Fans outraged at Apex Legends Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth crossover items seemingly totalling over ?300

UPDATE 10/01/24: The Apex Legends crossover event with Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is live, meaning the cost of event packs is now confirmed.

As per the official Instagram video shared previously, the cost of event packs is 100 coins - reduced from the standard 1000 coins.

However, the cost of packs actually increases depending on the number of items owned, as per the screenshot below. If players own 16 to 35 items, the cost of packs increases back to 1000 coins. It means if players want to own all 36 items (including the death box), it won't cost the full £360 but they'll still need to shell out a considerable amount.

Further, one free event pack is given when players sign into the event. Players can also buy a bundle of four packs for 1600 coins (reduced from 4000), from which they are guaranteed an iconic or legendary tier Final Fantasy reward.

It should be noted it remains unclear how long the lower cost of packs will stand for. Judging by previous events, the reduction should be until the crossover finishes. Eurogamer has contacted EA to further clarify.

Full details can be seen in the image below.

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ORIGINAL STORY 09/01/24: Fans of Apex Legends are outraged at the cost of cosmetic items in the Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth crossover event, that they fear will total over £300.

The event begins later today in celebration of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth arriving next month, and includes a number of themed items, skins, and events.

This is the first in-game crossover of its kind in Apex Legends and the potential cost of items is eye-watering for fans. On social media, the high cost has sparked fury in the game's community, although this is based on the current cost of packs that could be reduced once the event launches.

Apex Legends & FINAL FANTASY™ VII REBIRTH Event Trailer

In total there are 36 items to acquire. These are randomly awarded via event packs, as outlined in a blog post by EA. These packs will contain no duplicates of event items, though the probability of receiving a mythic item - including the iconic Buster Sword - is less than one percent.

A video was shared on the Play Apex Instagram page, which includes further details. Packs will contain one event item and two standard items, meaning 36 packs will be required to get all 36 event items.

Packs usually cost 1000 Apex Coins, which is £8.99 in real money. That's a total of £323.64 for 36 packs.

That said, the Instagram video does show a reduction in the price of packs to 100 coins. Due to coins being purchasable in set amounts, it would cost around £30 to get all the items if this reduced price is accurate. However, it's unclear if this reduction will take place and if so, for the whole event or a short time. Eurogamer has contacted EA to clarify.

Character skins are available to purchase separately, so fans can buy these directly rather than waiting for randomised drops. But these are priced, according to the blog post, at 2150 coins each - that's £17.99. To get the required amount of coins for all six skins would cost £101.47.

What's worse is there's an incentive for all these purchases. The death box in Apex Legends is left behind when a player dies, containing all their equipment. The Final Fantasy 7 crossover event has a One-Winged Angel deathbox inspired by Sephiroth, but this is only acquired by collecting all 36 crossover event items. That's potentially over £300 for a funky box players will only see when you lose.

Further, the Buster Sword mythic cosmetic won't be added to the Mythic Shop after the event, so players will likely need to spend a fair bit to obtain it through event item boxes due to the low percentage probability.

Fans of the game are rightfully outraged at the potential cost.

"I loved the part where they gave us a chance to earn the heirloom for free and the chance is 0.00001 percent, and the entire event costing $360. Truly an apex experience," reads the top comment on the event's YouTube trailer (above).

Responses over on X, formerly Twitter, paint a similar picture. "Ain't no one paying 360 dollars for a death box skin man," reads one reply. "Can't believe you're normalising gacha too."

Or, as one user pointed out, you could buy the entire Final Fantasy series of games for the cost of this entire event.

The blog post from EA does additionally mention the event Reward Shop, where players can earn Gil (event currency) by playing to spend on event items. However, it's unclear at this point the rate at which Gil is earned.

The event launches later today, which will provide a clearer picture of the true cost of this event's cosmetic items. Either way, confusion around pricing means the event is not off to a good start among fans.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is due out exclusively on PlayStation 5 on 29th February.