Pokémon GO Developers Still Breaching Terms Of Service By Not Displaying Loot Box Rates
Pokémon GO’s developers are still violating the game’s Terms of Service by not displaying in-game loot box drop rates.
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Recent laws surrounding loot boxes have required that developers fully disclose the drop rates of items contained within. Niantic, developer of Pokémon GO, doesn’t appear to classify the game’s eggs and raid rewards as loot boxes. As such, it still isn’t revealing the reward rates for these items.
According to many, these items should be considered gambling-related items. A recent Reddit post by Beoron explains why Pokémon GO’s eggs and raid reward sound a lot like loot boxes and why that means the developers are breaking the game’s ToS if so. With raids now giving out shiny Pokémon as rewards, the debate over their classification has stirred up again.
The argument raging on with Pokémon GO right now is whether eggs and raids fall into the loot box definition. Entering raids requires a raid pass from players. You’ll be able to receive one free pass a day, but there’s an option of purchasing more. Paying to enter more raids gives you a chance of receiving extra shiny Pokémon, though it’s only a slim chance. Without seeing those odds, it could be considered a form of gambling if you buy raid passes.
The same goes for Pokémon GO’s eggs. Although eggs are found for free at Pokéstops (and everyone gets a single incubator for free), real money can be used to buy extra incubators in order to hatch more eggs faster. Without knowing the odds of what each egg has, you’re basically gambling with a chance of receiving a shiny Pokémon.
Loot boxes are the most controversial thing in gaming right now and might not be long for this world. Some countries are trying to ban them while others are debating whether they should be classed as gambling. Paying for something before knowing exactly what is in that something? You can see why it is proving pretty tricky for developers to argue against that being gambling.
Games that include loot boxes, by law, have to display their reward rates somewhere in-game. That way, even though it still sounds a lot like gambling, players know what they’re getting themselves into. Some of you may be reading and thinking to yourselves, “aren’t the hatch rates available online?”. That’s true, but they aren’t supplied by Niantic.
The Silph Road, a fan website, tends to collate those. While being incredibly helpful, there have been accusations by some players that Niantic has changed the drop rates after TSR figures them out. That allegedly happened during Pokémon GO’s egg hatching event earlier this year.
The answer to this question won’t be an easy one, but it will become necessary should legal intervention happen.
Source: Reddit
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