Teams urge U.S. to probe ‘loot field’ on Digital Arts online game

WASHINGTON, June 2 (Reuters) - Client advocates on Thursday urged U.S. regulators to investigate video game maker Electronic Arts Inc (EA.O) for what they say was the misleading use of a digital "loot field" that "aggressively" urges players to spend extra money while taking part in a preferred soccer game.

The groups Fairplay, Middle for Digital Democracy and 13 different organizations urged the Federal Trade Commission to probe the EA sport "FIFA: Ultimate Workforce".

In the game, gamers build a soccer team using avatars of actual gamers and compete towards different groups. In a letter to the FTC, the teams said the sport normally costs $50 to $100 however that the company pushed push gamers to spend extra.

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"It entices gamers to buy packs in search of special gamers," said the letter sent by these groups along with the Consumer Federation of America and Massachusetts Council on Gaming and Well being and others.

The packs, or loot containers, are packages of digital content typically purchased with real cash that give the purchaser a possible advantage in a game. They can be bought with digital foreign money, which can obscure how much is spent, they stated.

"The chances of opening a coveted card, resembling a Participant of the Year, are miniscule unless a gamer spends 1000's of dollars on factors or plays for thousands of hours to earn cash," the teams mentioned within the letter.

Digital Arts stated in a press release on Thursday that of the game's hundreds of thousands of gamers, 78% have not made an in-game buy.

"Spending is at all times optional," a company spokesperson mentioned in an e mail statement. "We encourage the usage of parental controls, including spend controls, which are out there for every main gaming platform, including EA's personal platforms."

The spokesperson also said the company created a dashboard so gamers would observe how a lot time they performed, what number of packs they opened and what purchases have been made.

The FTC, which works after companies engaged in misleading habits, held a workshop on loot boxes in 2019. In a "employees perspective" which followed, the agency noted that online game microtransactions have change into 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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