Will Loot Boxes Be Removed from Video Games in the United Kingdom?
One may wonder why would the well-liked and super exciting loot boxes become potentially prohibited for players residing in the United Kingdom. After all, they are full of surprises, cool skins, virtual credits, coins, rare weapons, or any other cool stuff associated with your game of choice.
Well, the truth is that the UK Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport concluded that those who strive to open such boxes are prone to developing various problems in the future. If you’re curious to find out more about the topic, please, keep on reading.
What Are Loot Boxes?
To make things as clear as possible, we would like to start by explaining a bit more about loot boxes and what they actually are. Although they are not present in every video game, they can be found in some of the most prominent video games on a global scale. Some of them are Overwatch, Apex Legends, CS: GO, Team Fortress 2, and many, many more.
Fortnite, another immensely popular gaming product, too, has some type of loot boxes players can open once they reach a certain level. The only difference is that, unlike many other games, in Fortnite, players are permitted to see the inside of the chest. This way, they can decide whether or not it’s worth climbing the ladder. Some of the most common items one can discover in such boxes are:
- Skins
- Weapons
- Digital Money
- Free Tickets for Particular In-Game Events
How Exactly Are Loot Boxes Dangerous According to the UK DCMS
Now that we’ve explained what loot boxes are, some of you may be wondering how exactly are they potentially dangerous. Well, the truth is that, according to the Department of Culture, Media, and Sport in the United Kingdom, loot boxes may be a reason for many young players, mostly children, to develop certain problems in the future.
Some of them include gambling addiction, financial problems, mental health issues, and so on. According to the experts, these potential conditions may be resulted from the constant need of the player to play until they open that long-awaited loot box. Undeniably, at first sight, this seems almost ridiculous.
But spending some time cogitating about it will surely help one see why this opinion has been formed. For example, children are quite unaware of gambling addiction. All they care about is playing their favourite video games and doing their best to reach the highest level where the golden chest is positioned. Nonetheless, as they age, they will become more proficient in using smart devices.
Thus, they will surely manage to make their way to the all-things market on the Internet, including websites that give users a chance to purchase loot boxes for different video games. This, may, of course, lead to excessive spending of money on the player’s side. In the future, when they are adults, these same children may become fascinated with earning as much money as possible.
Although there is nothing wrong with this endeavour, some people choose to achieve success in this field in a quite improper way, namely with gambling. Therefore, the chances for this individual to develop gambling addiction problems are quite strong. Considering all that’s been said so far, we believe that you now understand why the UK DCMS has called for measures that will limit children’s access to such loot boxes.
The Final Outcome
Despite the fact that loot boxes have been associated with the potential development of gambling addiction, no changes in the Gambling Act have been made. It was said that such a chance might lead to unwanted consequences. Plus, the cost of changing the law would be a process that requires a lot of money.
However, the potential problem has been taken into account. The UK Government has announced that the loot boxes are, indeed, potentially harmful and should not be available to children. One of the reasons for that is the fact that kids often use their parents’ debit cards to purchase chests since this is the easier way to get them.
Many times, parents are not aware of these payments and often seek refunds from their banks. Children use adults’ bank accounts because, of course, people under the age of 18 are not permitted to initiate online payments. The Government has called for strong protection measures to be adopted by the respective companies. Speakers even announced that legislation might be considered in case the issue is not regarded.
Further Measures
Unfortunately, most players have no idea what the probability rates of winning a pricey item from a loot box are. That, of course, leads to constant purchases and an endless amount of time spent in front of the screen. The DCMS has called for further measures to be taken so that gamers could eventually stop spending so much money on chests.
A 90-pages long report was released, and it contains detailed information on the importance of playing responsibly. In it, players can get acquainted with essential details with respect to the loot boxes, such as the fact that satisfactory prizes are not guaranteed in any way. Additionally, different pieces of advice for creators are listed in the report, as well.
They are recommended to implement some type of pop-up messages that warn gamers that numerous purchases have been made already and to suggest potential pausing. Such small steps may certainly contribute to a more secure video gaming environment for users. In order for a gamer to enjoy his gameplay to the fullest, they should be completely responsible when playing the respective game.
