The FTC says it's going to investigate the booty boxes

The Federal Trade Commission announced that it was investigating surprise boxes, a controversial video game mechanism that allows gamers to spend real money on random products.

During a hearing, FTC President Joseph Simons spoke to Senator Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, who recently spoke about surprise boxes. During his questioning at the hearing, Hassan quoted a recent report from the British Gambling Commission, according to which 31% of the country 's children had at one time or another paid money. money to open a box of surprises, as well as measures taken by Belgium. Japan and other countries limit the possibility of using chests in games.

"Given the gravity of the situation, I think the time has come for the FTC to study these mechanisms to ensure the adequate protection of children and to educate parents about the potential for addiction or the other negative impacts of these games, "said Hassan. "Would you be willing to undertake this project and keep this committee informed?"

In response, Simons answered "yes," but declined to elaborate on the FTC's current position on loot boxes and whether they constitute a form of gambling. Despite Hassan's harsh criticism and some others on the subject, the regulators have not jumped to get involved in the debate. Kotaku contacted the FTC for additional comments on its projects but did not receive a response as soon as possible.

After the public outrage about booty chests, the level reached after being included in Star Wars: Battlefront II A year ago this month, a handful of state and federal lawmakers addressed the issue, including Hassan. She first raised her concerns about the surprise boxes at the first Appointment Hearings of Simons and the other current FTC Commissioners, asking them if they would be willing to take a closer look at the issue. They said yes too, but there has been no news in recent months, showing that chests were nowhere among the agency's priorities.

The big question about the future of surprise boxes will depend on the decision of legislators and government regulators to be a form of gambling. Companies like EA have argued that they are not, because unlike a slot machine, you always get something back when you buy a loot box, although the value of this thing can vary enormously. Some politicians, like Chris Lee, representative of the state of Hawaii, have asserted the opposite and have supported the adoption of state-level legislation aimed at preventing under 21 years old to be able to buy them.

This bill and others aimed at regulating Hawaii's treasure chests all died at the committee earlier this year. Legislation in other states, including Washington, Minnesota and California, is also blocked.

Hassan's efforts to draw attention to the issue, meanwhile, have not completely failed. Following its original comments on the issue in February and a letter that she sent to the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), this organization announced that it would add a label "Purchases into the game "to games allowing players to buy something more. However, since the label encompasses both microtransactions and other forms of content in the game, such as extensions or DLC, its effectiveness remains in question.

Some European countries, such as the Netherlands and Belgium, have forced companies such as Blizzard and Valve to change the way chests work in some of their games, or even to reveal what they contain before players can play them. buy.