Most people who have a mobile device will have played at least one game on it. The large percentage of mobile games are free, but there are in-app purchases that let players expedite their progress in the game. There are also some casino-like games that let players buy ‘loot boxes’. A loot box is a box or purse that you buy whose content is randomly generated and not revealed before the purchase. Just like gambling modules in slot machines, the results of these spins are never pre-determined. Loot boxes have never before been seen as gambling, but laws around loot boxes are being discussed to change this, so it’s best to be aware of their pitfalls.

What is Gambling?

Although different governments have different views as to what constitutes a gambling exercise, the best way to answer this is to check the activity against a standard. Here are the five criteria that nations use to identify whether an event qualifies as gambling or not.

• An exchange has to happen; this exchange must be of goods that have intrinsic value.
• The transfer of the goods will depend on an activity that is yet to happen.
• The two parties must not have any form of control as to the outcome of the event.
• Any of the two parties can walk away; and in doing so, he will not lose money.
• The winner only gains something because an opponent lost.

It is this sixth condition that is debatable – no opponent loses as far as loot boxes are concerned, so they should not constitute gambling. Loot boxes however are purchased because they might contain something of huge value, which is pretty much the definition of buying a lottery ticket. This is also how game makers can get away with making a large number of loot boxes worth less than the money paid for them. The player knows that the next one might be the big one, and keeps buying. It is seen by some as an insidious way of building revenue through a game while not having to adhere to gambling laws.

How Is This Different to Online Casinos?

At Bitstarz, the payout rate of any game is clearly advertised and provable. The instructions are clear and the payouts reasonable – for every dime you wager you know what you are likely to win, it is only a matter of getting lucky or making an informed decision to succeed. In many games like blackjack and poker, your skill has something to do with how much money you will take home.

When you buy loot boxes, you are entirely at the mercy of the random number generator within the game, which does not have to be licensed in the same way as an online casino, meaning there is no guarantee of fairness. Payouts are not advertised, meaning you may end up with nothing no matter how long you play for and how much you spend.

Buying loot boxes can be exciting, as you may be handsomely rewarded, but until laws change to ensure that game makers can prove the fairness of a random number generator in their game and find a way of displaying their payouts, you could be throwing your money down the drain.