A well-done collaboration always benefits a game as a service. A good part of its experience is the content that is added, and when a collaboration is done with care, it feels like something more special than just the intention of making money. This is important when you want to make money. People are more willing to give you their money when they don’t feel like you’re digging into their pockets.
This has been the case with Apex Legends. Its developers, Respawn Entertainment, announced on January 4th that from today, January 9th, until January 30th, they will be hosting a collaboration event with Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. This will include a whole new game mode centered around Final Fantasy VII, materia that comes with its own benefits, skins inspired by the game’s characters, Twitch drops, as well as weapon skins. A carefully crafted collaboration that shows a lot of love for both games.
All of this has a catch. The cosmetics come in packs of a thousand coins, which are around 10 euros. Considering that there are 36 of them, to get them all, and with it the special event deathbox, the One-Winged Angel, you have to spend approximately 360 euros.
As expected, this has not been the slightest bit funny among users. These are abusive prices, designed to exploit the affection that the general public feels for a franchise like Final Fantasy. Because, although it is true that these cosmetics can appear completely randomly, the chances are so low that it is practically impossible to obtain a complete set simply by playing. Which makes this, in practice, an extremely expensive set of Final Fantasy VII cosmetics.
Although neither EA nor Respawn Entertainment have commented on the matter, these prices are abusive. It is obvious and should not be allowed. Despite the interest and love that has been put into them, they are still cosmetics. And while there is the possibility of not buying them, there should also be the possibility for developers to stop trying to reach into our wallets.
