Loot boxes in video games, love them or hate them, they seem to be a feature that developers and publishers are putting into games these days as another means of generating revenue through microtransactions. However it seems that not everyone is a fan of them, and some have even gone as far as calling loot boxes a form of gambling.Recently Belgian authorities have launched an investigation into EA’s Star Wars: Battlefront 2’s loot boxes, and it seems that over in France, the authorities could be interested in taking a look as well. In a post on Reddit (via PlayStation Lifestyle), a letter penned by French senator Jérôme Durain (translated by Redditor Artfunkel) was shared in which he asks France’s online gambling regulator to investigate loot boxes to see if it could be constituted as gambling.
According to Durain, “While I do not think it is necessary at this stage to put in place specific legislation, I wonder about the desirability of providing consumer protection in this area. The use of loot boxes conferring cosmetic additions to the games seems well-accepted by the public. The development of so-called pay-to-win practices is more contentious, as shown by the recent controversy over the game Star Wars Battlefront 2. Quite aside from the acceptance of the practice, some observers point to a convergence of the video game world and practices specific to gambling.”
That being said, EA has since disabled microtransactions for Battlefront 2, although with the debate getting hotter and steeped in controversy, we have to wonder if the company has plans to bring it back.
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