I don’t think there’s anyone out there who can wholeheartedly say that loot boxes are ever a welcome addition in games. Whether it’s a free-to-play title or not, chance mechanics take already frustrating microtransactions to a whole other level, where you might not even get whatever cosmetic, weapon or character that it is you’re after, even after spending significant amounts of money. Fun!
A number of countries have introduced some really strict laws surrounding the inclusion of loot boxes in games - yesterday, it was announced that Diablo Immortal wouldn’t be released in Belgium or the Netherlands for that very reason. Now, as reported by PCGamesN, a new report from the Norwegian Consumer Council (NCC), which is calling for stronger regulations on loot boxes, has been backed by 18 European countries.
It might seem like just a bit of fun, but players can get incredibly invested in opening loot boxes - take a look at the video below.
The report breaks down the reason why loot boxes are so effective in preying on gamers, including capitalising on people’s feeling of missing out (FOMO) and the sunk cost fallacy (basically, feeling like you should keep spending money so that the money you’ve already spent isn’t wasted).
It then goes on to pull a specific example from FIFA 22, with the TOTY Kylian Mbappe card. The NCC calculated that to guarantee getting this card in game, someone would have to open 847 Jumbo Rare Players packs, which would cost a whopping 1.7 million FIFA points - that’s about £11,478 (or $14,485).
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So, what’s going to come from all this, then? The NCC is calling for a number of new regulations, including the ban of “deceptive design to exploit consumers”, and for any games likely to be accessed by minors to be free of loot boxes altogether.
"Although the video games industry is amongst the largest entertainment industries, it has often eluded serious regulatory oversight,” the report reads. “Therefore, we call for stronger regulatory action against video game companies that fail to respect consumer rights and that prey on consumer vulnerabilities.”