It seems that EA have been granted a patent that describes the dynamic adjustment of game difficulty, something that they have denied using just recently.
Earlier this year, FIFA players accused Electronic Arts of using dynamic difficult adjustments tactics in the game. In case you are not familiar with the controversy, this alleged mechanic can be used to dynamically increase the difficulty of the game for players in certain scenarios. For example, the game can become easier if a player is trailing behind or tougher if you are in the driving seat during the match.
Players also filed a class-action lawsuit against this alleged mechanic stating that adjusting the game difficulty in such way promotes the purchase of loot boxes.
EA explained that this is not true and their difficulty system in FIFA is in no way intended to promote microtransactions.
However, this week, EA have been granted a patent that seemingly describes the use of dynamic adjustment difficulty in games for the purpose of increasing the engagement time for the players.
Of course, this does not necessarily mean that EA are using the system to promote microtransactions since engagement time can mean many different things but it's interesting that this patent surfaces shortly after the lawsuit.
EA are yet to comment on the matter but it would not surprise us if they indeed release a statement since the patent is doing rounds all over the Reddit and gaming forums.