Rating system of Dungeon Keeper (2014)

In 2013, Electronic Arts released Dungeon Keeper, a free-to-play mobile variant of the popular 1990's strategy game Dungeon Keeper.

The game was poorly received by both game critics and users. Critics noted that an in-game prompt claimed that "5-star ratings from you help us provide free updates!", suggesting that the games' creators would stop providing new content if players did not give the game sufficiently high ratings.

Overview
The rating system involved a redirect process to the mobile storefront on which the game was sold; it was also pointed out that if players rated the game anything less than 5 stars, the game would not redirect them and not actually cast their vote, never indicating this to the user.

This led to accusations of EA fraudulently manipulating the game's rating system and its subsequent score on mobile storefronts.

Reaction
In July 2014, the UK-based Advertising Standards Authority banned a Dungeon Keeper Mobile ad from broadcast, stating that the advertisement "deliberately misled consumers" and made false statements about the game's pricing and free-to-play nature.

Later that same month Frank Gibeau, head of EA's mobile division, stated that the game's failure was attributed to audiences "not being ready" and that the game "innovated too much". These remarks resulted in backlash from game journalist media and users alike.