Star Wars: Squadrons is shaping up to be a very unusual EA game. It’s been confirmed that it will have no microtransactions or loot boxes, and will only cost $40. On top of that, it’s now also been confirmed that in spite of its big focus on multiplayer, the game is not being developed as a live service title.
Speaking with Game Informer, Motive Studios’ Ian Frazier – creative director of Squadrons – said that the developers are taking a very traditional approach to the upcoming game, in that they’re looking to deliver a title that is complete at launch, and not really made as a live service- which seems very contrary to any multiplayer game EA have released in years.
“Our mindset has been very old school,” Frazier said. “We’re trying to say with this game that we have a $40 price point, we want to feel generous to players, and we want it to feel like a complete experience. Like ‘You gave us your $40. Here’s a game that you will love. Thank you.’ That’s it. This isn’t something we are building around a live-service strategy. It’s built around a game that is complete and great in its own right. That’s not to say we will never add anything, I guess we could, but it’s not presented as a live service.”
Of course, the last Star Wars game EA released – Respawn’s Jedi: Fallen Order – was also not a live service title. That, however, was a single playerr-only game, and though Squadrons will have a single player campaign as well, one would think its focus on multiplayer would lead to EA wanting to turn it into an ongoing source of revenue. That not being the case is definitely good news though.
Star Wars: Squadrons is out for the PS4, Xbox One, and PC on October 2. The game recently got its full-fledged gameplay reveal, which you can check out through here. You can also see the game’s PC system requirements through here.