In just a few years, the battle pass format has gone from a new and unique feature to something that dominates modern gaming. Most multiplayer titles are now implementing battle passes into their games as an extra way of making money. Battle passes started out as a monetization method used by game developers, but fast forwarding to now, battle passes have become the norm across the majority of multiplayer games. It now defines how players progress and how they engage with the games, and how the industry continues to find new ways to make money from players. This replicates the flip side in how individuals look for opportunities such as matched betting in the iGaming world to utilize as a side hustle.
The Rise of the Battle Pass
The battle pass became popularized by Fortnite in 2018, and it offered players a new and refreshing progression method compared to your standard level system. How the battle pass works is, as you play the game, you will earn experience points (XP), and as you earn more XP, you progress through the battle pass tiers. Each tier has a different unlock within it, from cosmetics to bonus content. The battle pass gave players additional content that they had to earn. Lots of games in the modern era rely on a loot box system, where there are no guaranteed results. Whereas, for a small fee, the battle pass provides you with guaranteed rewards that are based on your gameplay.
Over time, more and more popular titles began to notice the popularity of the battle pass. Franchises such as Call of Duty, Apex Legends, and Rocket League have all since added battle pass features to their games. Not every battle pass is the same; however, every game does its own little tweaks to make it suit them better.
Using Progression to Improve Engagement
Arguably, the biggest change that the battle pass format has brought to gaming is how long players interact with games for. Before battle passes, you could argue that there was little keeping gamers interested for the long-term duration of a game. The battle pass gives players a consistent goal that they are playing towards, whether it be a specific in-game skin or upgrade. Game developers began to realize that having frequent events timed in with the battle pass is a very effective method of keeping players engaged.
No More “Pay to Win”
The introduction of the battle pass meant that developers were focusing less and less on the “pay to win” model. The pay-to-win model is where developers allow players to simply buy their way to having good items in-game. This model was not very popular amongst hardcore gamers who would spend countless hours trying to earn levels, all for someone to be able to buy their way to the same level as them.
The battle pass now provides a win-win solution for developers and players, as they can charge a small one-off fee for a battle pass, and players would then have meaningful goals to achieve within the game. Battle passes very rarely feature items that give players who own them a competitive advantage, either. The majority of rewards within a battle pass are cosmetics, emotes, and other non-gameplay-affecting features.
Battle Pass Pushback
Although battle passes have helped to solve some key issues within the gaming industry in recent years, fans have now started to get sick of the battle pass model. Gamers are starting to believe that the battle pass model has been overdone, and it needs to either be changed significantly or removed from various titles. It feels like every game now has a battle pass, with even small indie titles implementing it into their games. It now feels like a cheap and easy way for developers to earn money from their players.
Too many games required players to be consistently playing all year round, and this caused players to get bored and stop playing. It started to take the fun out of gaming and almost felt like a second job at times, as if you stopped playing for a week, you would fall behind massively in terms of progression.
What the Future Holds
It is unlikely that battle passes will be going anywhere anytime soon, as it has become such an easy way for developers to earn money. What we should start to expect is a more hybrid model that incorporates battle passes with traditional expansions and updates. For example, Halo Infinite added non-expiring passes to its game, this way players do not feel pressured to play. Even the originators of the battle pass, Fortnite, have started to experiment with more flexible challenge windows in their battle passes.
Hi! I’m Bryan, and I’m a passionate & expert writer with more than five years of experience. I have written about various topics such as product descriptions, travel, cryptocurrencies, and online gaming in my writing journey.
