On July 26, 2026, during Blue Archive's JP server 5.5 anniversary stream, changes to the game's gacha system were announced, specifically the removal of the game's "Spark" system in favor of a "Pity" system.
In Blue Archive, two or more characters are featured in a banner semiweekly, with some characters being limited. The currency used by players to obtain these characters are Pyroxene (Blue Archive)s. Attempting to roll for a character gives the player Recruitment Points, and the game allows the player to pick from any featured characters at 200 Recruitment Points. If lucky, players could roll a featured character before performing 200 recruitments, and then continue rolling to earn the remaining Recruitment Points to spend on another unowned featured character, or a duplicate (for strengthening purposes) of one they already own.
In the stream, it was announced that the new gacha system would introduce a 50% chance of obtaining the featured student after 100 rolls, with a 100% chance at 200, if the player failed to obtain the banner's featured character earlier. Fans took issues with the fact that, based on the announcement's wording, it seemed obtaining any featured character, including one from an active banner other than the one being rolled for (known as being "spooked"), would cause the Recruitment Points to reset. This means a player could obtain a featured student at 190 Recruitment Points and have it reset to 0, making it much more difficult and costly to go for the second. Comparisons were made to similar gacha systems, particularly those referred to as "Hoyo-style", which feature a similar pity system.
The timing of the announcement (just three days before it was planned to be implemented), the method of the announcement (a brief five minute segment near the end of a multi-hour stream following one of the most anticipated announcements in the game's life (Pandemonium Society swimsuit alts)), and the scale of the change altogether sparked mass outrage among fans. As a result of the announcement, reviews on game platforms such as Steam (Platform) plummeted, and many were quick to bring up the connection Nexon's newly-recruited CEO has to EA.
Adding more fuel to the fire a day following the announcement, BA producer Kim Yong-Ha released an apology statement regarding the changes. Many players responded poorly to it, feeling it failed to address the players' actual concerns, focusing instead on "poor communication", misrepresented fans' anger as "confusion", and read more like a typical corporate PR deflection than a sincere apology.