Games industry pros take first step toward lootbox regulation — without the government

A handful of gaming industry professionals have announced the formation of the National Committee for Games Policy to influence government regulation of the industry. This is a direct response to what the NCGP calls the loot box gambling crisis. The group says it will have a thinktank division (ITK) and a self-regulatory organization (SRO). The thinktank will avoid taking positions on contentious topics like loot boxes and gambling, and it will instead try to provide accurate data to policymakers. The SRO will operate independently from the ITK, and the NCGP claims it will investigate and take legal action against “unscrupulous video game companies” that have “damaged the public consciousness in some way, whether mental or physical.”

The NCGP features a “consumer center” where the public can report video game makers. Many people have loudly protested loot boxes in games like Star Wars: Battlefront II and Need for Speed: Payback, and now they have a group that will listen to their frustrations — although the NCGP isn’t saying what that will actually accomplish.