If the system is implemented in a rational way with meaningful rewards (only cosmetics, no game content like game modes, campaigns, no gameplay impact, etc.) and with the possibility to finish your pass any time you want, I’d also support the Age Pass.
8 Likes
Well, if you want support and tournament sponsoring to continue for many years, you somehow have to financially back it up, else Microsoft won’t let that happen. Is this the right way to generate money for said support? Debatable, but from a business perspective, it makes no sense to support a game for free forever.
3 Likes
They’re not supporting the game for free, the devs put out DLCs regularly as their monetization model.
Microsoft also has enough money to promote their games through tournament sponsorships and whatnot, which as far as I’ve heard they’ve all been satisfied by the results.
Additional monetization only means corporate greed, because someone at the top of the ladder wants another yacht.
11 Likes
They cannot add civs forever, however it would have been better to first release campaign-only, architecture and civ-skin DLCs before taking the route of adding things like a Battle Pass.
2 Likes
Well, that is if we operate on a basis of there being a civ limit. They can absolutely do plenty of more DLCs if we assume there is no civ limit.
If there was a civ limit and we reached it, I’ll be sorely disappointed that we wasted 2 DLC slots (or 4 civs) on more European civs.
They can still keep on doing campaign DLC forever without adding Battle Passes though, or cosmetic DLCs like you said, they don’t need a Battle Pass.
1 Like
I was not talking about a civ limit, since there practically isn’t any if they don’t want to. However, with civ boni getting more gimmicky every DLC, I think there is a point where it just doesn’t make any sense to add new ones, but this is only my opinion.
Agree.
3 Likes
They don’t need to add gimmicks to make new civs, and not all gimmicks are bad either. Some of the gimmicks also add new potential for new combos. There’s still plenty of room to support years of AoE2:DE, in my opinion.
3 Likes
Things like Flemish Revolution and First Crusade is the stuff I don’t want to see added to the game anymore. If they come up with other, more AoE2-esque mechanics, I don’t have anything against that.
3 Likes
I wish the devs would come back to the LotW/DotD/DoI formula of adding new civs + campaigns or even better: the HD “expansions” which had plenty of content compared to DE.
This “battle pass” model is going to ruin AoE2DE, there’s nothing beneficial with turning AoE2DE into a Paradox/Sims game bloated with unwanted content.
1 Like
This is absolutely disgusting. I can’t think of a quicker way to turn the game into a “dead service” than by introducing a battlepass+microtransaction system. It’s really a shame to see this introduced for a game from the 90’s, where some of the key features are cheat codes and an open and active modding scene. Everything that has made me me interested in playing Aoe2 all these years is completely antithetical to such a predatory monetization model.
13 Likes
If its the tacky Western seasonal stuff they normally do like Jack o’latern heads for your champions or Christmas hats for your knights I can quite easily ignore it.
If its actually good stuff like unique skins for generic units (like mounted samurai skin for your Japanese Knight) I’ll be more irritated.
To be clear I’m not bothered about paying money for cosmetics provided its reasonable (Not Diablo 4 with its £/$30 skin!) I just loathe all the extra steps and timed nature of battle pass nonsense. AOE3 has sold some explorer skin packs for a couple of quid cant we stick to things like that?
6 Likes
They should try releasing campaign only DLC first. If that fails try the battle pass system.
7 Likes
Holy shit this is literal poison. 
8 Likes
Is another issue here, stuff like unique skins for different civs should be on the base game, even if unlockable by playing certain amount of times or completing campaings. But they could do different takes on certain units just like the winged hussars and normal hussars are the same but different.
1 Like
I’m sure they’ve considered an alternative business model to include all DLC “for free” included in a small monthly subscription, like $1.99 a month or whatever. I know you will all baulk at this idea, but here we are 4 years after release and the game is still full of pathing issues and bugs. I’m not saying I would be happy about paying a regular subscription and I hope they will find another solution, but at the same time I’m also sick of the bugs and pathing issues, shit maps, lack of maps, not enough map bans etc. How can the issues in the game be fixed without enough funding to pay people to fix it? And no, it’s not just a case of taking Bill Gates’ money, that’s not how a business works. Sales dictate investment. If the game is selling well, they invest more into maintaining it and fixing it. And to all the people saying “Too many civs, no more civs please”, how do you propose they make any money to maintain the servers and pay the Devs if they stop making new civs?
2 Likes
I always hopped their will be an option to get graphic regions unit skin modofiactions
Like black villagers, east Asian knight skins, etc etc.
And not Jsut mods like currently thaz replace it on your end for all knights instead of targeted to some or a data of thaz prevent multiply.
IF this system means you can pay some for cosmetics loke this, then I don’t mind
4 Likes
Honestly if this isnt too intrusive Im fine with it if its just a few unit skins and some silly stuff like that
Im not going to pay for it either way
1 Like
Nah, I’m not for this. Even if it’s just harmless skins and such at first, this type of systemic monetization eventually takes over the games it is introduced to. I really do hope the devs lobby for this to be reversed, Aoe2 isn’t desperate enough to have to take this option yet.
15 Likes
Oh god, please no. There are many ways of funding the game they could try out before implementing such things.
I wouldn’t mind paying a monthly subscription as long as it stays as that. Pay, then play. Just keep away these xp, levels, challenges, rewards. Keep my game classic and simple.
I’m really angry 
7 Likes
yeah let’s just hope that this season pass nonsense doesn’t come to aoe 2. This is a single player game with some pvp for god sake.
3 Likes