In the latest scrutiny over the biggest modern gaming controversy, lootboxes, the United Kingdom's Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport Committee has called both Epic Games and Electronic Arts into Parliament in order to discern whether lootboxes should be outlawed. With both companies publishing some of the largest video game franchises that include lootboxes as a major mechanic--Fortnite and FIFA, respectively--the Committee has begun an investigation into whether lootboxes are harming consumers. During the meeting, which was held on June 19th, Scotland's National Party MP claimed that studies and evidence showed that lootboxes have a close link to gambling. In response, EA's Vice President of Legal Affairs, Kerry Hopkins, made a few comments in the defense of lootboxes in video games, saying, "We don't call them lootboxes. They are instead referred to as surprise mechanics."

Hopkins continued her statement by stating the following, "We do agree with the UK gambling commission, the Australian gambling commission, and many other gambling commissions that they aren’t gambling, and we also disagree that there’s evidence that shows it leads to gambling. Instead, we think it’s like many other products that people enjoy in a healthy way, and like the element of surprise."

In attempts to further explain EA's stance on preventing lootboxes from being considered gambling, especially towards minors, Hopkins then said "People enjoy surprises, it's been a part of toys for years, like in Kinder Eggs or Hatchimals. [...] Lootboxes are actually quite ethical and quite fun, quite enjoyable to people".

Regardless of EA's own stance on the subject, it appears that smaller European countries do not agree, with Belgium and the Netherlands having outlawed lootboxes, resulting in the removal of those elements from their Belgian and Dutch releases, such as Blizzard and 2K removing the option to pay real money for lootboxes in Overwatch and NBA 2K18. Even in the United States, the Senate has put up a bill that, should it manage to be passed, would also ban pay-to-win microtransactions.

Source

 

[ChibiMofo]

In response, EA's Vice President of Legal Affairs, Kerry Hopkins, made a few comments in the defense of lootboxes in video games, saying, "We don't call them lootboxes. They are instead referred to as surprise mechanics."

That's like when the NRA representative took issue with a House committee member calling an assault riffle an "assault riffle" and said that they preferred to refer to them as "revenue generators".

 

[auntnadia]

I remember kinder eggs. They’re the massively overpriced chocolate that houses a crappy plastic toy. They had limited edition runs which would always have a rare one, so you’d need to keep purchasing the same thing over and over to complete the collection.

 

[NekoMichi]

They're not "loot boxes", but "ethical surprise mechanics"?
Okay sure why not. I'm also not boycotting EA, I'm just taking an ethical surprise permanent break.

 

[Bladexdsl]

hope they get permanently banned that'll teach ea for unleashing these cancerous fucking things into the gaming world!

 

[Haloman800]

So if you had a daughter and she spent most of her wages on lootboxes youd be fine with tht-as others been saying these digital items should be earnt in the fkin game and thts it-thers no other way anyone can defend lootboxes

If my daughter is an adult, that's her decision (and I've probably failed as a parent). Why you care what other consenting adults spend their money on?

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Id rather someone not be able to pay to literally advance in the game/win and basically cheat at a game. Pay to win is garbage and so is EA.

Then don't play "pay to win" games.

 

[DarkKaine]

Then don't play "pay to win" games.

That holds up until it infests a franchise you really like.

 

[DANTENDO]

If my daughter is an adult, that's her decision (and I've probably failed as a parent). Why you care what other consenting adults spend their money on?

Because ther getting CONNED as I've said so many times when you purchase a game the amount you pay thts it finito you don't fkin pay for any weapons armour stat improvements etc etc they should be made available in game for achieving things

 

[Haloman800]

Because ther getting CONNED as I've said so many times when you purchase a game the amount you pay thts it finito you don't fkin pay for any weapons armour stat improvements etc etc they should be made available in game for achieving things

The government isn't your daddy who's supposed to protect you from bad purchase decisions.

 

[Burorī]

Since Kinder Eggs are illegal in the U.S I guess it'll give them another reason to ban lootboxes

 

[eyeliner]

Since Kinder Eggs are illegal in the U.S I guess it'll give them another reason to ban lootboxes

But are they in the UK? So that point means nothing, yo. American law means jack squat in other countries, you know.

 

[the_randomizer]

But are they in the UK? So that point means nothing, yo. American law means jack squat in other countries, you know.

Obviously. No, they're not banned in the UK, the reason they're banned in the US is because of the potential of a choking hazard, they don't want a lawsuit. And you know the US, everyone is lawsuit happy

 

[KuroTheBang]

Sadly due to lobbyism they wont get banned.

Here in EU Belgium started banning lootboxes but got flamed by other countrys why they did so. Yea, lobbyism.

 

[raxadian]

They even added Lootbootes to their FIFA games, those games are always recicled content and code, they basically just upgrade the graphical engine every few years and change players names and looks, that's it. And it was an already paid game series, not free to play.

 

[Axido]

Wow, can't wait to find actual chocolate within those costly piles of bytes. Or physical toys...

When will EA finally learn that people aren't that gullible?

 

[EmulateLife]

Good news everyone, I'm selling my own Ethical Surprise Mechanics!

https://gbatemp.net/threads/im-selling-ethical-surprise-mechanics.541527/

 

[the_randomizer]

Wow, can't wait to find actual chocolate within those costly piles of bytes. Or physical toys...

When will EA finally learn that people aren't that gullible?

Well, the people who keep buying EA games, thinking them to be infallible, are the ones who are gullible.

 

[Deleted_413010]

You got an achievement!

Achievement: "Being dumber than Sony"

 

[DANTENDO]

You got an achievement!

Achievement: "Being dumber than Sony"

Sony though are nowhere near dumb

 

[Foxi4]

It's almost as if consumers had the option not to play games that contain lootboxes or spend their money on microtransactions, making the entire procedure a consensual exchange of money for goods that the government shouldn't be involved in in any way. The market self-regulates, lootboxes exist because there is a market for them. If you're all so principled and don't want to see them implemented, here's a hint - stop spending money on them. What you guys really want is to have the cake and eat it - you want the content, but you want to get it for free, that's all there is to it. The pearl clutching going on around the issue is completely laughable. Lootboxes are an exact digital analogy of gacha capsules or blind bags, except when you get a duplicate item in-game, at least you get refunded with in-game credit - in real life you just get stuck with a figurine you didn't want. Some of you don't like lootboxes - I get it, but don't expect the rest of the world to adjust to your standard of how digital content distribution should work.

 

[AbyssalMonkey]

It's almost as if consumers had the option not to play games that contain lootboxes or spend their money on microtransactions, making the entire procedure a consensual exchange of money for goods that the government shouldn't be involved in in any way. The market self-regulates, lootboxes exist because there is a market for them. If you're all so principled and don't want to see them implemented, here's a hint - stop spending money on them. What you guys really want is to have the cake and eat it - you want the content, but you want to get it for free, that's all there is to it. The pearl clutching going on around the issue is completely laughable. Lootboxes are an exact digital analogy of gacha capsules or blind bags, except when you get a duplicate item in-game, at least you get refunded with in-game credit - in real life you just get stuck with a figurine you didn't want. Some of you don't like lootboxes - I get it, but don't expect the rest of the world to adjust to your standard of how digital content distribution should work.

It's almost as if consumer abuse should be regulated and any practice that actively abuses it's consumers is destined to be regulated. Humans aren't perfect machines and are susceptible to abuse and governments are there to protect the people against them.

This has nothing to do with free market interference and everything do to with consumer protection.