AdvertisementĮA declined an opportunity to comment on its reasoning for expanding its Online Pass system from online modes to single-player quests. The original, stated justification for the Online Pass has disappeared, but, for some reason, the Online Pass itself is sticking around in games like Amalur. There are no multiplayer servers for used players to theoretically exploit as freeloaders. Here's the thing, though- Kingdoms of Amalur is an exclusively single-player game. Publishers including THQ, Warner Bros., Ubisoft, and Sony have used similar justifications in copying the system for their own online games. In other words, EA was saying that used game purchasers were actively costing it money in the form of continuing server costs, which the company deserved to recoup. In launching that program, EA justified itself by saying it had "made a significant investment to offer the most immersive online experience available," adding that it "want to reserve EA Sports online services for people who pay EA to access them."
But implementing an Online Pass in the single-player Kingdoms of Amalur represents a continuing tumble down a slippery slope for the entire game industry.ĮA experimented with locking out used game purchasers from some limited downloadable content with Mass Effect 2's Cerberus Network, but the company first embraced the idea of charging for Online Passes on a large scale in mid-2010, rolling out "Project Ten Dollar" to charge for online gameplay and features in its myriad sports games. Players who would rather purchase a pre-owned copy, however, will presumably have to pay an additional fee if they want to access to this portion of the game.Ĭharging used game players for such an "Online Pass" is nothing new in the game industry, of course. Review copies of Electronic Arts's Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning are starting to reach critics, who have made a surprising collective discovery: an insert containing a code to download a "House of Valor" content pack featuring "seven additional single player quests."ĮA has confirmed to Ars Technica that this downloadable content will be included free with all new copies of the game, including digital copies purchased on the PC through Origin, Steam, or other services. Photograph by John Haslam reader comments 195 with
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