Football game FIFA tinkers with gambling element, comes with more transparent packs of cards

The creator of the popular football game FIFA, EA, comes with a new kind loot box, where players can see exactly what they’re getting before purchasing. Loot boxes are virtual treasure chests, which a player can buy in FIFA with real money or with coins earned in the game. It contains various cards of football players, with which people can build their own team.

But until now, buyers did not know what was in such a package. The Gaming Authority called that an addictive element that resembles gambling and explained to EA last fall a penalty payment on. While the appeal is still pending, EA is introducing the temporary ‘preview packages’.

So people can see exactly which players are in such a pack before they buy it. If they are not happy with those players, they can refuse the package. However, they must wait 24 hours before they can view another loot box.

Small chance of rare cards

The preview packs are part of the ‘Festival of FUTball’, a kind of campaign in the game. When the campaign ends, other types of packs will come back.

Most likely, EA is trying to meet one of the most important requirements of the Gaming Authority: that people do not know what they are buying. The chance that you will get a rare and therefore expensive card is often less than 1 percent.

Loot boxes are under attack in several countries. In Belgium, players can’t buy packs with real money already. The Gaming Authority banned that in 2019. Other game makers have also had to adapt their games in recent years.

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