A recent change.org petition requesting Lucasfilm to revoke EA’s Star Wars license in the light of the Battlefront II controversy has picked up steam, gathering more than 135,000 signatories in just 3 weeks at the time of writing—and growing.
After all, if it doesn’t have a change.org petition, is it even a real controversy?
When EA revealed the details behind the lootboxes present in Battlefront II, people were angry. Hell, they were outright pissed. Angry headlines and boycotts still abound, and while EA has now switched off the lootbox component of the game while they head back to their corporate lair for tweaking, it appears that this wasn’t quite enough for some Star Wars fans.
This new change.org petition calls for an outright revocation of the Star Wars rights, currently held by Lucasfilm, essentially disallowing EA to ever create Star Wars-branded content ever again.
Read more: 5 multiplayer games to play instead of Battlefront II
Original author of the petition, John Hunt from the United Kingdom, summarises the feelings of signatories of this petition succinctly:
“EA have had the Star Wars video game license for the last 4 years, and in that time they’ve proven to their consumers that they honestly don’t care about the gameplay experience or content, they’d rather rush out a game that will try and milk as much money out of consumers as possible,” he writes in the petition description.
“Lucasfilm, if you cannot see that EA is seriously abusing and harming the Star Wars brand then you are part of the problem. The longer you keep partnering and working with EA then the more damaging your famous brand will become.”
Generally, the petition reads as more of an angry rant rather than an actual drive for change in the industry, but it appears that this tirade has resonated with many, many people. Some of the reasons for signing include:
“EA losing Star Wars license would be great for Disney, Lucasfilm, and more importantly the consumers.”
“I’m tired of the cash grab. I want complete games that I pay for once that improve on previous versions of the game.”
“EA’s complete disregard for the future and history of Star Wars in video games is disgusting.”
That’s a lot of hate. But whether these comments and the sheer volume of signatories will resonate with Lucasfilm and Disney enough to retract the rights from EA is another question entirely.
Do you think EA should lose the rights to produce Star Wars content as a result of their muck-up with Battlefront? Let me know in the comments below!
Rad or Shite Gaming 
Nah mate, it’s a dream. Lucasfilm would more likely try to improve things before revoking a license. If they could improve EA’s image, they get the money and the quality. It’s a more savvy move IMO.
That’s assuming they’ll even address it at all, to be fair. Idk what they’re like with PR.
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