There has been considerable debate as to
how loot boxes should be handled by publishers in the wake of EA's controversial mechanism in its game «Star Wars Battlefront II» — using loot boxes as a way to achieve power - ups early on in the game than intended.
I have a good sense of
how loot boxes fit into the picture.
A quick run down on
how the loot boxes and the various different currencies work are in order.
Though, much like how DLC has led to the chop - shop style of games we have today, or
how loot boxes quickly became a way a vacuuming up the spare change of players, this «equity - based crowd funding» project has the same sniff of cow - based excrement — or bullshit.
You could make the case that Battlefront II is messed up ethically because of
how the loot boxes are set up, and I agree with that.
is messed up ethically because of
how the loot boxes are set up, and I agree with that.
What may be most important, though, is
how the loot box controversy has affected the people who make games.
Not exact matches
Chris Davis, co-founder of the
Loot Crate subscription service, describes
how his company had to package and ship 250,000
boxes in three days after a massive strike closed down the port of Los Angeles.
Following backlash against Star Wars Battlefront II, EA recently promised that it will «be better» with
how it implements microtransactions and
loot boxes in future titles, specifically the next Battlefield title and BioWare's Anthem.
Aside from the
loot boxes, there are no other upgrades or progression systems — everyone is on a level playing field no matter
how long they have been playing the game.
Ranker said that the industry needs to figure out
how to regulate
loot boxes because it's unacceptable to have «predatory gambling masked in a game with dancing bunnies or something» (I'm pretty sure those bunnies feel unfairly singled out right now)...
Many other countries have said that
loot boxes are not gambling as the contents have no real value but that is not a factor to the BGC, they say they items in
loot boxes have a perceived value depending on
how rare they are in game.
If lawmakers go ahead and regulate
loot boxes, I wonder
how that will affect the various genres of games that depend on them, and whether we'll end up with something better or not.
EA has found itself in some hot water with
how it implemented
loot boxes in its highly acclaimed multiplayer shooter Star Wars Battlefront II.
Each class and vehicle type has its own cards and levels, so while this probably isn't
how things would've been organised if
loot boxes had never been intended it does provide the game with a perfectly fair and balanced set of skill trees.
If
loot boxes become illegal
how can they push forward?
The more forgiving we are of
loot boxes, the further publishers will push to test the limits of
how much money they can make from it.
With a price increase for the main
box and various changes to the items inside (particularly the ever - changing pins), it seems like the company is having some trouble deciding
how to handle the main
Loot Crate subscription and what its value should be.
«The more forgiving we are of
loot boxes, the further publishers will push to test the limits of
how much money they can make from them.»
Though criminal prosecution against the investigated publishers is their primary recommendation, the BGC has set forth additional recommendations for
how to deal with
loot boxes more broadly.
The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has finally responded to all the controversy surrounding
loot boxes and
how they will handle in - game purchases moving forward.
EA has found itself in some hot water with
how it implemented
loot boxes in its highly acclaimed multiplayer shooter Star Wars Battlefront II.
Even with the host of other great fighters released this year, we can still see ourselves coming back for a few
loot boxes or multiplayer sessions for the foreseeable future, especially considering
how much more DLC characters will add with their new
loot.
Loot boxes come in several varieties but regardless of how exactly they are designed the key ethical question for loot boxes is whether their value is clear and understandable to the purcha
Loot boxes come in several varieties but regardless of
how exactly they are designed the key ethical question for
loot boxes is whether their value is clear and understandable to the purcha
loot boxes is whether their value is clear and understandable to the purchaser.
I think it's important to separate cosmetic
loot boxes and gameplay
loot boxes because while cosmetic
loot boxes can still be done in an unfair manner, as they only contain cosmetic goods, they don't affect
how the game is played and keep players on an even basis, therefore they won't be mentioned in this article.
funny
how people did nt complain about paying # 30 for a season pass but complain at a lot less for
loot boxes, instead of moaning about them simply do nt buy them, as while people are complaining its drawing attention to them, best way for them to learn is if no1 buys them.
Finally, if you're looking for some excellent but sobering reading on
loot boxes, Kotaku's Heather Alexandra recently wrote this essay, where she unpacks
how games helped her discovering a dormant gambling addiction.
And in a year where major publishers are trying to figure out
how to make
loot boxes the future of monetization, that is something worth paying attention to.
We come in hot with
loot box talk and
how Belgium and Hawaii are our only saviors.
I do like
how the game will only ever make you wait for about ninety seconds before giving you a match against bots, meaning you can still gain the exp you don't in skirmish games without having to wait ages for players, its great for the types of people that aren't big on multiplayer, each vehicle has unlockable skins, voice lines, tombstones to mark deaths and emotes for bragging rights, the game also features a leveling system with
loot boxes for unlockable gear and titles at each level up, meaning there are always rewards for even the casual player to earn which is great for replay value.
The
loot box craze suffered a few blows with criticism levelled at
how Star Wars Battlefront II dealt with their
loot boxes.
The gameplay systems were confusing, the story was going nowhere and I could already see
how the late - game grind for
loot boxes was going to be a pain in the butt.
If the house always wins at the casino, we don't even know
how to begin explaining
how much winning video game developers are doing with their
loot box revenue.
How will that impact those
loot boxes themselves in the future?
Video game developers and publishers make a huge amount of money from cosmetic items and from the sale of things such as
loot boxes and it is understandable why so many gamers are discussing
how their money is spent.
Even though the heroes aren't explicitly tied into the
loot boxes, they've been the subject of ire - especially given
how the rate at which they're acquired was boosted dramatically from beta to the full retail version.
It's unclear
how much money people spend on these
loot boxes exactly but publisher Activision has called Overwatch a billion - dollar franchise, which indicates that the game is raking it in.
We won't even do the math on
how much money that is, especially when you take the odd
loot box purchase into account, but lets be honest - probably a worthwhile pursuit by the folks in blue.
Without an objective way to determine if a
loot box result is a win or loss, I don't see
how they meet the parameters.
Alexandra compared
how much you can earn without spending money and
how much you'll get by buying
loot boxes, and concluded, «You can quite literally pay money for statistical advantages in Star Wars Battlefront II.»
With places like South Korean PC bangs making it hard to judge exactly
how much money this has brought into the company, when you consider the existence of the in - game
loot boxes, highly successful real - world merchandising and the various versions of Collector's Editions - well, it's probably an awful lot of cash.
Much has been made about
how Shadow of War brings in the industry's favorite money - making system,
loot boxes and microtransactions.
We've already explored many of the issues revolving around
loot boxes and time - saver DLC but we've yet to talk about
how these things affect game balance in a single player game.
While I can see
how easily one can draw the parallels between arcade tickets and
loot boxes.
In 2017, thanks to Battlefront II and a few others,
loot boxes became the latest skirmish in a larger fight over
how to make money selling games.
Only time will tell
how the pursuit of micro transactions and
loot boxes will affect the AAA gaming scene.
It's funny when you consider just
how long it took before people decided that
loot boxes were a bad thing.
Everyone knows video games have to make money somehow, but the question over
how games make money became one of the central arguments in 2017, as various big name publishers brought one of the most popular ways to monetize mobile and free - to - play games —
loot boxes — into the mainstream.
So in the interests of trying to find some positivity in this Battlefront II mess, let's take a look at other games that use
loot boxes and F2P aftermarket gameplay items in a good way, and think about
how EA DICE might improve things in the future, whether through patches or in a theoretical sequel.
But, we can see similarities between the way
loot boxes affect players and
how Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs) operate and are regulated in the UK.