Ice Q

EA has done enough to bring in and keep new players IMO.

They’ve done special pricing/promotions making the game more affordable throughout the year.  They didn’t do that when I started playing WOC back in 12 or 13.

They’ve implemented several options of control schemes that make the game easier to pick up and play from the get go.  I didn’t have that option.

They’ve provided pre builds for newbies to use to help them compete until they learn how to build their own.  I didn’t have that option.  I had to grind it out for the ability to make my build better against better players with better builds.

The newbies of today have it a lot easier than when I started.  I heard tons of crap the first year or so I started which is the same for newbies of today.  A lot of it also comes down to different generations.  Us older players were more willing to “grind it out to get good”.  Younger players aren’t and want things instantly and easier.  This isn’t just for this game either.  I see it in every day life and on social platforms (whatever) too!  

PlayoffError wrote:

I can't imagine being a new player, playing some games of drop-in and saying to myself "I want to play more of this".  

This right here. My proposed solution is to allow drop-in players to choose to match up with a real club exclusively. Right now, you need to keep searching for drop-ins until matched up with a club.

I started doing that this year as my friends and I have had a difficult time getting together consistently due to life, but joining random clubs has been such a great experience. I absolutely love matching with a couple of buddies in 3's who are just looking for solid defence. Made a lot of new online friends going this route and I think EA should allow us to search for only club matches for drop-ins. 

PlayoffError wrote:

The only thing I can think of is to remove player ranking from the mode entirely in an attempt to tone down the toxic competitiveness in what should be a casual mode, but I'm sure that would go over like a lead balloon.

One thing I think EA is missing is a way for the community to actually recognize good teammates in drop-in games. Right now, there's no mechanism to acknowledge the player who's making smart passes, staying onside, and playing as part of a team instead of trying to walk in and score every shift themself.

I've pitched this before and got pushback that it would be "abused" but I think that's only true if you allow negative voting. Keep it positive-only, and there's nothing to abuse.

How it would work:

1. End-of-game voting. After each drop-in match, during the post-game screen, every player can give a single thumbs-up to one teammate who stood out for playing the "right way"; good positioning, passing, not cherry-picking, avoiding offside, etc. No negative votes, no reporting, nothing punitive. It's purely a positive signal.
   
   
2. Visible recognition, per game. On that end game screen, every player's card shows how many thumbs-up they received that match. It's a small, immediate acknowledgment — you see in real time that your teammates noticed.
   
   
3. A badge for consistency. If a player earns thumbs-up votes often enough over time (not just once), they unlock a visible badge — shown in the next lobby before the game even starts that signals to the new group of players "this person tends to get positive votes from teammates." It sets an expectation and maybe even nudges behavior in that next game.
   
   
4. Decay to keep it meaningful. To stop the badge from becoming a one-time achievement people stop caring about, it would decay. If a player goes a set number of games without receiving any thumbs-up, the badge is removed. That keeps it tied to current behavior instead of being a permanent trophy.

The concern with most "vote your teammates" systems is that they get used to bully or grief people through downvotes or negative tags. By removing any negative option entirely — no downvotes, no reports, nothing that can hurt a player's standing — there's no lever for toxic behavior to hijack. Worst case, nobody gives anyone a vote, and the system just does nothing. There's no way to weaponize positivity.

Give the community a lightweight way to reward the players who make drop-in more enjoyable, and create a small incentive for everyone to actually play like a teammate instead of a ball hog.