As more proof that there's absolutely nothing we can all agree on, the news that Psyonix will be removing paid loot boxes from Rocket League has had a mixed response. There's a lot of support for the decision in the replies to the announcement tweet, but also cries that Epic, which recently purchased Psyonix, is "ruining" the game.
There are some good questions in the thread. It's the keys used to open crates that cost money in Rocket League, not the crates themselves, and some players use keys as a trading currency. Players want to know if their big key stashes will still be worth anything after the change, or if they should open all their crates right now.
But many others seem to just like the loot boxes. Ultra-rare Black Market items are status symbols in Rocket League, and a community has formed around collecting and opening crates. YouTuber Jon Sandman regularly gets over 100K views on crate opening videos.
It can be hard to tell what's shitposting and what's actual rage on social media, but the number of angry responses indicates that there's real opposition to the paid loot box removal, which may come as a surprise if you've been following the general discussion around the practice for the past few years.
Ever since the Battlefront 2 debacle, criticism from players, press, and governments has led publishers to defend loot boxes, remove them, or publish drop rates as a concession. Our readers overwhelmingly express distaste for loot boxes when we report on them. See the replies to this tweet, for instance.
There are plenty of Rocket League players who are happy paid loot boxes are going away—Rocket League pro Tigreee responded with hearts—but clearly the idea that everyone hates them is false. When a community of traders and YouTubers and fashion aficionados forms around the practice, as it has in other games as well, opinions start to vary. (There's also some generalized Epic hate involved here.)
Personally, I'm glad paid loot boxes are going. I admit I've occasionally enjoyed having ultra-rare items, but to get that stuff I've spent a lot of money on crap that just clogs my inventory until I can trade it up. I'd much rather be able to express myself with themed car designs without having to throw money away on decals I'll never use.
Besides, pretty much everyone I play with and against in Diamond-level Snow Day is decked out with animated decals and fancy goal explosions and painted wheels. It's how you put those things together that's interesting these days.