English authority wants to brand loot boxes as gambling

According to the English children’s commissioner, the authorities should consider video game loot boxes as gambling, amid a worldwide debate over them.

UK.- Video game loot boxes have sparked a worldwide debate since some consider them as gambling. The children’s commissioner for England is among them and has urged the government to act on the issue.

Commissioner Anne Longfield stated games push them to spend money on boxes to make further progress in it.

“Children have told us they worry they are gambling when they buy loot boxes,” she said. It’s clear some children are spending hundreds of pounds chasing their losses.

“I want the Government to classify loot boxes in games like FIFA as a form of gambling,” she stated. “A maximum daily spend limit for children would also be reassuring for parents and children themselves.”

According to the commissioner, games “can be rewarding and exciting and help children to develop strategic skills and friendships.” However, she warned about the encouragement, but they are also open to exploitation by games companies who play on their need to keep up with friends and to advance to further stages of a game by encouraging children to spend on loot boxes.“