8 Video Games That Prove The Industry Has Learned Nothing

5. Call Of Duty: Black Ops IV

The Lesson: Players don't want microtransactions and season passes forced on them.

As expected, even as a lot of games and publishers are trying to put a positive spin on loot boxes, microtransactions and DLC (or at least package them in a way which seems less obviously exploitative), Activision continue to capitalise on them in the most insidious way possible.

The first issue comes with the publisher's handling of the sequel's post-release DLC, which requires players to buy into a season pass, as the expansions and maps won't be sold separately. The reasoning is that it will keep players together and not splinter the community between individual map packs, but anyone with a brain can see that's just PR spin, especially in an era where most other multiplayer shooters offer new maps for free for the same reason.

Even worse is that on top of this paywall are microtransactions, which Activision snuck into the game post-launch. Fans, of course, have been vocal with their disappointment, but the publisher - and many others - are blindly continuing to push forward with these practices because, at the end of the day, the amount of money they bring in is worth any backlash.