Loot boxes continue to receive scrutiny from lawmakers and researchers the world over, with a new study coming out of Germany's University of Hamburg, which suggests that gambling elements are becoming increasingly common as part of video games. Although that statement might seem rather obvious to anyone keeping up with current gaming trends, it's important to note that this is an academic study and lawmakers will take it far more seriously than anecdotal or media-driven evidence.
The German Media Authorities are said to be considering the study as a possible basis for bringing some sort of regulation to bear against video game makers, potentially even prosecuting companies for promoting gambling to children and adolescents. Germany has strict anti-gambling laws for underage individuals.
First picked up by German Newspaper Welt (via Kitguru), the story suggests that publishers and developers continue to deny the use of gambling mechanics, even as a growing tide of organizations, governments and institutions around the world look to clamp down on loot boxes and other perceived gambling practices in games.
Germany's Youth Authority will make its ruling on the practice of loot box mechanics in video games next month, so it won't be long until we learn more about how the practice will be curtailed in Germany. If it's hit hard, we could see a snowball effect across more gaming regions.
So far we've seen governments express concern for in-game gambling mechanics in the UK, Netherlands, Belgium and a couple of U.S. states, though no authority has outright banned the practice as of yet.