By CCN Markets: Addiction is a variation of passion—one which impairs general life functions. Addicts are commonly willing to sacrifice basic needs or core obligations to sate their hunger for the next fix. As a recovering gaming addict, I find it troubling that, despite gaming addiction having been both a factor in my own development and recently added to the ICM and DSM, two diagnostic manuals for mental health conditions, EA’s Kerry Hopkins has publicly stated: I don’t think we can agree to say that games are addictive, I would tell you that Electronic Arts already is a very responsible
GOP Senator Introduces Bill to Ban Loot Boxes in Video Games for Minors
The days of video game loot boxes might be numbered as Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) announced a new bill this week that would ban loot boxes and pay-to-win microtransactions in games played by minors. If passed, The Protecting Children from Abusive Games Act would apply new consumer protections to: Games targeted at those under the […]
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Jake Paul Is Shilling Polish Loot Boxes to Children, So We Opened One
Controversial YouTube personality Jake Paul is again the subject of public scrutiny after launching a campaign to shill real-life loot boxes from a Polish website, “Mystery Brand,” to his 17 million followers, the majority of which are underage teens and tweens. Mystery Brand’s system mimics that of the loot boxes found within popular video games, where gamers […]
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FTC (Finally) Promises to Investigate Video Game Loot Boxes
Loot boxes have now been in the spotlight for a number of years, upsetting everyone from educators and parents to the gamers themselves. Now, it looks like real action may soon be taken against these quasi-gambling vehicles as the US Federal Trade Commission is planning to investigate loot boxes. On Tuesday, Senator Maggie Hassan (D – NH), […]
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New MMORPG ‘Ember Sword’ Plans to Replace Loot Boxes With Blockchain
Ember Sword, a new cross-platform sandbox massively multiplayer online roleplaying game (MMORPG) by So Couch Studios, plans to replace the current dominance of loot boxes, which offer limited real-world value, with a system of true ownership of items via blockchain technology. According to an announcement, Ember Sword draws inspiration from games like Ultima Online and Runescape, where it […]
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New Study Links Loot Boxes in Video Games to Problem Gambling
A public study conducted via a survey of over 7,400 gamers has recently been published, finding, “important links between loot box spending and problem gambling.” Published by the Australian Environment and Communications Reference Committee (ECRC), the survey was written in response to a scholarly journal published in Nature Human Behaviour, titled, “Video game loot boxes […]
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