Teams urge U.S. to probe ‘loot box’ on Electronic Arts online game

WASHINGTON, June 2 (Reuters) - Consumer advocates on Thursday urged U.S. regulators to investigate video game maker Digital Arts Inc (EA.O) for what they say was the misleading use of a digital "loot box" that "aggressively" urges gamers to spend more cash while playing a well-liked soccer game.

The groups Fairplay, Heart for Digital Democracy and 13 other organizations urged the Federal Trade Fee to probe the EA game "FIFA: Ultimate Group".

Within the game, players construct a soccer crew using avatars of real gamers and compete in opposition to different groups. In a letter to the FTC, the groups mentioned the game usually costs $50 to $100 but that the corporate pushed push gamers to spend extra.

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"It entices players to buy packs in search of particular gamers," mentioned the letter despatched by these teams along with the Shopper Federation of America and Massachusetts Council on Gaming and Health and others.

The packs, or loot containers, are packages of digital content typically bought with actual money that give the purchaser a potential benefit in a game. They can be bought with digital currency, which might obscure how much is spent, they said.

"The possibilities of opening a coveted card, resembling a Participant of the Year, are miniscule until a gamer spends thousands of dollars on factors or plays for thousands of hours to earn cash," the teams said within the letter.

Electronic Arts mentioned in a press release on Thursday that of the game's millions of players, 78% have not made an in-game buy.

"Spending is at all times optionally available," a company spokesperson mentioned in an electronic mail statement. "We encourage using parental controls, including spend controls, which are available for each major gaming platform, including EA's personal platforms."

The spokesperson additionally mentioned the company created a dashboard so gamers would monitor how a lot time they played, what number of packs they opened and what purchases have been made.

The FTC, which matches after companies engaged in misleading habits, held a workshop on loot bins in 2019. In a "workers perspective" which adopted, the company famous that online game microtransactions have turn out to be a multibillion-dollar market.

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Reporting by Diane Bartz in Washington Enhancing by David Gregorio and Matthew Lewis

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