Apex Legends Mobile —Cross-Platform Pricing Solition Proposal
To: EA/Respawn Feedback Team
My name is being withheld but I am a long-term Apex Legends Mobile player and mobile gaming enthusiast. I want to propose a monetization solution for Apex Legends Mobile that solves the cross-progression pricing exploit problem while keeping the experience fair for all players across all platforms.
The Problem
With cross-progression enabled, a major exploit becomes possible: players buy cheaper coins on mobile then use those cosmetics on PC. This undermines PC/Console revenue without solving mobile affordability.
The Solution: Account-Origin Price Lock
Core Rule
When an EA account first creates or links an Apex profile, the system permanently stamps it with an AccountOrigin tag — either PC/Console or Mobile.
From that moment forward:
PC/Console origin accounts always see PC/Console pricing, even when logged in on mobile
Mobile origin accounts always see mobile pricing, even when logged in on PC
The platform you're currently playing on does NOT change your prices. Only your origin does.
What Is Shared vs Not Shared
Shared across platforms via cross-progression:
Cosmetics you own
Account level and stats
Battle pass ownership
Legend unlocks
Not shared — pricing and purchase advantage:
You cannot switch to a cheaper platform store
You cannot buy cheaper coins by logging in elsewhere
Currency Design
Keep the same currency name — Apex Coins — across all platforms. The store catalog remains unified. However real-money coin bundles are priced according to AccountOrigin.
Example:
1,000 coin bundle = $9.99 for PC-origin accounts
1,000 coin bundle = $7.99 for mobile-origin accounts
You cannot jump platforms to access the cheaper bundle. Pricing is permanently locked to origin.
Purchase Flow Logic
The store displays item cost in coins, your coin balance, and coin bundle prices based on AccountOrigin. When a player hits "Buy Coins" it opens the relevant platform payment processor — Apple, Google, Steam, PSN — but the price tier shown is always determined by AccountOrigin, not the current device.
Even if a PC-origin player logs in on iPhone, they see PC-origin bundle pricing inside the game UI.
Why This Kills The Exploit
The exploit requires two steps: buy coins cheaper on mobile, then use them on PC. Under this system PC-origin users cannot see mobile-cheaper bundles at all. Mobile-origin users cannot see PC bundles. Everyone can still USE all items everywhere. So the exploit simply dies.
The New Account Loophole — And Why It Self-Destructs
Someone could theoretically create a fresh mobile-origin account to access cheaper pricing. But they immediately lose all existing cosmetics, rank history, battle pass progress, and heirlooms. The punishment for exploiting is losing everything already owned. It is not worth it for the vast majority of real players.
Bonus Safety Valves
A) One-time origin lock confirmation on first login — "This account is being set up as PC/Console pricing. This cannot be changed." Full transparency upfront.
B) No gifting across origin types — prevents third party "cheap buyer" reselling schemes.
C) Fraud monitoring — detect and flag accounts mass-created as mobile-origin for resale purposes.
The Realistic EA Compromise Version
If the full system is too complex to implement at launch, a simpler Region + Origin Hybrid works as follows: prices depend on region as EA already does today, AND an origin lock prevents platform-hopping on top of that. EA already has regional pricing infrastructure built. This version requires minimal new engineering.
Closing
This solution preserves the full benefit of cross-progression for players while protecting EA's revenue integrity across platforms. It is fair, technically implementable, and eliminates the exploit entirely without punishing legitimate players.
I hope this reaches the right team.
— A dedicated Apex player
