Star Wars Popularity Has Drawn Government Attention
It is pure and provoked escalation, ladies and gentlemen. Last week saw major fan backlash against EA’s implementation of loot boxes in their highly anticipated game release, Star Wars: Battlefront II. Yesterday, we witnessed the banning of gaming loot boxes in Belgium, and today, according to a new report, the state of Hawaii has addressed the same issue.
As reported by PCinvasion, Democrat representative Chris Lee took to the podium to specifically address problems surrounding Star Wars: Battlefront II loot boxes. He described it as an “online casino specifically designed to lure kids into spending money.” Then cleverly added, “It’s a trap!”
Lee believes federal involvement is necessary to “protect kids who are underage, not psychologically or emotionally mature enough to be able to gamble which is why gambling is prohibited under 21.” To that end, he wants to introduce legislation prohibiting sales of such games to kids, as well as “prohibiting different kinds of mechanisms in those games.” You know something is wrong when we’re suddenly afraid of selling Star Wars to kids. Which is why there’s always a time and place for Star Wars advertisements.
State Representative Sean Quinlan chimed in alongside Lee, saying, that Star Wars: Battlefront II “has the most popular intellectual property in the world attached to it, and it’s being marketed squarely at children”; therefore, “we shouldn’t allow Star Wars to encourage your kids to gamble.”
We’re not done, though. A mother, minister, and gamer tipped the conference with their thoughts on gambling and how gambling in gaming is an “equal danger” where minors are concerned. EA’s latest predatory practices with Star Wars: Battlefront II mark “the tipping point.”
Lee and backers believe there will be plenty of support for legislation in the realm of video games, primarily because nearly everyone is in agreement that minors shouldn’t be exposed to gambling addiction. We’ll be closely watching this legislation as it moves through channels. Stick around for updates.
In very related news, Belgium’s Gaming Commission is calling for an outright ban on gaming loot boxes, Their goal is to spread the ban across Europe.