TheDoctor
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From this moment on, new EA releases won't require you to own an online pass in order to access all of their multiplayer content.
EA senior director of corporate communications John Reseburg confirmed the news to VentureBeat via e-mail. "Yes, we're discontinuing Online Pass. None of our new EA titles will include that feature," he wrote. "Initially launched as an effort to package a full menu of online content and services, many players didn't respond to the format," Reseburg continued. "We've listened to the feedback and decided to do away with it moving forward."
Online passes, which have proved deeply unpopular since their introduction, are required to access extra or online features in games like Battlefield 3 and SSX, and after their one-time activation restrict those features to a single online account. Additional account holders sharing the same copy of the game need to purchase a second pass in order to gain access to the restricted content.
Passes were introduced by publishers as an attempt to encourage players to pick up games new rather than second hand. Though unpopular, they did help publishers recoup some losses from preowned sales. Ed has spoken out in defence of the online pass before - do you agree?
The cynical among us might wonder whether EA are scrapping online passes because the rumoured-to-be always-online next-gen console simply won't need them.
Jonty's blog, where he argues that the next Xbox won't block used games, says that won't be so. Time will tell, but in the meantime, we have to wonder whether this move by EA will encourage other publishers like Ubisoft, WB and Activision to follow suit.
