Image Credit: Bethesda
Forgot password
Enter the email address you used when you joined and we'll send you instructions to reset your password.
If you used Apple or Google to create your account, this process will create a password for your existing account.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Reset password instructions sent. If you have an account with us, you will receive an email within a few minutes.
Something went wrong. Try again or contact support if the problem persists.
The loot box controversy continues, with new calls for legislation regulating what's perceived as gambling in online games.

U.K. Commission Recommends Loot Box, Microtransaction Regulation

The loot box controversy continues, with new calls for legislation regulating what's perceived as gambling in online games.
This article is over 4 years old and may contain outdated information

The loot box controversy might have quieted down a bit in recent months, but that doesn’t mean things aren’t still happening behind the scenes. The Children’s Commission for England recently submitted a report examining potential dangers and developmental problems associated with children and online gaming. Much to no one’s surprise, loot boxes and microtransactions featured prominently in the report.

Recommended Videos

It first provides a case for how ingrained online gaming is in many children’s lives, claiming it’s “an extension of their offline life.”

Because online gaming has become more than just a pastime, the Commission believes the same laws regulating offline behavior should extend to online games — including laws regulating compulsive purchases based on risk, chance, and reward (read: “gambling”). Simply disclosing rates, as some developers have opted to do, won’t be enough the Commission says.

The report recommends a variety of actions, from limiting ways money can be spent in games and forbidding paid progression to using online games as digital teaching spaces that help children learn responsibility.

However, these are just recommendations from the Commission. While it’s certainly influential, it doesn’t mean there will be direct action or, as happened in the U.S., a bill proposed to actually enforce regulations Belgium

The full report can be found here.


GameSkinny is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy
Author
Image of Josh Broadwell
Josh Broadwell
Josh Broadwell started gaming in the early '90s. But it wasn't until 2017 he started writing about them, after finishing two history degrees and deciding a career in academia just wasn't the best way forward. You'll usually find him playing RPGs, strategy games, or platformers, but he's up for almost anything that seems interesting.