EA Abandons Online Pass

^[2]

EA took flak when it adopted its online pass system. The system required players to enter a code provided with the game at launch to access any online multiplayer features, a move that mandated used game connoisseurs purchase a code separately if they wished to play online.

According to Gameinformer ^[1], the company has now decided to do away with the system entirely. The move comes as a result of the lack of response the system was getting from players, as well as the negative feedback they received.

EA's VP of corporate communications had this to say to Gameinformer:

"There's not much to say. The online pass came out in 2010. It was a way of packaging together a suite of post-launch content and services for people. There was also an element for people who bought the game second sale. It never really caught on. People didn't like it. People told us that they didn't like it and you know, we went through a cycle and we're about to put out some new games and we just decided not to do that anymore. We're 100 percent committed to creating on-going content and services so the consumers get more value out of the game – you know games like Battlefield and FIFA where there's all sorts of new things that get added all the time – but the whole idea of packaging it up with an online pass, clearly it was not popular, so we listened to people and we stopped doing it."

Despite being voted the worst company in America ^[3], this move may give them a few Paragon points in the eyes of the gaming community.


^[1]For the full story from Gameinformer - http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2013/05/15/electronic-arts-abandoning-the-online-pass.aspx
^[2]Image from EA official website - http://www.easports.com/onlinepass
^[3]EA voted worst company in America, via Business Insider - http://www.businessinsider.com/ea-voted-worst-company-in-america-2013-4