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It’s no secret that loot boxes are currently unpopular subjects in the video game industry, with a lot of players expressing disgust at the concept. However, even with only a fraction of the whole community continuing to purchasing skins, crates, and other additional contents, video game giants like EA are making money hand over fist. It’s no wonder that the company has decided to keep pushing loot boxes despite being classified as gambling.
Several countries have already classified or are thinking of classifying loot boxes as gambling, many of which are concentrated in Europe. Among the games that have been mentioned is FIFA Ultimate Team, which is an EA title. During a conference call with analysts, EA chief executive officer Andrew Wilson said that the company is still pushing for loot boxes, VentureBeat reports, thus basically assuring investors that their financial gain is still the company’s top concern.
“We’re going to continue pushing forward [with FIFA Ultimate Team],” Wilson said. “We’re always thinking about our players. We’re always thinking about how to deliver these types of experiences in a transparent, fun, fair, and balanced way for our players — and we’ll continue to work with regulators on that.”
Wilson also assured investors that unlike some countries, specifically Belgium and The Netherlands, many other markets are not willing to classify loot boxes as gambling. This will then protect the revenue source, which has helped EA earn $1.25 billion during the last quarter alone without having to release a new game. It’s as clear of a cash cow as anything can possibly be.
“We’re working with all of the industry associations globally and with regulators in certain regions and territories,” he said. “Many of [the regulators] we’ve been working with for a long time, and they have evaluated and established that programs like FIFA Ultimate Team are not gambling.”
In an attempt to at least seem as if the company cares about what gamers actually think, Wilson did say that the loot boxes will be delivered in a "transparent, fun, fair, and balanced way," Gamasutra reports. So, it would appear that the majority of gamers will simply have to learn to live with loot boxes.
