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[PCGamer] Belgium says loot boxes are gambling, wants them banned in Europe

3K views 39 replies 28 participants last post by  Liranan 
#1 ·
Quote:
Last week, Belgium's Gaming Commission announced that it had launched an investigation into whether the loot boxes available for purchase in games like Overwatch and Star Wars Battlefront 2 constitute a form of gambling. Today, VTM News reported that the ruling is in, and the answer is yes.

The Google translation is a little sloppy, as usual, but the message is clear enough. "The mixing of money and addiction is gambling," the Gaming Commission declared. Belgium's Minister of Justice Koen Geens also weighed in, saying, "Mixing gambling and gaming, especially at a young age, is dangerous for the mental health of the child."

Geens, according to the report, wants to ban in-game purchases outright (correction: if you don't know exactly what you're purchasing), and not just in Belgium: He said the process will take time, "because we have to go to Europe. We will certainly try to ban it."
Looks like they've made a decision.

Source
 
#2 ·
Best news i've heard all week.
 
#4 ·
Wish every country would follow this, that way game publishers would allow the dev's to just make a properly decent game, that is addictive on its own merits, instead of trying to shoe-horn these disgusting mechanics into every game.
 
#5 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by starliner View Post

LOL!
rolleyes.gif


EA will just change it to known items and increase the price.
At which point people will have a clear notion of what to buy or not to buy, according to their interests, instead of having to pull the slot machine lever until they get what they want, while EA can only raise the price by so much before people walk away altogether. So, of course they will raise the price to a degree, but the buck stops there instead of keeping on spinning.
 
#6 ·
Everyone and I mean everyone, would rather pay more money for the item outright.

Lootbox's entire strategy is to instill bad habits into people. To prey on you mentally.

You should hate this cancer. Good on you, Belgium.
 
#7 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by tpi2007 View Post

At which point people will have a clear notion of what to buy or not to buy, according to their interests, instead of having to pull the slot machine lever until they get what they want, while EA can only raise the price by so much before people walk away altogether. So, of course they will raise the price to a degree, but the buck stops there instead of keeping on spinning.
Or they put a timer on the goods, so you have to buy them over again
biggrin.gif
. That would actually be worst than loot boxes, cause once you have what you want from a loot box, you stop buying. Gotta keep this gaming as a service going.
 
#8 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by S.M. View Post

Everyone and I mean everyone, would rather pay more money for the item outright.

Lootbox's entire strategy is to instill bad habits into people. To prey on you mentally.
Exactly.

Quote:
Originally Posted by starliner View Post

Or they put a timer on the goods, so you have to buy them over again
biggrin.gif
. That would actually be worst than loot boxes, cause once you have what you want from a loot box, you stop buying. Gotta keep this gaming as a service going.
You mean consumable items? The latest Deus Ex game did that and they were lambasted for it:

http://store.steampowered.com/app/470070/Deus_Ex_Mankind_Divided_DLC__Season_Pass/
 
#11 ·
Finally.
 
#14 ·
RIOT games' League of Legends has the same item as the lootboxes, a type of purchasable package with random contents.
they call it the "mystery" items.
 
#16 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Defoler View Post

I guess EA didn't think this will be the outcome of their P2W strategy.
This didn't just backfire. it is like sending out a boomerang and it coming back with a nuke strapped to it.
The whole ordeal is now going to make a tsunami in the industry.
That's what they get for being so arrogant. Pretending that you can't be touched doesn't mean you can't be touched.

A ton of MMOs, MOBAs and FPSes are about to get punched in the gut. Heroes of the Storm not too long ago implemented Overwatch's loot box system.
 
#17 ·
Funny how instead of self regulating and getting rules that would be still within 'AAA publishers' interest while also protecting consumers to some degree, you get regulated in a knee-jerk reaction from the government once you've gone way past what's reasonable. Surely this must be the first time in history this has happened, and that it was completely unpredictable. I wonder what shareholders will think... 'Good job' pushing the boundaries for the sake of profit until the governments gets involved, or being punished for taking the golden goose and somehow killing it instead of being happy it laid golden eggs for free.
 
#18 ·
Keywords: might; time.

Don't count your chickens yet.
 
#19 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by epic1337 View Post

RIOT games' League of Legends has the same item as the lootboxes, a type of purchasable package with random contents.
they call it the "mystery" items.
IIRC, It costs something like ~320RP and is guaranteed to give you skin worth ~500RP with a possibility of giving you a rarer skin worth more.

You can also buy any skin (besides limited availability skins) outright.

The game is also F2P and not P2W.
 
#20 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by S.M. View Post

IIRC, It costs something like ~320RP and is guaranteed to give you skin worth ~500RP with a possibility of giving you a rarer skin worth more.

You can also buy any skin (besides limited availability skins) outright.

The game is also F2P and not P2W.
its still a random item purchase though, and sometimes the non-available skins could only be purchased through it, effectively making it a lottery.
 
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#21 ·
A step in the right direction, even if it's merely an announcement of intent. Hopefully this nonsense will be a bad memory within the next couple of years.
 
#23 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Owari View Post

Read the first paragraph of the quoted text. Please also read the title.
I see, well that was fast then. Usually it takes them several years
biggrin.gif
Surprised.
Personally I approve, random chance purchases are gambling, doesn't matter if what you get for it is computer based or not.
Getting random stuff for not paying is fine and pretty normal game mechanic, but once you are paying for getting something random it's gambling. People literally go and drop hundreds in OW on lootboxes to try and randomly get some rare skin and what not, it's ridiculous. Of course this gives those that get paid quite a strong income probably more than game sells do and probably would be comparable to subscription gaming income.

I think this doesn't mean that such mechanics will be banned, it may simple mean that such games will be 18+ only etc. if you want to buy them. Though who knows how they will proceed with limiting the gambling and better educating people. Maybe they will require companies to apply for a gambling license or some such as other more common gambling might have to already. I don't think it will go away unless it turns unprofitable for the companies, it would just be nice that younger population is better protected against these gambling actions and parents who decide to buy it for their kid at least know such thing is in there.
 
#25 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by czin125 View Post

Does the game differentiate between these 4 groups? Can you see what players have on death?

1 - earned / disabled
2 - earned / enabled
3 - bought / disabled
4 - bought / enabled
You can't ask for what EA doesn't give you.
 
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