FIFA’s Ultimate Team
Most Embarrassing Microtransactions
FIFA Ultimate Team, commonly called FUT, is a mode that lets players create their own team to play against each other in a sort of fantasy league. You start in the game’s lowest divisions, pitted against other players of the same rank, working your way up. Along the way, you’ll be able to purchase the league’s best talent and add them to your ranks. It all sounds great in practice, but the problem is that everyone wants more or less the same players. EA decided that was a bit of an issue, so they fabricated an obstacle to supposedly create more team diversity. You guessed it: microtransactions.
In FUT, players purchase decks of cards that randomly allocates a draft of potential players. The trouble is, the price point of the in-game currency to unlock these decks is absurdly high. The only realistic way to have a chance of drafting a Messi or Ronaldo is to pay for it. Here’s the kicker, though: the players are effectively on loan, with contracts that expire. If one wants to hold on to their star players, one will need to repurchase the cards. Expect to pay through the nose if you want to enjoy the best of this poorly designed FIFA mode.
