Apple Now Requires Game Developers to 'Disclose the Odds' of Purchasing Loot Boxes
Apple recently tweaked its policy to require game developers to "disclose the odds" when App Store users purchase loot boxes in mobile games.
The said change in its policies is specifically cited in the App Store Review Guidelines' payments section, which states: "Apps offering 'loot boxes' or other mechanisms that provide randomized virtual items for purchase must disclose the odds of receiving each type of item to customers prior to purchase."
Many popular mobile games in App Store and Google Play thrive for being free-to-play in nature. However, as the players level up and the mechanics become more complicated, developers design their games to use various types of loot boxes that often contain special items essential for gameplay upgrades.
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These loot boxes are often given for free in various conditions, such as when a player finishes a mission or when they consistently login to the game for a certain number of days. They can also earn in-game currency and purchase loot boxes for some games.
However, developers also offer the option of just purchasing these loot boxes with real money so players can skip on the waiting time and instantly upgrade a gameplay element.
The move is apparently aimed to help players have a better understanding of what other options they have and how purchasing loot boxes will help them in the game.
The change in Apple's policy also noticeably arrived after microtransaction systems in games like "Star Wars Battlefront II" stirred massive backlash among thousands of players as well as government officials in the United States and other countries.
Last month, just a few days before the official launch of "Star Wars Battlefront II," many players criticized Electronic Arts for introducing the game with several key characters, like Darth Vader, locked in the microtransactions.
When EA tried to explain that it was a move intended "to provide players with a sense of pride and accomplishment for unlocking different heroes" through a Reddit thread, the developer's particular statement garnered more than 680,000 downvotes in under 24 hours -- making it one of the most disliked posts on Reddit within that very short period.
