Games with loot boxes to get minimum 16 age rating across Europe

That's mild. I'd ban them outright.

Do they let 16 year olds gamble in casinos in Europe? Odd to ban it for kids but only some kids.

I never understood why video game lootboxes get regulated while real-life lootboxes like pokemon cards don't.

I wish they'd add mandatory labeling. I'm over 16 and have no interest in games with loot boxes.

should probably just ban gambling for children but seems like a good first step.

Loot Boxes are like Pokemon cards, you buy a pack, don't know what you're going to get, and then you can trade or sell them. Banning this is just preventing kids from developing a proper risk/reward instinct later in life.

I think this is good, but also it will change things very little (parents will skip the age verification screen).

Okay? How will this actually change anything?

I don't think I have ever paid attention to a single age rating in my entire life. Does anyone do outside of fundamentalist parents who wouldn't let kids play most video games anyways?

Very spiritually European move.

What regulators should do is focus on easily applicable percentage-based fines. Make sure it's not just another line item.

I do understand the rationale; and I have known kids who were addicted to gaming. So I don't disagree that this kind of addiction-mechanism in games, is somewhat similar to e. g. casino gambling where some people get hooked up and may be unable to exit that addiction, leading to massive loss. People are different - some are very easy to addict. Others have strategies against that. My simple strategy was to never start gambling - and never pay for playing a game (aside from the initial purchase, but the last game I bought was in the 1990s; back then games were IMO better too, ignoring the graphics).

Having said that, though, when I also combine this news with the attempt to force operating systems into sniffing for my age at all times, I am still totally against this. This kind of over-eager bureaucracy is not good. It reminds me of attempts to prohibit alcohol. Yes, it is not the same, a loot box does not cause physical symptoms really, compared to alcohol or, say, harder drugs - but states seem too eager to want to restrict people. Or monitor them, such as in the case of "age verification". So now this legislation is another basis to support mandatory age sniffing of everyone. So I am completely against it now.

Ok, so we all agreed that it is gambling. But for some reason we let kids gamble but only after they reach sixteen? This feels weird.

[dead]

Nanny state?

Yet again more moves which take away the liberty of all citizens and users instead of restricting predatory companies and products..

How much access to money parents want to give their kids is up to the parents.

What people do with their own money, including kids, is up to the people.

WHY are countries not enacting laws that punish companies for once? Say something like:

• "After 3-5 purchases of the same item with random contents the buyer should get the content they specifically want."

• "No item with random contents should cost more than N $\€"

• "Buyers should have N-M hours to get a refund for an item with random contents"

That way you could keep the "fun" and spirit of gambling without its destructive spiral and stuff

Loot boxes are an in-game feature allowing players to buy random mystery items with real or virtual currency

That's not how I use the term. I think of a loot box as a treasure chest or similar that you discover while exploring which, when opened, gives you some loot!

On the other hand if you're talking about a package with a random assortment of stuff in it that you buy without knowing what's inside, I call that a "grab bag" or "mystery bundle".

Am I too old? What games were primarily responsible for changing the vocabulary?