EA DICE held a Reddit AMA earlier today and it went just about as well as you might expect, which is to say it wasn’t great. It probably could have gone a lot worse, but reading through nearly all of it, one thing is abundantly clear: gamers aren’t happy with EA and EA isn’t giving them a reason to change their minds.

Before we get started, some props do need to be given to John Wasilczyk (WazDICE), Dennis Brannvall (d_FireWall) and Paul Keslin (TheVestalViking). It took some courage to even do a Reddit AMA after the unprecedented backlash from last weekend, and even if you don’t like a lot of their answers, at least they showed up. 

Now on to the harsh reality. EA microtransactions are here to stay, for the foreseeable future at least.

Time and time again the three men either ignored the comments about ending microtransactions or answered with vague replies. The closest thing we got to a real response was in an exchange with DreadPirate616 and Brannvall: 

 DreadPirate616: “Lootboxes should be removed. These ruin the feeling of accomplishment, are a form of gambling, and are obviously an incentive for players to buy credits using micro-transactions. Currently, Battlefront feels like a free mobile game, not a $60-$80 AAA title. There should be absolutely no micro-transactions that affect progression. While we recognize that you need money to continue creating free DLC, it should not come at the expense of fair gameplay. A compromise can be limiting lootboxes to cosmetic items only, so you can still make money.

d_FireWall: “I think crates can be a fun addition as long as you don’t feel forced to engage with them in order to progress. I feel that’s where the issue is with our game right now and that’s where we’ll look to solve as quickly as we can. We’re looking to add additional ways to progress your favorite character or class, while allowing crates to be a fun thing for those who want to engage with them.”

That comment was only downvoted about 2,000 times, much less than some of the other replies.

Among the most downvoted comments was Wasilczyk’s response to a question about whether or not EA DICE had any plans to radically change the game. Wasilczyk’s response was “We’re going to continue adjusting the crate systems, content, and progression mechanics to hit a point that gives players a great, balanced experience at all skill levels. We’re working on expanding the number of ways that players can progress, putting more control in their hands and providing more options and choice in the way people play.”

The top voted response to that? “So vague it hurts,” from TheTyGoss.

The entirety of the AMA was just depressing on a number of levels. It’s sad to see gamers so frustrated with a game that so many of us want to like. It’s disheartening to see a company so focused on profits that they won’t change what obviously needs to be changed. And it’s sad to see three people who probably worked very hard on a game be shit on repetitively by their customers, whether they deserve it or not.

That being said, hopefully this is all for the better in the long run. Battlefront II isn’t going to be the game of our dreams, but maybe it will be a wake-up call for EA and the rest of the industry. It should at least make companies think twice before they add a play-to-win model to an already full-priced game.

You can read the full Reddit AMA here.