The United Kingdom’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) announced they want lootboxes to be further regulated from children to protect them from risks with the practice.

An example the DMCS bring up as a means of protection is the requirement of parental permission before one under 18 would be able to purchase a lootbox. UK’s Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries chimed in:

“Games companies and platforms need to do more to ensure that controls and age-restrictions are applied so that players are protected from the risk of gambling harms. Children should be free to enjoy gaming safely, whilst giving parents and guardians the peace of mind they need.”

This is far from the first time the concept of lootboxes have drawn the ire of governments around the world. The UK has in the past, as well as in today’s announcement, compared it to gambling. Belgium has even banned it in their country on those grounds as well.

The UK parliament has also previously considered banning the sale of lootboxes to children as a whole. This is something that the US has also considered in the past. However, as lootboxes continue to be a major point in revenue for companies to this day, it’s clear that efforts for it so far have failed.

So while lootboxes continue to be a major contentious point among both gamers and governments around the world, it appears that they are most certainly here to stay within the industry at large.