An EA insider who works at EA’s Burnaby, BC location, reached out to CBC news wanting to share confidential information from within the organization. They claim that a document from within FIFA proves that the company is trying to drive its players towards a mode that encourages them to spend more money.
The 54-page document that was leaked, discusses a mode known as FIFA Ultimate Team or FUT, which features a mechanic called “loot boxes”.
Critics of these loot boxes claim that they are similar to gambling, due to the randomness of what players can obtain, and how the flashy visuals and sounds captivate the player.
Keith Whyte, executive director of the U.S. National Council on Problem Gaming, believes that loot boxes can be extremely addictive. “The features of a loot box are similar to a slot machine,” he said. “Nothing is more attractive — and in some people, addictive — to the brain than intermittent, variable reward.”
According to Niko Partners, a firm that specializes in video game market analytics, EA earned $1.49 Billion USD in 2020 from loot boxes in their sports games alone.
Although loot boxes are not illegal in the U.S. and Canada, there have been arguments made that they constitute gambling and should be regulated as such. Loot boxes were banned in Belgium in 2018, and a class-action lawsuit was proposed in Vancouver, which alleges that EA is violating gambling legislation.
An EA spokesperson, Charlie Fortescue, has defended loot boxes by stating that “All EA games can be played without spending on in-game items, and the majority of players do not spend”.
A gaming researcher and computer science lecturer at the University of York, David Zendle, believes that loot boxes shouldn’t be able to be purchased with real money.
“I think you just need to eradicate the monetization of it, allow players to earn coins in game and then let them spend those coins on card packs.”
Cover Image: EA
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