Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo Will Require Developers Outline Loot Box Odds, Says ESA
14
Wednesday, August 07, 2019 @ 07:52 PM
Wednesday, August 07, 2019 @ 08:02 PM
Wednesday, August 07, 2019 @ 08:16 PM
Wednesday, August 07, 2019 @ 08:36 PM
Wednesday, August 07, 2019 @ 08:39 PM
Wednesday, August 07, 2019 @ 09:36 PM
Wednesday, August 07, 2019 @ 11:12 PM
Thursday, August 08, 2019 @ 10:19 AM
Thursday, August 08, 2019 @ 01:34 PM
Thursday, August 08, 2019 @ 02:59 PM
Thursday, August 08, 2019 @ 05:34 PM
Thursday, August 08, 2019 @ 06:15 PM
Friday, August 09, 2019 @ 09:46 PM
Wednesday, August 07, 2019
Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo will be required to ensure game developers disclose odds for paid loot boxes thanks to new rules set by E3 organiser and video game-related body the ESA (Entertainment Software Association). The ESA revealed the new policies during a panel hosted by the Federal Trade Commission.
"Several video game industry leaders are announcing new initiatives to help consumers make informed choices about their purchases, including loot boxes," states the ESA post on its official website. "The major console makers - Sony Interactive Entertainment, operator of the PlayStation platform, Microsoft, operator of Xbox and Windows, and Nintendo, operator of the Nintendo Switch gaming platform - are committing to new platform policies that will require paid loot boxes in games developed for their platforms to disclose information on the relative rarity or probability of obtaining randomised virtual items. These required disclosures will also apply to game updates, if the update adds new loot box features."
Currently, there's no official date set for when developers will have to outline loot box odds, but a target window of '2020' has been touted for Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo to implement the new rules. Several of the ESA's publishing partners have already agreed to disclose the odds of acquiring premium items in its paid loot boxes no later than 2020.
These partners include the likes of Activision Blizzard, Bandai Namco, Bethesda, Bungie, Electronic Arts, Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, Take-Two Interactive, Ubisoft, Warner Bros., and Wizards of the Coast. Multiple ESA members are also considering implementing similar disclosure in their future game releases.
Previously, the ESA has condemned the idea that loot boxes be seen as a form of gambling by the US government, instead pushing for self-regulation within the games industry itself. Measures like these that demand developers and publishers reveal paid loot box odds should help in this regard.
[Via Game Informer]