Apple tells App Store devs to disclose loot box odds

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Apple has updated its App Store review guidelines to include a subsection telling developers to disclose the odds of getting different types of in-game items from loot boxes in their games.

This news was highlighted by industry analyst Daniel Ahmad on Twitter, who likened the new rules to Chinese regulations which came into force in May, 2017.

In China, this kind of legislation has not forced everyone into revealing the odds of obtaining randomised items in their games though, with some players accusing companies of looking to find loopholes in the system.

Most notably, Hearthstone stopped selling packs of cards in China altogether, instead offering arcane dust – which is used to craft cards – for sale and rewarding players with “free” packs based on how much dust they purchased.

However if these rules are enforced on a larger scale, it may force developers and publishers to confront the issue more openly.

The legitimacy of loot boxes and microtransaction economies is one of the hottest topics in gaming right now, and is starting to attract the attentions of both the mainstream media and legislative bodies.

Last week, the UK Gambling Commission expressed concern in their annual report that children as young as 11 were being introduced to gambling through CS:GO weapon skins. While in November, French Senator Jérôme Durain said that loot boxes, “require special attention from the public authorities”.



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Related Forum: Mobile Devices

Source: https://www.vg247.com/2017/12/21/apple-loot-box-odds-guidelines/

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"Apple tells App Store devs to disclose loot box odds" :: Login/Create an Account :: 8 comments

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2019Posted:

Hated loot boxes. I'm glad this happened.

TuskPosted:

I love this. I hate loot boxes!!

HOFPosted:

This is a great addition!

ItalianPosted:

KyloCrux It's insane the severity people are making out of loot boxes. I just don't see the likeness of gambling, and loot boxes.


It is in a sense gambling.

You are buying a lootbox in hopes of getting, lets say, a legendary item. In some cases these legendaries are able to be bought with real money and some are hundreds of dollars.

In real life you are gambling a number (lets say Roulette) for the odds to win 35 times your money. But you can also bet small, for only two times your money. Even if you bet only $15, you can win big or small. So even in gaming lootboxes, let you get good or bad stuff.

Also, some people are trying to make it EVEN BIGGER OF DEAL (even though I think it is a big deal) because they dont like the concept of lootboxes making games pay to win. So people who hate pay to win are going to try and use gambling as a cover to get it banned or regulated somehow. Like slapping a [M] or even an [21+] symbol on the game. Which developers would either have to drop the lootboxes so they can market the game to younger people, or not.

This can go a ton of different directions.

25_To_LifePosted:

This should be required for all games, props to apple for doing this.

ZydrinPosted:

It's insane the severity people are making out of loot boxes. I just don't see the likeness of gambling, and loot boxes.

FamousPosted:

Listening odds will help when buying but then again you have people who are addicted.

NasyrPosted:

I do agree that this sort of thing should be public but more that an agreement with parents/guardians need to be established. Too many children being rolled into gambling at a young age.


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