Back 4 Blood's card system won't be pay-to-win, promises Turtle Rock

While cards will appear in paid content drops, Turtle Rock is working to ensure that no cards in Back 4 Blood's system will ever be confined exclusively to purchases.

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Among the many features of Turtle Rock’s upcoming Back 4 Blood co-op zombie shooter, the card system in the game has been one of the most interesting and unique features to appear in it. Utilized both to the detriment and benefit of players, Back 4 Blood’s card system provides varied ways to play as you collect them. Earning those cards might have been cause for concern among players fearful of a pay-to-win system that incentivizes purchase of cards, but Turtle Rock claims this won’t be the case.

The developer revealed this in a FAQ about Back 4 Blood’s card system posted on the Turtle Rock website. According to Turtle Rock, while some of Back 4 Blood’s cards will appear in paid content drops, the developer has no intention of making any card exclusive to purchases.

“Cards will not be available for purchase via any in-game storefront or first-party storefront,” Turtle Rock wrote. “We will likely include some cards in post-launch paid content drops, but we are doing so in a way that ensures those drops will not be pay-to-win. We will also release new cards post-launch that everyone can earn and enjoy, whether you’ve bought content drops or not.”

This will likely come as a relief to those who were worried that getting the best cards out of Back 4 Blood’s card system might require microtransaction purchases. While Turtle Rock seems intent on offering cosmetics that will be exclusively paid content, it’s good to know that a seeming core game mechanic won’t also end up that way. Having recently gone into deeper detail on how the system works, Back 4 Blood’s AI director will utilize cards to throw unique threats at players in a scenario. Meanwhile, players can respond with either preset decks or custom assembled cards of their own to gain an edge on the situation, such as faster healing, bonus damage and quantity of explosives, and more.

With Back 4 Blood set to launch in October 2021, the game is shaping up to be one of the definite titles to watch for this year. We’re still a ways off though, so stay tuned to Shacknews for further updates and details leading up to Back 4 Blood’s release date.

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.

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