US politicians call on gaming companies to axe coercive spending

Chief among the concerns of both nations is the continued emphasis on pay-to-win mechanics and gambling behaviours within certain big-selling (often multiplayer heavy) franchises.

In the years since EA’s 2018 Battlefront II debacle – in which the company was slammed for a horrible multiplayer progression system overtly tied to loot boxes – attitudes have generally shifted to include more in-game incentives to unlock new content and level up.

US lawmakers argue that while this is largely true of the wider industry, ‘children are uniquely vulnerable to manipulation and peer pressure’ to keep spending money they don’t have.

Many of these games have seasonal rollouts with timed content available on their in-game marketplaces, and use nudge mechanics like menu pop ups to encourage spending before they expire.

One title explicitly guilty of such mechanics, FIFA 2021, returned a staggering $1.6bn from Ultimate Team packs alone last year and has amassed close to $6bn across all franchise entries since 2013. In that time, each FIFA game has dropped with a standard PEGI 3 age rating.

‘The prevalence of micro-transactions – often encouraged through nudging – have led to high credit card bills for parents,’ the US politicians wrote. ‘Loot boxes go one step further, encouraging purchase before a child knows what the “bundle” contains – akin to gambling.’

Adding to existing scrutiny about loot boxes and gambling mechanics within gaming, the letter also addresses the dangers young people potentially face through multiplayer interactions. Up to now, this has been deemed a real oversight.

The US already has legislation that protects children aged under 13 from the disclosure of personal information without parental consent, but there is a feeling in Congress that more needs to be done by big developers to safeguard young gamers throughout their adolescence.

Thanks to the UK upping the ante, there is now a desire to prohibit targeted in-game ads from reaching children at all, and to force companies to start designing their games with the best interests of young people in mind.

Boasting the title of the biggest industry in entertainment, gaming is ultra-focused on becoming as accessible as possible. Perhaps it’s about time it starts to prioritise generations who will sustain it for years to come.