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UPDATE: EA has confirmed that it has “discontinued” its Online Pass program from all Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 titles, and is in the process of removing the requirement from existing games.
A post on EA’s Help Center details the move, which EA says will take “several weeks” to complete.
“For new EA titles, Online Pass will no longer be needed or included,” says the post. “Additionally, we are in the process of eliminating Online Pass requirements from existing EA games. This process will take several weeks. For some games, the prompt to enter an Online Pass code will no longer appear; for others, you will still need to download and install an Online Pass, but they will be available free of charge from the Xbox LIVE Marketplace or PlayStation Store.”
The latest EA Sports titles will be the first titles to have their Online Pass requirement revoked, rolling out to additional titles in the weeks that follow.
“We listened to the feedback from players, and decided to do away with Online Pass,” EA continues. “We hope that eliminating Online Pass will allow more people to play and enjoy EA games for a long time to come.”
ORIGINAL STORY: EA has removed the pay wall for VIP & Online Passes on a selection of older Xbox 360 titles.
The move follows comments from EA Sports earlier this month revealing that the publisher would be dropping its controversial Online Pass program from future releases.
It means that second-hand users are able to access the online components and/or bonus content supplied with new copies of each game, and which typically require users to register a one-time use code.
Games with Online/VIP Passes reduced to zero currently include Mass Effect 2, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Alice: Madness Returns, Bulletstorm, Shift 2: Unleashed, Medal of Honor, Dragon Age 2 & more.
The passes are still listed at their original price on PlayStation Network, however, and it’s not yet known whether more titles will be added to the list in the future.
VideoGamer.com has contacted EA for comment.
Source: Xbox.com (via NeoGAF)
