The battle pass seasonal progression system is becoming synonymous with live service games. Major titles like Fortnite, Apex Legends, and others rely on battle passes for not just monetization, but also player retention. A monetized progression track is gameplay in its own way, after all. But it's just a matter of time before battle passes are iterated on. In fact, a new patent from Electronic Arts shows what that iteration could look like.
The Electronic Arts patent application was published on May 13 and is titled "Seasonal Reward Distribution System," basically a generic description of battle pass. This specific design is notable in that it describes a "non-linear map" for the pass, with player-choice being a focus rather than a singular progression track. At its simplest, the map is made up of multiple pathways or tracks lined with nodes that players can choose as they desire. Each node grants a reward and a node unlock is granted as players level up their characters or accounts.
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While multiple examples of battle pass maps are shared, only one is given a level of detail so as to be visually representative of what a final product could look like. A simple description of it would be similar to a board found in Mario Party. Different rewards including hats, shields, swords, and other prizes are associated with certain nodes on the board. Additionally, different notes are shown to be already completed while others remain to be unlocked.
One other aspect of the pass, which is further elaborated on deeper into the patent, is a difference in "tiers." Most gamers familiar with battle passes already understand the difference between free and premium battle pass tracks. That system remains in use in EA's new design. There are nodes that require a "Gold Pass" to unlock, as well as nodes denoted as "FREE." There's even a figure in the patent showing four different tiers, and even a tier system with its own branching paths.
The appeal of EA's newly patented battle pass system is obvious. In current systems, players have no choice to unlock the content the developer has chosen for them. If they want something specific, they have to play a specific amount with no other recourse. A multi-pathed pass allows players to prioritize the content they want, even allowing "FREE" tier players to prioritize free content.
There's also a downside to the multi-pathed battle pass, however. The genius of the single track is that players have to invest a specific amount of time in order to get the best content. If players are able to pursue the best content faster, that's ultimately a negative to the entire purpose of a battle pass. If Electronic Arts does pursue this style of multi-pathed battle pass, it'll be interesting to see what form it ultimately takes.