The emotion of entering a video game and suddenly an envelope with a golden halo pops out around it and the promise that the reward will be enormous, is present, and surely you already know what we are talking about, what you may not know is that these prizes called loot boxes.
The loot boxes or “reward boxes” as their name indicates, are these envelopes, boxes or chests that appear in video games and through which you receive game items that, generally, improve the gameplay or appearance and equipment of the avatar. These can be from costumes, to sounds or special movements, among others.
Loot boxes are gaining ground in the world of video games
The use of these reward boxes emerged in Asia, where they were devised as a monetization tool within free online video games. Later they came to the West, and now it doesn’t matter if the video game is free or not, loot boxes are included in video games of any style because they have been a very effective way to retain players and earn more money.
Video game companies offer two ways to get loot boxes: you can play and complete certain objectives to receive them as a reward or buy them using real money. And it is precisely this last point that the Spanish government wants to regulate.
From classic trading cards to virtual cards
It seems that the technological phenomenon has also reached the classic card packs. Now you can go from buying them at the kiosk to form your dream team to doing it virtually as a complement to the FIFA. Loot boxes have become a key element to EA Sports’ revenue model, serving as an extra way to raise money on top of what the game itself already costs.
As with trading cards, what you get from these virtual envelopes is a surprise, may or may not be useful to the player. A consumption model based on chance and the desire that the goddess Fortune smiles at you and allows you to obtain a valuable player to incorporate into your team. Although, recently, it is allowed to see part of the content of the envelopes before their purchase, yes, the times that this can be done each day are limited.
We should mention that, specifically in FIFA, there is another option to get the players you want. However, this is based on another “investment” model, in which the currency of exchange is your time. The more hours you spend playing and participating in special events, the more virtual coins you can earn to later exchange them for players.
Spain will be the first European country to have a specific law to moderate loot boxes
The Minister of Consumer Affairs, Alberto Garzón, has confirmed that loot boxes will be regulated by means of a specific and pioneering law in Europe called Loot Box Law. According to , the new law seeks to regulate those “devices that have an economic value in a real or fictitious market and whose random prize can be resold or exchanged.”
Likewise, he has stated that the The Ministry of Consumption has already presented a prior and open consultation, for which it will be the preliminary draft of the law. The parliamentary processing of this new law could begin in the coming months but, to do so, it needs to go through a series of procedures and be approved by the Council of Ministers to subsequently be sent to the Cortes.
The objective of the new law is that it can help consumers enjoy video games while preserving their mental health, especially the youngest and most vulnerable. A necessary reflection considering that the National Plan on Drugs revealed that during 2021, 3 out of 10 students spent money on a video game to improve your position, character, accessories or image.
“A system as particular as that of the loot boxs that we analyze today is where they have been introduced characteristics very similar to those of traditional games of chance. They share the randomness or chance in the result, that it costs money to activate the mechanism and that the prize has an evaluable value», the Minister.
Given the possibility that these similarities with games of chance generate “thoughtless, compulsive or even pathological” consumption behaviorsthe Ministry of Consumer Affairs sees it necessary to create a more specific regulation than the one that the reform of the Gambling Law could offer.
Monetization within video game streaming platforms
There is a close similarity between the loot boxes used in video games and tools such as , used by content creators as a monetization tool within the game streaming social network.
While loot boxes are used by large video game companies for users to buy upgrades for their characters and get a higher level of play, with the streamloot platform creators can sell exclusive interactions with their community through chests, which is equal to money and with his followers. Inside the chests are various cards that are traded and displayed to the content creator as an advertisement of what the user is asking them to do, such as singing, playing a game with the user, dressing up, etc.
It remains to be seen if streamloots will also be included in the new Loot Boxes Law and if their use will be restricted, which would surely affect the monetization of content creators.
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