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What’s in the box? Exploring UK players’ experiences of loot boxes in games; the conceptualisation and parallels with gambling

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  • Sarah E Hodge
  • Max Vykoukal
  • John McAlaney
  • Reece D Bush-Evans
  • Ruijie Wang
  • Raian Ali

Abstract

Loot boxes are a popular mechanic within many video games, but it remains unclear if some forms of loot boxes can be seen of as gambling. However, the perspectives of players are often neglected, such as whether they see them as ‘fair’ game elements and how closely they feel this aligns with gambling. In this paper, we synthesise a conceptualisation for loot boxes through players’ actual experience and explore if there are any parallels with gambling. Twenty-one participants who played video games took part in the research through either an interview or online survey. Thematic analysis suggested that six themes were core to exploring loot boxes: Random Chance Effects, Attitudes Towards Content, Implementation, Parallels with Gambling, Game Design, and The Player. The results suggested both indirect and direct parallels with gambling from the players experiences. Implications of game design and classifying loot boxes as gambling are discussed in relation to game design and risk factors of gambling and purchasing behaviour.

Suggested Citation

  • Sarah E Hodge & Max Vykoukal & John McAlaney & Reece D Bush-Evans & Ruijie Wang & Raian Ali, 2022. "What’s in the box? Exploring UK players’ experiences of loot boxes in games; the conceptualisation and parallels with gambling," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 17(2), pages 1-23, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0263567
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0263567
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Aaron Drummond & James D. Sauer & Lauren C. Hall & David Zendle & Malcolm R. Loudon, 2020. "Why loot boxes could be regulated as gambling," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 4(10), pages 986-988, October.
    2. David Zendle & Rachel Meyer & Nick Ballou, 2020. "The changing face of desktop video game monetisation: An exploration of exposure to loot boxes, pay to win, and cosmetic microtransactions in the most-played Steam games of 2010-2019," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(5), pages 1-13, May.
    3. David Zendle & Paul Cairns, 2019. "Loot boxes are again linked to problem gambling: Results of a replication study," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(3), pages 1-13, March.
    4. Xiao, Leon Y. & Henderson, Laura L., 2019. "Towards an Ethical Game Design Solution to Loot Boxes: a Commentary on King and Delfabbro," LawArXiv r6z5a, Center for Open Science.
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