'Paladins' Gets Loot Box System Inspired By 'Star Wars Battlefront 2' and Players Are Mad

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It appears that Hi-Rez Studios didn't learn a thing or two from EA's costly mistakes. The developer is set to introduce changes to its free-to-play hero shooter "Paladins" that will drastically overhaul its card-based progression system in a similar fashion to the embattled "Star Wars Battlefront II."

Hi-Rez unveiled a new loot box-based card-ability system to the game which works in much the same way to the loot box system from EA's embattled shooter. Needless to say, many players weren't pleased with the changes and voiced their discontent on both the game's forum and on Reddit.

Called the "Cards Unbound" update, it involves upgrading card abilities by increasing their strength on a level-based system for each individual card. However, in order to upgrade a particular card, players must first secure more of that card from randomized loot boxes hence the problem.

Hi-Rez initially said that card chests – the "Paladins" version of loot boxes – won't be available for purchase directly. This was mainly due to the recent controversy involving EA's "Star Wars Battlefront 2" which made Hi-Rez "uncomfortable" with the idea of charging for the chests.

As such, Radiant Chests and Champion Card Chests won't be purchasable with Crystals, the game's premium currency, until patch 65. Instead, players will only be able to unlock chests with gold earned from playing the game.

However, the fact that the chests will soon be purchasable was enough to prompt a pushback from players over the potentially pay-to-win scenario. To this, Hi-Rez responded by claiming that the move will make the game a better experience for everyone.

"The vast majority of our players will never spend a dime," the studio said. "Regardless of how much money you have in your wallet, we want to make sure you have a great time. Our number one priority as we introduce Cards Unbound is that the free-to-play experience feels great."

"Paladins" is currently available for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Windows PC, and Mac.