strategy classic Starcraft 2 is free to play, it is convenient for Blizzard to elegantly join the shitstorm against EA’s Battlefront 2 and possibly attract some potential players. Blizzard is firing sharp shots on Twitter.
In a loosely formulated motto “One person’s pain is another person’s joy”, Activision Blizzard is using the current sentiment against EA for self-promotion. A single tweet could be coincidence – but three tweets targeting one of the most discussed scandals in Battlefront 2? Hardly.
Number of hours before you can play ANY Co-op Commander in StarCraft II: 0
— StarCraft (@StarCraft) November 14, 2017
Number of pay-to-win mechanics in StarCraft II: 0
Free to Play – Now Live! pic.twitter.com/a02OYUCYZU
— StarCraft (@StarCraft) November 14, 2017
The rivalry between Activision Blizzard and EA is certainly not new, and especially in social networks, things escalate incredibly quickly.
The reactions to these three jabs, however, are mixed.
Those who live in glass houses …
On one hand, people praise the creativity behind it and suggest a pay raise for the responsible social media manager or request an interview. On the other hand, Blizzard is mocked for being exactly those who are responsible for loot boxes and the whole dilemma, jumping on the bandwagon.
Overwatch and the introduction of loot boxes are thus primarily blamed for the fact that purchasable boxes are now common in “Free to Play” titles. Blizzard, as we now know, however, denies any blame and does not see its own practices as part of the discussion.
Of course, there is a difference: While in Overwatch you can primarily snag pretty new outfits from the loot boxes, in EA you get game-relevant advantages. And of course, in Overwatch you don’t have to invest countless hours of gameplay just to eventually enjoy one of the most iconic characters ever. But I see it: “Loot box” will be the buzzword of the year.
Guddy says: The tweets are quite funny. As a hardcore non-Starcraft player, I don’t belong to the target audience of these tweets. But the marketing is too sophisticated for me to simply ignore it! After all: Blizzard isn’t just shooting blindly; they have a point.
By the way, EA will be holding an AMA on Reddit tonight – an Ask Me Anything, an open Q&A session. If you have specific questions for the developers, you have a wonderful opportunity there!
