200$ for Comic shaded material? y'all are wild.

Isn't that the sort of thing that got EA into trouble a few years ago? Just something to keep in mind.

Shall we close down casinos and eliminate the lottery as well? It is not up to the owners of the property to deal with the larger social problem.

And by the way, gambling addiction effects between 1% and 4% of the population .

A casino is made for gambling, DCUO added it in *later* on. Also not sure why you think that statistic is even remotely provable or accurate, or why it would matter regardless

How many children go to casinos?

This is a FtP game, and marketed at teens, not 18+.
On top of that, looking at other games and how cosmetics sell, the younger generations want instant gratification. When there's an rng element, it is gambling, and it definitely prays on those that don't have self control, or a fully developed brain to visualize the consequences.

I wish skinner boxes were never created. The whole system is just shady for adult gamers, but it's far worse when children and teenagers are involved.

I wonder how much more money they woulda made if they would put this up for 25 dollars on the market as a one use fee.. I’m willing to bet they would mad more

Lootboxes are definitely problematic, to say the least, but they're not a problem exclusive to this game, or this particular Booster Bundle. We should be against this type of monetization in games in general - not just because this time there's a rare cosmetic reward for purchasing them, that people find particularly desirable. If anything - previous Bundles that contained the Comic Shaded Material as a possible drop could be considered more predatory, since potentially you could spend more than $200 and not receive the item.

You'd lose that bet. Game companies are not using loot-boxes as a monetization method for no reason. They have the data, they know what brings in more money. If the item was easily available for a reasonable price, it would lose its rarity and most players would stop caring about it.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10899-014-9471-4

I never post out of my posterior without checking a source. Prohibition almost ruined this country even though about 10% of Americans at the time had a drinking problem. (I can source that too). You don't change business or society based on a tenth or less of the population. You get them help. That is not the job of the bar, casino or DCUO show runners

This is a different issue. As a parent myself, I always paid close attention to what my child was doing online. It's the parent's job to parent.

How does £118.94 GBP or, $147.37 translate to $200? has basic math left the room?

The statistic is literally unprovable therefore it doesn’t matter what you link because it is *impossible* for you or anyone else to know that. If your idea of getting help for people is inserting predatory gambling mechanics into games that didn’t originally have them and then telling those people to leave, then you couldn’t possibly be a bigger piece of ****. Your ignorance and willful participation in damaging the lives of those less fortunate is abysmally disgusting

I'll take that bet....what are the odds?

You can't nerf the world. Many, many people are able to enjoy games of chance without spiraling into territory of disfunction. Some people have issues with regulation of food. Do we eliminate all food that is the slightest bit sweet? Some people misuse prescription drugs. Do we prevent the people who use them responsibly from being able to benefit from them? Some people can't handle driving a car at increased speed. Do we put a speed regulator on all cars? Some people stalk, harass, and abuse people via the internet. Do we cut all the cables?

I'm not saying we don't care about a particular issue or take no steps toward helping those who DO struggle, but if we try to structure life to eliminate every possible way someone could potentially hurt themselves...that sure wouldn't be any place most of us would want to live.

$200 is 'worst case' scenario...which being a 'glass half empty' guy myself, I see why they are complaining using THAT number as it sounds worse.

$200 would mean you'd have to buy the MPC in the smaller chunks where there is no discount, also it is not including a member discount, which if you were going to spend $200, would be idiotic NOT to sub for the month before buying it as the 10% discount would be greater than the $16 you'd spend on the monthly...and that's not including the stuff you'd actually get with the membership.

'Best case' scenario, and assuming you were on PS, you could spent $100 in the PS store and pick up the 15K bundle, and another $30 to round out the 18,000 MPC price as a member for $130. Even on PC, without the 15K MPC option, it would be 2 $85 10K bundles, for $170, and you'd have about $20 worth of MPC left over(2000)....so $150 net price for the bundle.

Well said

O

Once again: DCUO didn’t start with TCs and BBs, they inserted predatory gambling *into* the game after the fact. Those things exist to prey on people who cant get away. People without those issues aren’t the target demographic. It’s like having a sugar-free product but then later putting sugar into so that diabetics can’t use it anymore despite it being labeled sugar-free. People who can’t understand these problems are always the first to pretend they aren’t an issue and that it is so easy to get around them…

I'm not sure where DCUO has ever advertised "No RNG involved!" or "No real world cash can ever be wasted here in this safe space!". There was no bait and switch for the VAST majority of players. I say that because I paid $60 for the game itself...and then it went F2P. The business model changed but...it's a business. If they wouldn't have made those changes, the game probably wouldn't even BE here now. They need to make a certain amount of money to continue to exist and, as an American corporation, have a fiduciary duty to make as MUCH as possible. Do I like that? Not particularly. Is focusing on one symptom of larger structures very productive? Not very.

I've had my own issues with addictive substances in the past but trying to prevent the responsible use for those who CAN handle it is a really garbage way of going about it. By all means, have oversight and regulation and systems in place to send up red flags to appropriate organizations when an issue with someone arises so that they can get help but again...you can't nerf the world unless you're ready to usher in a totalitarian regime like you've never imagined. If this business model fails because it is priced higher than the market will bear, something else will come in to take its place. But if it DOES sell like gangbusters? Then they priced it accordingly. I mean, by mad that they're playing by the rules like everyone else, but...eh. Either participate or not. Money is essentially power coupons, use it (or not) where you will. Get enough like minded people with the power to change the system.

Does DCUO’s advertising include “now with predatory gambling mechanics!”? No, of course it doesn’t, DCUO never changed anything about how it presents itself to players. DCUO was not built on the back of gambling, it injected it in later. Just like every greedy scumbag team that releases a new game that claims “no micro transactions or loot boxes” in all the reviews and then adds those in with a patch a week or 2 after launch so that they get all the good press. They know exactly what they are doing and exactly who they are targeting. No sane, moral, empathetic human being could possibly defend this with a straight face

Come down off that cross, we could use the wood.

Great dodge kiddo