A recent BBC investigation revealed that many of the UK’s top-grossing mobile games fail to disclose the presence of loot boxes in their advertisements, despite industry guidelines requiring transparency. Out of 45 games analyzed from Google Play’s highest-grossing list, only two complied with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) rules, which mandate the explicit disclosure of loot boxes in promotional materials, with penalties including the banning or removal of non-compliant ads.
Loot boxes —virtual items offering randomized rewards unlocked through in-game currency or real money—are often criticized for their gambling-like mechanics. Their addictive design and lack of guaranteed outcomes frequently lead players—especially children—to overspend. A 2022 report by the Norwegian Consumer Council labeled loot boxes as “exploitative,” citing their predatory mechanisms and ability to foster addiction in children and adults.
Despite ASA regulations, the BBC’s findings reveal a significant gap between the rules and actual practices. Only 26 of the 45 games analyzed were labeled as including loot boxes on their Google Play Store listings. Of these, 22 were actively advertised at the time of the investigation, but just two explicitly disclosed loot boxes in their promotional materials. Notably, even Monopoly GO—the platform’s top-grossing game, with over 50 million downloads and $3 billion (£2.37 billion) in revenue—failed to mention its random in-game purchases in advertisements.
Look boxes, which generate approximately $15 billion (£11.8 billion) annually for companies, remain a highly profitable yet controversial feature in mobile games. While the UK government decided against regulating them in 2022, favoring industry self-regulation, compliance with the 2023 guidelines introduced by the trade body UK Interactive Entertainment (UKIE) in collaboration with the government remains alarmingly low. These guidelines, aimed to provide “improved protections” for players, require companies to flag loot boxes before purchase, provide clear odds for their contents, and ensure consumer protections like refund policies. Yet, more than a year later, transparency continues to be the exception rather than the rule.
Adrian Hon, CEO of Six to Start, criticized the industry’s track record of “conveniently ignoring or forgetting regulations” that might limit their ability to sell and hinder profits. He told the BBC that loot boxes are “deliberately designed to be habit-forming,” making it difficult for players—particularly children—to control their spending. “The least that games companies could do is disclose the presence of loot boxes, but they won’t even do that,” he said, calling it “an indictment of their priorities.”
Zoë Osmond, CEO of GambleAware, echoed these concerns, highlighting the normalization of “gambling-like activities” for children, citing research showing online spaces are often “saturated” with content blurring the lines between gaming and gambling. “Exposure to this gambling-like content from a young age can lead to an increased risk of experiencing gambling harm later in life,” Osmond warned.
The ASA, which has previously banned ads from major developers like EA, Miniclip, and SpinX for similar violations, acknowledged that this issue remains an “ongoing area of work.” In a statement to the BBC, the regulator emphasized it is “closely monitoring the sector to discover the scale of compliance and act accordingly.”
As scrutiny around loot boxes in mobile games intensifies, the pressure on developers to prioritize transparency and consumer protection is growing. With the games industry failing to fully adhere to self-regulation guidelines, the ongoing debate highlights the urgent need for a regulatory shift to ensure that the gaming industry’s focus on profit does not come at the expense of player welfare.
Words by Khushboo Malhotra
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