<https://thelifestream.net/forums/threads/the-ongoing-loot-box-drama.20142/>
<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"[Not sure whether this should be in Debates or not (as I never go in there, lol :P) so Mods feel free to move this if it's more appropriate, but since it's quite a big piece of gaming news, I thought that it being here in this section would be best].\n\n\nUnless you've been living under a rock, there has been a shitstorm of controversy regarding the inclusion - or rather, the exact implementation - of Loot Boxes within big AAA games and the videogame industry as a whole.\n\nThis has been going on for quite some time, however events have come to a head recently when the UK Government was forced to respond to a petition about Loot Boxes in gaming, the Belgium Government began to look into Loot Boxes as gambling, and of course, the massive storm of controversy regarding Battlefront II.\n\nIf you haven't been following the news regarding Battlefront II, then you will not be aware that the implementation of Loot Boxes within it has not gone down well with fans at all. After a massive backlash, EA have attempted to modify the situations several times, changing the exact contents of the Loot Boxes, the credits received ingame, and turning off Microtransactions at  launch. But gamer fury has hit the game, the company, and it's launch (at least, physical copies) were down then on the previous installment.\n\nNot only that, but this storm by gamers has managed to push the situation further into the spotlight, getting traction on BBC News, CNN, and other media outlets. The entire concept of Loot Boxes has been put under a spotlight like never before.\n\nAnd now, the Belgium Government has declared that Loot Boxes ARE gambling and will pursue banning their inclusion within Europe. \n\nThis is obviously a huge turning point in events, and what might happen to Loot Boxes within videogames.\n\nSo, what are your thoughts about Loot Boxes themselves? Do you actually see them as a form of gambling? Do you not mind them being implemented within videogames? Or do you perceive them as more akin to trading cards and stickers? And what impact do you think this could have on gaming as a whole? Could we see developers trying to charge European gamers a higher base game price? Steeper microtransactions? ...."
<https://thelifestream.net/forums/threads/the-ongoing-loot-box-drama.20142/>