Lootboxes in computer games have long been criticised. The United Kingdom now wants to set stricter rules and guidelines to protect younger players in particular
Lootboxes have been considered quite controversial for quite some time. The main point of criticism is usually the gambling mechanics hidden behind them. In Belgium and the Netherlands, content such as Lootboxes has already been banned since 2018. The United Kingdom now also wants to impose stricter guidelines.
New guidelines to restrict lootboxes
The UK Interactive Entertainment Associationon 18 July drafted a set of new regulations that game developers should follow in the future regarding lootboxes.
These are the new demands of the British Association:
- Technological controls to prevent those under 18 from buying lootboxes without parental consent.
- Promote awareness and acceptance of such controls.
- Establish a panel of experts on age protection in the video games industry
- Disclosure of the presence of loot boxes prior to purchase (of the game)
- Providing clear information on the likelihood of winning
- Easy and understandable design of loot boxes
- Supporting the implementation of the research framework for video games
- Continue to tackle the unauthorised external sale of items derived from lootboxes
- Commitment to a lenient refund policy
- Promote safeguards for all players
- Collaborate with the UK government and other relevant stakeholders to measure the effectiveness of these principles after an appropriate implementation period of 12 months
Protection of minors at the forefront of the new guidelines
The British association places particular emphasis on appropriate protection of minors in relation to loot boxes in the new guidelines
Technical age controls will be used to ensure that no player under the age of 18 can purchase Lootboxes in games.
Furthermore, it should be clearly recognisable before purchase, whether a game contains loot boxes This way, players can decide in advance whether they want to play a game that contains gambling mechanics such as Lootboxes
A “lenient refund policy” is also designed to allow parents to more easily reverse unauthorised purchases made by their children
More transparency on probabilities
Another point that will also be enforced by the new guidelines is increased transparency in terms of winning probabilities for loot boxes.
According to the British association, in future it should always be stated with what probability one can obtain the potentially contained items
This measure is intended to provide more transparency and help better inform players about the potential contents of a box before they purchase it.
