Last year there was a big hoo-ha over loot boxes found in video games. However there was no general consensus about the feature as there were some who felt that it was ok, while others felt that it was not. Over in the Netherlands, it seems that Dutch authorities are leaning towards the latter as they have launched investigations of their own.The Dutch Gaming Authority have found that during their investigations, at least four popular games (ten games were investigated) with loot boxes were found to be in violation of the country’s Better Gaming Act. The games were not mentioned by name, but stated that the four games in question featured “elements in them that can also be found in the gambling world.”
This was pretty much the crux of the matter in which some government regulators felt that loot boxes in games were akin to gambling. According to Marja Appelman, director of the Gaming Authority, “They are designed as gambling games are designed, with the feeling that you have almost won. There are all sorts of sound effects and visual effects when you open such a loot box, so you have a tendency to play through and through. I call on all game companies not to make loot boxes accessible to children anymore and to remove addictive elements.”
To that end, the companies involved have been given 8 weeks to make changes to the loot boxes to comply with the Better Gaming Act or risk getting fined or having the game banned from being sold in the country.
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