Video game terminology on Notably News

Video game terminology

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February 2025	Loot box Overwatch 2 introduced a new loot box system that allows players to earn cosmetic items through gameplay or battle pass, with guaranteed high-rarity items to minimize gambling concerns.
January 2025	Loot box MiHoYo settles with the FTC over Genshin Impact loot box practices, paying $20 million and agreeing to implement controls preventing younger players from purchasing loot boxes without parental approval.
September 2024	Loot box Enforcement of new classification rules begins: games with simulated gambling will be rated R18+, and games with chance-based in-game purchases will be rated M.
2023	Fatality Mortal Kombat 1 introduces an accessibility feature for visually impaired individuals, providing in-game narration of Fatality properties.
May 2023	Loot box Sony failed to appeal the court's previous ruling, resulting in an order to refund money to plaintiffs who had spent money on FIFA Ultimate Team packs.
March 2023	Loot box The district court of Hermagor ruled that loot boxes in FIFA video games constitute gambling, deeming them illegal. The court determined that virtual goods have real value and promise potential gain, particularly noting the existence of a black market for player trading.
March 2023	Loot box Wilkie's bill was modified to address all video games with simulated gambling, including loot boxes.
2022	Battle pass Overwatch 2 introduces a new battle pass system where new heroes are awarded at level 55, replacing the previous loot box system and causing player controversy.
2022	Loot box Epic Games removed the ability to buy loot boxes and starter packs with real money in their games.
November 2022	Loot box MP Andrew Wilkie introduced a bill proposing that video games with loot boxes be automatically rated R18+ or refused rating to prevent sales to minors.
October 2022	Fatality Justin Clark of GameSpot celebrated the 30th anniversary of Mortal Kombat by selecting the 10 best and worst Fatalities in the series' history.
July 2022	Loot box DCMS released findings concluding that loot box games increase risks of gambling, mental health, and financial harm, but did not propose immediate legal changes.
July 2022	Loot box An academic study revealed that the Belgian ban on loot boxes had not been effectively enforced, with 82 of the 100 highest-grossing iPhone games still selling loot boxes.
May 2022	Loot box Fifteen advocacy groups send an open letter to the Federal Trade Commission urging an evaluation of FIFA's Ultimate Team packs following a Norwegian Consumer Council report on loot boxes.
May 2022	Loot box Norwegian Consumer Council, supported by 18 EU countries, releases a report characterizing loot boxes in games like FIFA and Raid: Shadow Legends as 'exploitative and predatory', paving the way for potential EU regulatory discussions.
March 2022	Loot box The Dutch Administrative Jurisdiction Division overturned the previous ruling against EA, determining that Ultimate Team packs were part of a game of skill and did not violate gambling laws.
January 2022	Loot box A class action lawsuit filed in Illinois against Take Two Interactive over loot box mechanics in the NBA 2K series, alleging deceptive practices that psychologically distance purchases from real-world financial costs.
2021	Loot box The Ministry of Home Affairs of Singapore initiated a review of The Remote Gambling Act, with potential plans to create technology-agnostic regulations that could specifically address loot boxes and other non-traditional gambling products.
2021	Loot box A leaked EA presentation revealed the company's intent to drive FIFA 21 players towards the Ultimate Team mode, positioning it as the 'cornerstone' of the game.
2021	Loot box Researchers in England released a report concluding that loot boxes are structurally and psychologically akin to gambling.
2021	Free-to-play Legal action was taken against Epic Games using the findings from the 2020 German study about Fortnite's monetization practices.
October 2021	Loot box The Office of the Mufti for Federal Territories in Malaysia declared loot boxes in PUBG: Battlegrounds as a form of gambling (maisir) forbidden in Islamic jurisprudence, citing that item acquisition is not guaranteed despite requiring payment with real money.
October 2021	Crunch Eidos-Montréal and Eidos-Sherbrooke became some of the first major game development studios to announce a shift to a four-day workweek, aimed at improving developers' quality of life during the COVID-19 pandemic.
September 2021	Loot box The Advertising Standards Authority issued guidance requiring mobile games to disclose loot box information in store pages and advertisements.
June 2021	Loot box EA introduced Ultimate Team Preview Packs in FIFA 21, allowing users to preview pack contents before purchase.
March 2021	Loot box The November 2020 lawsuit against EA regarding Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment was dropped after EA provided technical information and engineer access.
March 2021	Loot box Germany's Bundestag passes revisions to the Youth Protection Act to mark games with loot boxes or similar mechanics as 'cost traps' in the ratings system.
January 12 2021	Browser game Adobe completely shut down Flash, marking the end of the Flash games era.
2020	Free-to-play A German study investigated free-to-play game monetization strategies, specifically examining Fortnite's use of in-game currency and its potential to obscure the true cost of purchases through the 'money illusion' concept.
2020	Browser game The Flashpoint project began preserving thousands of browser games to prevent their loss after Adobe Flash's discontinuation.
December 31 2020	Browser game Adobe Flash was officially shut down, marking the end of an era for browser games that were predominantly created using this technology.
November 2020	Loot box A lawsuit brought against EA in California challenging the Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment feature in FIFA, Madden NFL, and NHL series, alleging intentional manipulation to encourage microtransactions.
October 2020	Loot box EA lost a legal case regarding loot boxes, with a judge initially agreeing with the Gaming Authority's decision and ordering the removal of loot box sales in FIFA within three weeks.
August 2020	Loot box Another class-action lawsuit filed against EA in California over Ultimate Team loot boxes in FIFA and Madden NFL games, seeking a jury trial to determine if the mechanics constitute gambling.
August 2020	Loot box The Australian Classification Board updated regulations to require games with microtransactions, including loot boxes, to be labeled with 'in-game purchases' on their covers.
July 2020	Loot box BPjM considers requiring games with loot boxes to be rated at a higher level under a new Youth Protection Act expected to be implemented in early 2021.
July 2020	Loot box European Parliament Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCP) releases a report reframing loot boxes as a consumer protection issue, highlighting their problematic design features that create addictive behaviors, particularly in young consumers.
July 2 2020	Loot box The House of Lords Gambling Committee released a report urging ministers to regulate loot boxes as games of chance.
June 2020	Loot box A class-action lawsuit filed in California against Apple, claiming the App Store's loot box mechanics entice consumers, including children, into gambling-like behavior.
June 2020	Loot box The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport began requesting evidence from game companies about loot boxes.
May 2020	Fatality Gavin Jasper of Den of Geek selected top 3 Fatalities from each Mortal Kombat game, spanning from the original release to MK11.
April 2020	Loot box PEGI announced the new supplementary label 'Includes Paid Random Items' for games featuring loot box-like mechanics.
April 2020	Loot box ESRB introduces the new label 'In-Game Purchases (Includes Random Items)' to be used for games with loot box-style mechanics.
March 2020	Loot box BPjM opts not to blacklist Coin Master, but announces potential plans to require higher ratings for games with loot box-like mechanics.
February 2020	Loot box Two class-action lawsuits filed in France against Electronic Arts over FIFA games' Ultimate Team loot boxes, alleging unregulated gambling practices and lack of parental controls.
February 2020	Loot box The Australian House of Representatives Standing Committee recommended that a body report on options for restricting loot box access to adults 18 and over.
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This contents of the box above is based on material from the Wikipedia articles Fatality (Mortal Kombat), Battle pass, Free-to-play, Loot box, Browser game & Crunch (video games), which are released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.