Following a disastrous launch laden with lootbox and progression-related controversies, Electronic Arts is finally addressing the crux of the issue in their latest Star Wars Battlefront II rework which overhauls the in-game progression system from top to bottom. Among the key takeaways from this update as detailed in the game’s official website are:

• Progression is now linear. Star Cards, or any other item impacting gameplay, will only be earned through gameplay and will not be available for purchase. Instead, you’ll earn experience points for the classes, hero characters, and ships that you choose to play in multiplayer. If you earn enough experience points to gain a level for that unit, you’ll receive one Skill Point that can be used to unlock or upgrade the eligible Star Card you’d like to equip.
• You’ll keep everything you’ve already earned and unlocked. You will keep all of the Star Cards, heroes, weapons, or anything else you have already earned. What you have earned will still be available to use with this update regardless of how much or little progress you have already made. 
• Crates no longer include Star Cards and cannot be purchased. Crates are earned by logging in daily, completing Milestones, and through timed challenges. Inside of these crates, you’ll find Credits or cosmetic items, such as emotes or victory poses, but nothing that impacts gameplay.
• Starting in April, you’ll be able to get appearances directly through in-game Credits or Crystals. The first new appearances are coming soon, meaning you’ll be able to grab new looks for your heroes and troopers directly by using either Credits (earned in-game) or Crystals (available to purchase in-game and through first-party stores). If you’ve ever dreamed of being a part of the Resistance as a Rodian, your chance is right around the corner.

In a bid to reassure the current player base to remain as well as roping former players who have stopped playing back in, the post added “These changes are a major step as we continue to improve the core of the game and add new content. And there’s a lot more to come. In addition to continued balance patches, we will also add a number of modes to Star Wars Battlefront II in the coming months, offering several standout, brand-new ways to play.”

In addition to the reworks listed above, the biggest change coming with this update would see EA making all heroes and hero ships which were previously locked behind a ridiculous progression demand as well as a tedious lootbox (crates) system now free for everyone. Commenting on these changes in the game’s release notes in the forums, EA Community Manager Mat “Sledgehammer70” Everett said “Along with these changes, we’ve also unlocked all currently available Heroes and Hero Ships for everyone. With all characters now having a Unit Level, we don’t want to limit anyone’s chance to progress as we change the way you interact with these characters.”

He adds: “On top of that, we’ve brought a new location to the game! Bespin makes its return from the first Star Wars Battlefront as a new location for Blast, Heroes vs. Villains, Arcade, and for a limited time as Jetpack Cargo. We hope you enjoy this blast from the past.”

For full info on these changes, head over to these links:

• Progression Update
• Patch 2.0 Release Notes

To enjoy all these new changes, you will have to download a patch that should be live at the time of writing. We will be checking out the new-look Battlefront II sometime this week as well and will update you with our thoughts of it soon.