“Foxes protect the chicken coop,” the expert says after ministers called for stricter protections led by the industry.
Loot boxes in video games won’t be banned in the UK, despite a government consultation that uncovered evidence of a “consistent” agreement between features and challenge games.
Loot boxes have been in gambling because they allow players to spend cash to unlock in-game rewards, such as special characters, weapons, or outfits, without knowing what they’ll get.
The features, popular in games such as Call of Duty and the FIFA football series, were banned in Belgium in 2018, but Culture Minister Nadine Dorries said the UK would follow them.
Instead, after a 22-month consultation, he said the government would talk about stricter “industry-led” protections with the £7 billion UK gambling sector, prompting claims from one expert that “foxes protect the chicken coop”.
Legislating to impose restrictions or ban loot boxes as a component of an expected overhaul of UK gambling legislation may have “unintended consequences,” Dorries said.
“For example, the law categorically prohibiting young people from buying loot chests may have the accidental effect of more adult accounts for young people and therefore more limited parental supervision of their gambling and spending,” the government said, reacting to the consultation published in the early hours of Sunday morning.
The government also concluded that while there is a “stable and consistent” agreement between loot chests and challenge games, known in 15 peer-reviewed studies, it may not be sure that there is a causal link.
“Our view is that it would be inopportune to take legislative action without first seeking reinforced industry-driven measures to provide protection for young people and all players,” he said.
Another thing in the resolution is that loot box rewards are legitimately exchanged for real money, which means that, in theory, players cannot “withdraw money” as they would when playing.
However, the Gambling Commission warned in the past that third-party sites allow other people to exchange rewards for real money.
While the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has refrained from proposing legislation, Dorries said: “Children and young people cannot buy chests without parental approval.
“In addition, all players deserve to have access to spending controls and transparent data for their game. “
Ministers are expected to hold talks on tighter restrictions with the UK video game industry. This will be done by a running group, which is expected to deliver its first update in the first 3 months of 2023.
“We hope that businesses and gaming platforms will improve the protection of children, youth and adults, and that the tangible effects will begin to be visual in the near future,” DCMS said. “If this does not happen, we will not hesitate in the legislative options, if we consider it mandatory to protect children, youth, others and adults. “
Dr David Zendle, a video game expert at the University of York, criticised the decision, saying: “The committee’s previous research has unambiguously shown that some bad gamers in the video game industry cannot be trusted to self-regulate when it comes to player protection.
“By making those same industry bodies the ones regulating loot boxes, DCMS necessarily ensures that foxes are the ones protecting the chicken coop. “