"unfortunately for Nintendo" No, Thomas. That's unfortunate for their players. They're probably making ludicrous amounts of cash from these awful practices.
@@Forzamon42069 The dude criticized the game and shared a problem he had with it and your response is "just play another game" Why should this be okay? Why is it wrong to want the games we play to be fun and not predatory in their monetization? Horrible take.
I'm from Belgium and I'm finding this a bit ironic considering that I'm still confronted on TV with commercials for casinos and gambling websites. The ads are even using Jean-Claude Van Damme to promote it. So, if our gouvernment has a problem with gambling, then why are they still promoting it?
There's nothing ironic or contradictory there as long as those gambling websites and casinos are strictly aimed at adults making their own decisions and they make sure kids aren't involved. I think loot boxes should just be banned outright, but that's not what this is about.
Because you are not supposed to have acces to a casino if you are 17 years. It's really more easy to just download a game with lootbox, than enter in a real casino. No one will let you enter it because there is an ID chek. There is no "real" ID chek if you download a game with lootbox.
If Nintendo can afford to basically save the gaming industry years ago and keep up the monopoly on all their IPs for this long, they can afford to get rid of lootboxes in their mobile games
Then there would be no incentive for them to produce mobile games at all. Just look at the enormous revenue generated from Pokémon Go alone, Nintendo would be foolish to leave all that mobile game money on the table. As a business, they strive to make money - not settle for less.
By that logic, no gaming company would ever make mobile games. You think you can make a free mobile game without micro transactions? I dare you to do it.
@@biggs2560 It has been a long while since I've played Pokemon GO, but I remember when it was popular being pretty big into it. I don't remember Pokemon GO having any loot boxes in it, just a system to buy more Pokeballs, Incense or whatever from the Shop. Which if true, actually does more to strengthen niku's argument, as it is a mobile game that is able to gain revenue not from lootboxes. Which in turn means that they don't need to exist, while still giving game companies monetary incentive to make mobile games. Could be wrong though. Don't know how much the game has changed since it's initial release.
@@G_Fantastic Lets have PEGI consider lootboxes be gambling, making the games be at least PEGI 12. That would at least remove it from almost all of Europe + a few more countries.
@@Liggliluff Having a casino as a backdrop in some minigames is enough to get Super Mario 64 DS and New Super Mario Bros rated 12 on the Wii U eShop, but actual gambling in the form of lootboxes? That's A-okay!
What was unfortunate is that Nintendo actually tried originally to make a game full of content and no micro transactions. Sadly mobile players didn’t like the idea of buying Mario Run for $10 and preferred the predatory micro transaction filled Mario Kart Tour.
The saddest part about this is that if you look at the download numbers, mobile players actually _did_ prefer Mario Run to MK Tour Run has gotten over 300 million downloads since 2017, whereas Tour has gotten about 225 downloads since 2019. But in spite of that, MK Tour has made over 3 times as much money as Mario Run (roughly $285 million vs roughly $85 million) because of the microtransactions, so of course Nintendo has given up on mobile games that you just buy once, because that's just not gonna please their shareholders the same way as gacha garbage.
techincally, Nintendo still makes games with no microtransactions for consoles, they think that mobile games are free for all but in the case of Mario Kart Tour, you cant get all of the characters right away, and if you get duplicates of a character, kart, or glider you already have, thats okay cause then you can upgrade them
Well all of that was part of Nintendo’s plan. If you check their shareholder meetings yty they were asked about mobile games and monetization. This specific person wanted Nintendo to use the loot box systems bcuz they earn the most. Nintendo responded with they tried multiple monetization method. Since they’re new to mobile games, they wanted to see what the market was for mobile. F2P friendly gacha game with Dragolia lost, One time payment with Mario Run, clash Royale system with Pokémon go, gacha heavy with Fire Emblem, and many more. Of all the games, Pokémon Go and Fire Emblem earned more than twice the other. This shows that in live service games, player count < whales
@@ReitheOffbeatOtaku Mario Run is a bait. It is a dead game which does not receive updates, unlike Tour. Tour still has a pretty active community and has content creators who are passionate about the game. Which is much more unique to 8's creators. I'm not saying Tour is superior to 8, but it really does get unnecessary hate. Nintendo doesnt ask for your money to progress, although gacha for your characters can be annoying. Unlike other gacha games, the thing you want to pull for in this game is guaranteed if you have enough in game currency to afford it, which are given in pretty hefty amounts every two weeks
Ok. I just searched up "Mario Kart 8 Deluxe" Literally content creators making shitty videos wHeRe is dLc wAvE 2??? Random race highlights no one cares about. Facts about the game. Come on. What happened to the gameplays?
It is a form of gambling in my eyes, and here in Scotland you aren’t allowed to advertise gambling to children. So why do game companies get away with Lootboxes ? Ban the lot I say, and watch the Fortnite kids cry 😅
I'd argue it's worse than gambling. With gambling at least there's a potential return. Whereas lootboxes have all of the loss with none of the return unless they're in a game with an item market.
@@VestedUTuber And that, right there, is the legal loophole game devs usually fall on to get that predatory game mechanic past anti-gambling laws - their argument is, gambling requires winning something of monetary or real world value, and since the rewards from lootboxes don't have that value, then players aren't gambling, they're simply paying for random in-game items or services and those items and services can't be bought or sold outside of the game itself. Which, of course, we all know is a load of bovine manure, but some courts seem to buy it which is why we still have lootboxes in games. At least, for now.
It's actually perfect when things like this happen, it's a win-win for customers. They can't buy an evil, predatory cash-grab milking-machine, so they'll have to resort to pirating it if they want to play it, but if they pirate it, they won't be able to use the gambling-mechanics since that requires an account and such and a pirated copy won't be valid and would risk getting them in trouble or their main account suspended, so they play the game for free and don't fall victim to abuse at the same time. 👍 As a third win, it takes away the incentive for companies to make junk like this in the first place and do things the merchants have done for generations, a nice, proper, honest one-off sale.
@RL10 Some games like Star Wars Battlefront 2 require hundreds of hours (or something) of grinding just to be able to have enough in-game currency without putting real money in to buy characters like Luke and Vader.
Taking away a person's choice to gamble isn't a "win". Some people play these games responsibly and enjoy spending their money in it. Who are you, or anyone else for that matter, to take that choice away from someone just because YOU don't like gambling?
I forgot about the anti-lootbox rule and my first thought was 'Damn, time to hear when Nintendo broke the Geneva Convention and used a red cross on a health pack.' This is less funny :(
The real can of worms is that if Japan moves to call loot boxes gambling, it will have the ripple effect of making Pachinko illegal. Gambling is actually illegal in Japan and Pachinko parlors skirt this by not giving you money for your winnings. No for that you have to go to the convenience store down the street which is a totally separate business *wink nudge* and sell the ticket the machine spat out. Since you're not technically getting money from your gamble and because certain people who own pachinko parlors (who are definitely not yakuza) pay police to look the other way, there's been many decades of dancing around the issue. If a court in Japan decides that winning things that aren't money still counts as gambling, guess who's not gonna be happy.
thomas game docs is based as hell for this one, there's so many nintendo themed channels (and really, gamer channels in general) that skirt around lootboxes or downplay what they Are and the affect they have on people. it's so refreshing to see someone call them out as gambling point blank
I feel like Mario Kart Tour is Davy Jones and I'm a part of his crew. The only way to play "properly" is to buy and buy and keep buying stupid boxes which won't take you anywhere. I was almost addicted to the game a year ago until I realized my unhealthy behavior. It was the worst way to cope my problems.
Maybe in like 2019 the way to win was buy buy buy, but not anymore. Been playing since day 1 and have never felt inclined to spend. I can keep up with everyone without spending. They just hand out free things after free things.
You don't have to pay anything dude.At most,maybe the gold pass for 1 or 2 months,but that's it.I had the game for 6 months,and I earned a lot of the characters and gear.All you have to do is just play on a daily basis,or very frequnetly.If you open it for like twice a month for 10 minutes,of course you're not getting shit.
Now it is more freindly with f2p players i returned just 3 months ago to the game and i've got lots of characters and i can say i am almost covered in every track in the game and i still haven't used the free trial gold pass
Belgium solved a pretty serious issue in a simple way. It's good that they banned lootboxes in their country. Lootboxes are very predatory and are just a form of gambling wrapped in a red flag and a withered four-leaf clover. Whilst some people would not notice because they are wearing pink-tinted glasses and think any four-leaf clover is lucky. I really hope that other countries do what Belgium did and help stop this form of gambling in any form of online gaming for good. Also, some issues that are rampant in Mario Kart Tour prove that it is 'predatory money grab'. These being: - A leveling system for karts, gliders, and characters that requires grinding. - Character limited scoring methods. - "Limited Time" character and kart bundles. (Remember that one Diddy Kong pack that costs like $40) - And worst of all, the lootboxes. It's pretty scary how Nintendo slowly changed from being based on quality and unforgettable moments to being based on a slothful form of pride and avarice. *I really miss old Nintendo.*
@@Forzamon42069 In most cases, yes- however, if it requires money to grind then that encorages players to spend more and more money. I have not played Tour and I will never touch that game ever, however considering the original commenter brought it up I'd assume that that's the case.
It is not bro you play that game and assume that the company is like that then your brain dead it is like you play hotel Mario and say Mario series is not a good franchise what kind of mind set is that like do you eat a bad burger from a bad restaurant and say all burgers are bad what shame of a Nintendo fan you are
The crazy thing is Diablo Immortal has lootboxes, but you need to play a tiny 5 minute dungeon before you get your gacha roll. It's not considered a lootbox, so it skirts the law. Insidious
@@BH-oq7hv That "appeasing one board member" scenario you described actually isn't too far from the truth, from what I understand. IIRC, the reason Nintendo started making mobile games to begin with was because they had shareholders who were begging them to go into the mobile gaming market after it started booming in the late 2000s, which the people running Nintendo didn't want to do because they wanted to keep _their_ games exclusive to _their_ hardware. However, after the bad launch of the 3DS in 2011 and the worse launch of the Wii U in 2012 had caused the company to lose money for the first time since entering the video game industry by 2013, they had no choice but to just throw up their arms and give the shareholders want they wanted, so they announced that they'd make and publish mobile games the following year in 2014. So yeah, they basically entered the mobile market out of obligation to their shareholders, and will presumably stay there out of obligation until it stops being the most profitable part of the gaming industry, which will hopefully be soon if more countries follow Belgium's example.
It's unfortunate that out of all the countries out there that Belgium is the only one that's bothered to classify lootboxes as gambling. Like why are there no other countries that have decided to do the same?
I feel like the video somewhat misrepresents Mario Kart Tour, so I will provide some counterpoints: 1. it is possible to play and enjoy the game without spending any real-world money; 2. The loot box is activated by an in-game currency, not real-world money, and you can obtain a significant amount of that currency by playing well, completing challenges, etc. (although you can just buy that currency with real-world money). This currency is also used for other, non-gambling in-game purchases; 3. The loot box is a major game mechanic, and is not easily removed without significantly breaking how the game works. That being said, I realize there are counterpoints to these counterpoints: 1. People who pay have a higher chance of doing well; 2. Since you can directly buy the currency, it can just end up as gambling for certain people; 3. If it's a central mechanic of the game, then the game could be considered to have a core game flaw. Just want to make sure people understand the facts of the game, because the video kind of simplifies it too much.
First they came for the candy cigarettes and I said nothing. Then they came for the realistic toy guns and again, I said nothing. But now they've come for my loot boxes and everybody else is too busy having an actual life to care about such stupid stuff.
for some reason the mario kart app was featured heavilly on the app store but when you downloaded it you couldnt even log in to your account what an absolute scam
Problema is, belgium alone just cant do anything. But if the entire European Union adopt this, maybe the developers think twice about how to monetize their games. This is the same as the USB C port with Apple ; leaving just one country is easy, leaving a entire block like Europe or US , not so much. If US and EU made lootboxes illegal im sure the game devs will stop making this kind of games, and honestly, that would be amazing. Greetings from Spain, we have regulated recently lootboxes as well
Man, it's sad what lootboxes have become. From a design-perspective, adding a random element for stuff like equipment could make the game much more fun, and an easy way to make different players' experiences unique. Like how weapons in Borderlands are random, or the blade gacha in Xenoblade 2 (which you can't spend real money on). But then so many companies tied it to expensive transactions and made the rates stupidly low, and now these kind of elements have such a horrid reputation that most never want to see them again. It's just a tool that's been used poorly for so long that people can't see how it can be fun anymore...
Loot boxes should be outlawed, but classifying them as gambling sets a dangerous precedent. They aren't really gambling because gambling requires something of value to be gained. If you can't "cash out" your winnings, then it isn't gambling. And there are possible loopholes that are even more predatory and anti-consumer than lootboxes around that corner.
I personally love Mario Kart Tour. Its scoring system leaves much to be desired, but the gameplay itself was a lot of fun for me, and I enjoyed the new controls. I haven't played it in a while, but I might revisit it sometime.
I love Belgium. I always found it disturbing when I see a young child run up to their parent wanting the credit card to purchase in game items/upgrade their character, as they have no real grasp on what is going on. It’s so manipulative and exposing/training children to the gambling highs.
Fun fact, you can also not use points predictions on Twitch if you're in Belgium because it counts as gambling despite it not using any real money and there being no real way to convert money into points. (Sure you get more points if you are a subscriber but eh)
For me, ‘loot boxes’ in general are egregious and hinder game development. For example, rather than spending time to develop content and deliver a full and awesome experience to consumers. Instead, they develop the game, and decide on what to cut to sell the consumers following them having already bought the game, more often than not these companies decide to label their game ‘free to play’ ignoring the already negative financial implications that would bring to the table, because it’ll make people say; “I mean it is free, so what if I pay money into it now?”. If you pay for cosmetics in games, you’re not only part of the problem, but you should consider donating your brain to science so that they can understand how the human species are somehow devolving.
Loot boxes are fine if there's no money transaction involved. Because then they have to be designed in a way that is fun. For example, chest drops in Vampire Survivors.
Cosmetics in games that are guaranteed when purchased and not waiting in lootboxes, are completely fine when they're optional and add nothing more than a visual difference like an outfit that doesn't affect your stats, to be perfectly fair, because that's basically just a cheap DLC instead that one can enjoy but is again entirely optional
@@rairinekoine but once the line is crossed atall, for example when Call of Duty put a gun behind a paywall of sorts in the form of the Season Pass, that is purposely over-tuned, that forces the player to feel obligated to buy the pass and play the game regardless of enjoyment, same goes with the infamous Roze skin on Warzone, which was literally pay to win, and also a cosmetic. You can’t turn off a broken damm, because it’s broken.
@@aterriblesliceoftoast I said specifically when it has no effect on stats, for example Layered Armour sets in Monster Hunter Rise, they put some layered armour sets in just the DLC and there's no weapons or actual armour that is locked behind the paywall in that game, and the same game has free DLCs and event quests that you have to complete to unlock that quest's own rewards, hence why purely cosmetic and no P2W boosters is fine imo, it doesn't work for all game companies as some are more likely to make P2W factors than others but only visual cosmetics should be fine, again, outside of purely lootboxes
Cry harder. I don't need your approval for what I spend my money on. Are you also chastising people who bet on horse races or frequent casinos? Probably not. If you don't like mobile games, don't play them. There's plenty of games without lootboxes you can play - stop trying to dictate my enjoyment.
Something I'm actually confused about is how the Netherlands, where I'm from, banned pokemon masters for lootboxes. But Mario kart tour is still downloadable here
6:14 I live in The Netherlands and things are weird over here, with Mario Kart Tour available, but not Pokémon Masters EX. The only reason I can think of why this is the case is that while both have Gems, Masters seperates free and paid Gems, only using paid gems for unboxing when you don't have free ones anymore while also keeping daily discounts and some banners locked behind required paid gems. Meanwhile, Tour has simply one set of Gems that can optionally be increased with money. This seems to check out as other games like Brawl Stars and The Battle Cats, who handle their Gem equivelants basically the same as Mario Kart Tour, are also still available here despite also being gacha games.
I'm from Belgium. It took me ages to figure out how to how to start playing these games. I loved them (never spent money on them) and once I FINALLY got them to work my phone got banned half a year later because it is 'too weak' even though it is more than strong enough...
when an american company puts gambling in their game it's "loot boxes" and bad but if its a japanese company it's "a gacha game" and perfectly fine. (please ignore the fact my pfp is from a gacha game)
@@Forzamon42069 Is it? Technologically it's on par with the best of the US, culturally it's actually an impressive mix of modern and traditional. That traditional part can be a little problematic, though. Surely you've heard the stories. Overworked, depressed and likely suicidal people are unfortunately a commonality in that country. And that's not to count all its other "quirks". Under scrutiny, any country that's seemingly perfect has cracks. Flaws. Just like all of us.
The Spanish government is planning to do the same thing but only with players who are under 18. If you want to prove you're over that age, you'll have to insert your ID number in the game to complete the purchase. This is just a draft of the new law but I don't think it'll change much.
I do hope that they get rid of loot boxes because that really is predatory. It is literally the same thing as gambling and casino. You put money in and expect a prize out. At least that casinos what you expect back is more money than you spent even though typically it isn't unlike these loot boxes where you're spending real money and not getting anything back besides some digital prize within the game itself and oftentimes way too common of one that you have like a million of
I'm cool with dlc especially when it's actual added content. I know horse armor gave it a bad rap but dlc for rocksmith and rock band was fair and necessary. You can't launch with every song ever, but you can build up to that over time.
@@BH-oq7hv how do you expect Nintendo to make money from a free game? Especially a game like Mario Kart where you can easily win plenty of valuable items simply by playing the game for free. If you have a problem paying for loot boxes I suggest you seek psychiatric help for your addiction problems. But don't make your problem everyone else's.
I buy loot boxes with in-game money when I can. But I NEVER EVER use my real money, especially for Mario Kart Tour, It's more like gambling if you use real money.
Today, lootbox is banned in 8-9 countries in Europe (there is UK, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy and the remaining I don't remember) and in Australia and it's only to who are under 18 Belgium recently unbanned lootboxes for 18+ Also games that are unavailable in your country you can easily get then with a VPN
I know a person in Belgium who really wants to play MKT, everytime someone mentions the game they ask how the game is like. Here's to hoping that they'll be able to play soon.
The FIFA ultimate team thing is recently overuled in The Netherlands, making it legal again, this because ultimate team is a seperate game mode sadly. However, a lot of countrys are working on banning these kinds of gamblng but it is a very slow process
I’ve been playing Mario Kart Tour for a couple of years now, and it’s a real shame that I seem to be one of a few people who really appreciate it for all characters, tracks and variants it’s given us, while everyone else just thinks about the loot boxes.
I have never played Mario kart tour so I don't really have an opinion on this. However I do know that loot boxes are gambling and shouldn't be allowed in video games. And maybe MKT is a good game, but not many people will know because they are driven away by the loot boxes.
@@krocodile55 That’s fine, but if you do decide to give MKT a try, I think you’ll have a good time with it. Its still Mario Kart through-and-through, and all the original variant designs for the characters are so incredibly charming. Makes me really want to see any of them in another Mario game, or have official merchandise of some of those original designs.
gambling in games is a serious problem. I've known people who have said they've spent over 25 thousand dollars on genshin impact. its serious predatory behavior and its kind of gross we keep allowing it to show up in our games.
Loot boxes basically used the same method of getting around the technicality that Pachinko parlors used. A whole different currency. You get more by buying it or by playing the game, then you cash in your currency when you're done for prizes. But I think Pachinko is classified as gambling now too, isn't it?
No matter what anyone says of Mario Kart Tour, I absolutely love all the content it’s added. It’s got such an incredible roster of characters and some amazing variants of characters. It’s got tracks from all across the history of the series, and managed to add some characters that we all dreamed of being in a Mario Kart game, such as Kamek and Dixie Kong.
The whole gacha collectable thing is kind of a gray area really. In a lot of mobile games they actually give you enough coins/gems for free. I have never had to buy anything. But there are some that push way harder to buy in game currency.
It's still predatory, even if there are ways around it. They still take advantage of people's impatience. Some people can't wait to earn the currency on their own, they need to satiate their gambling addiction NOW! So they spend real money to buy more coins, and there you go.
problem with that is allowing it at all makes it completely legal to do. Where would you place the line between "you can earn it for free or can pay" and "it takes unreasonably long to earn for free, therefore the only realistic way to make progress is to pay"? Best case scenario where you earn it for free easily, it's still worse for the consumer than the alternative without the RNG involved.
The problem with games that just barely gives you enough cash/gems is it takes a long time and they couple it with limited time content. So if you want that item you have to either grind and hope you get it or pay. Add in loot boxes and the odds are stacked against you if want that limited time content.
The fairest loot box is like the kindest child molester; I don't care how kind they might be, they are still a child molester. Loot boxes should be banned full stop.
Nintendo just removing their games from the app store in belgium as a response from them wanting to remove loot boxes is a REALLY big middle finger from Nintendo... Also I believe that if loot boxes were rewards it would be less like gambling, and I believe it would be better as you still have the escense of luck but instead of wasting money, you get rewarded for doing things. They could do it like Clash Royale, If you win a match, you geta chance of getting a common chest, magic chest, lighting chest, etc. and depending on how luxky you were you get different types of chests with different probabilities of getting something nicer or a chest that is very different, like the lighting chest that lets you change the card you unlocked. If we adapt loot boxes to be given as rewards I think it would be nicer for the players, the company and the law...
Lmao, as someone from belgium myself, I actually made a japanese Apple ID to download these games for a video, they work perfectly though... if you have the right country for your nintendo ID, if you have a belgian nintendo ID, mario kart tour will straight up say that you're not allowed to play it
The same law was passed in the Netherlands, though not as many games were affected. Afaik Pocket Camp, FE Heroes and MK Tour are still up here, but Dragalia Lost was never released
Dragalia Lost hasn't released in any European country except for the UK and Ireland, so it might not be because of Lootboxes why it wasn't released in the Netherlands. I believe Lootboxes are only illegal in the Netherlands if their contents can be resold. That's why some games with Lootboxes are still available here.
Well, I guess the Belgians can play the Tour tracks with the Mario Kart 8 DX Booster Pack. I've never played Tour and don't intend to, and when I heard of the presence of lootboxes (or as the kids call them, gacha mechanics) I chose not to play the game. In fact, my brother tried to get me to do Genshin Impact, but the presence of lootboxes was so repulsive I abandoned it after a few minutes and never looked back. Really, all these mechanics do is chase me off and are part of the reason I never play mobile games. Not gonna lie, I think that if you like lootboxes then there is something wrong with you. Say "but pity systems" as much as you want, those things are just a way of getting you to spend more by preying on the gambler's fallacy.
Unlike Genshin, Tour has a guarantee system for gacha. If you can afford to drain a banner, you are guaranteed all spotlight items. Tour gets updates every two weeks which is really refreshing.
I think loot boxes can maybe stay but with a major change, you shouldn’t be allowed to use real money but instead you should use in game currency that you can earn through playing the game (so like playing a bunch of Single player or multiplayer matches or by completing certain task in the game), it gives a similar thrill to gambling with less potential legal issues
It should be a worrying sign of how far Nintendo has fallen that multiple games haven't released in Belgium because they're so aggressively monetised with very little focus on actually being unique or fun - the complete opposite of what the company stood for just 10 years ago.
Hopefully other governments follow suit soon, but a lot of them are ages behind when it comes to modern topics like video games. Also the amount of children defending lootboxes here in the comments is dissapointing, but not surprising lol
Belgium is based, honestly. It’s just sad that Nintendo didn’t remove the loot boxes in that country. So people in Belgium who wanted to play those games can’t while in Belgium.
I miss the days when you bought a game and it worked without updates and no online market places. And when expansions were more like a second game than just cosmetic bullshit.
"unfortunately for Nintendo"
No, Thomas. That's unfortunate for their players. They're probably making ludicrous amounts of cash from these awful practices.
@Тоmmуlnnit 🅥 faker !
@Тоmmуlnnit 🅥 timmycockballs
It's a free game, who the hell cares? If you don't want lootboxes, play the game that costs 60 bucks
@Тоmmуlnnit 🅥 Here's a list of all the people who asked:
@@Forzamon42069 The dude criticized the game and shared a problem he had with it and your response is "just play another game"
Why should this be okay? Why is it wrong to want the games we play to be fun and not predatory in their monetization? Horrible take.
I'm from Belgium and I'm finding this a bit ironic considering that I'm still confronted on TV with commercials for casinos and gambling websites. The ads are even using Jean-Claude Van Damme to promote it. So, if our gouvernment has a problem with gambling, then why are they still promoting it?
I think because of the kids and they see these colorful nintendo apps and 1 hour in they might spend a lot of money on loot boxes
@@lenutavadana.937 Yeah, it's just weird that they say one thing and do another.
There's nothing ironic or contradictory there as long as those gambling websites and casinos are strictly aimed at adults making their own decisions and they make sure kids aren't involved.
I think loot boxes should just be banned outright, but that's not what this is about.
@@TheRealXartaX Fair point there.
Because you are not supposed to have acces to a casino if you are 17 years. It's really more easy to just download a game with lootbox, than enter in a real casino. No one will let you enter it because there is an ID chek. There is no "real" ID chek if you download a game with lootbox.
If Nintendo can afford to basically save the gaming industry years ago and keep up the monopoly on all their IPs for this long, they can afford to get rid of lootboxes in their mobile games
Then there would be no incentive for them to produce mobile games at all. Just look at the enormous revenue generated from Pokémon Go alone, Nintendo would be foolish to leave all that mobile game money on the table. As a business, they strive to make money - not settle for less.
By that logic, no gaming company would ever make mobile games. You think you can make a free mobile game without micro transactions? I dare you to do it.
@@ElectroBlastLuigi Question: Would having to pay to remove ads count as a microtransaction?
@@ElectroBlastLuigi flappy bird. Dude became a millionaire on just ad revenue. As well as others. You can also charge for the game.
@@biggs2560 It has been a long while since I've played Pokemon GO, but I remember when it was popular being pretty big into it. I don't remember Pokemon GO having any loot boxes in it, just a system to buy more Pokeballs, Incense or whatever from the Shop. Which if true, actually does more to strengthen niku's argument, as it is a mobile game that is able to gain revenue not from lootboxes. Which in turn means that they don't need to exist, while still giving game companies monetary incentive to make mobile games. Could be wrong though. Don't know how much the game has changed since it's initial release.
I hate loot boxes. Just let us pay $10-20 for a game
lol
I wish you could destroy the loot boxes and then stealing what’s inside
loot boxes should be free and NOT a paid feature smh
I remember when you had to unlock characters but now it’s mostly paying new characters
Lot boxes were in console games as well. Why was the casino removed in Pokemon games since gen 2 remakes?
“EA was forced to remove lootboxes”
*good riddance.*
But not in every country though 😭
@@G_Fantastic Lets have PEGI consider lootboxes be gambling, making the games be at least PEGI 12. That would at least remove it from almost all of Europe + a few more countries.
@@Liggliluff Having a casino as a backdrop in some minigames is enough to get Super Mario 64 DS and New Super Mario Bros rated 12 on the Wii U eShop, but actual gambling in the form of lootboxes? That's A-okay!
Cry more about having to spend money.
@@Anti-HyperBabeI accidentally liked this reply sorry
What was unfortunate is that Nintendo actually tried originally to make a game full of content and no micro transactions. Sadly mobile players didn’t like the idea of buying Mario Run for $10 and preferred the predatory micro transaction filled Mario Kart Tour.
The saddest part about this is that if you look at the download numbers, mobile players actually _did_ prefer Mario Run to MK Tour
Run has gotten over 300 million downloads since 2017, whereas Tour has gotten about 225 downloads since 2019.
But in spite of that, MK Tour has made over 3 times as much money as Mario Run (roughly $285 million vs roughly $85 million) because of the microtransactions, so of course Nintendo has given up on mobile games that you just buy once, because that's just not gonna please their shareholders the same way as gacha garbage.
techincally, Nintendo still makes games with no microtransactions for consoles, they think that mobile games are free for all but in the case of Mario Kart Tour, you cant get all of the characters right away, and if you get duplicates of a character, kart, or glider you already have, thats okay cause then you can upgrade them
Well all of that was part of Nintendo’s plan. If you check their shareholder meetings yty they were asked about mobile games and monetization. This specific person wanted Nintendo to use the loot box systems bcuz they earn the most. Nintendo responded with they tried multiple monetization method. Since they’re new to mobile games, they wanted to see what the market was for mobile. F2P friendly gacha game with Dragolia lost, One time payment with Mario Run, clash Royale system with Pokémon go, gacha heavy with Fire Emblem, and many more. Of all the games, Pokémon Go and Fire Emblem earned more than twice the other. This shows that in live service games, player count < whales
@@ReitheOffbeatOtaku Mario Run is a bait. It is a dead game which does not receive updates, unlike Tour. Tour still has a pretty active community and has content creators who are passionate about the game. Which is much more unique to 8's creators.
I'm not saying Tour is superior to 8, but it really does get unnecessary hate. Nintendo doesnt ask for your money to progress, although gacha for your characters can be annoying. Unlike other gacha games, the thing you want to pull for in this game is guaranteed if you have enough in game currency to afford it, which are given in pretty hefty amounts every two weeks
Ok. I just searched up "Mario Kart 8 Deluxe"
Literally content creators making shitty videos wHeRe is dLc wAvE 2???
Random race highlights no one cares about.
Facts about the game. Come on. What happened to the gameplays?
It is a form of gambling in my eyes, and here in Scotland you aren’t allowed to advertise gambling to children. So why do game companies get away with Lootboxes ? Ban the lot I say, and watch the Fortnite kids cry 😅
Fortnite doesn't have gambling tho
I don't play Fortnite but I'm 90% sure it doesn't have loot boxes, only save the world did but they removed them
I'd argue it's worse than gambling. With gambling at least there's a potential return. Whereas lootboxes have all of the loss with none of the return unless they're in a game with an item market.
@@VestedUTuber And that, right there, is the legal loophole game devs usually fall on to get that predatory game mechanic past anti-gambling laws - their argument is, gambling requires winning something of monetary or real world value, and since the rewards from lootboxes don't have that value, then players aren't gambling, they're simply paying for random in-game items or services and those items and services can't be bought or sold outside of the game itself.
Which, of course, we all know is a load of bovine manure, but some courts seem to buy it which is why we still have lootboxes in games. At least, for now.
Yes! I shall power my new game dev business with the tears of the Fortnite children.
It's actually perfect when things like this happen, it's a win-win for customers. They can't buy an evil, predatory cash-grab milking-machine, so they'll have to resort to pirating it if they want to play it, but if they pirate it, they won't be able to use the gambling-mechanics since that requires an account and such and a pirated copy won't be valid and would risk getting them in trouble or their main account suspended, so they play the game for free and don't fall victim to abuse at the same time. 👍 As a third win, it takes away the incentive for companies to make junk like this in the first place and do things the merchants have done for generations, a nice, proper, honest one-off sale.
@RL10 Some games like Star Wars Battlefront 2 require hundreds of hours (or something) of grinding just to be able to have enough in-game currency without putting real money in to buy characters like Luke and Vader.
Even without loot boxes, it still isn't a one-off sale anymore. There's still paid DLC.
Taking away a person's choice to gamble isn't a "win". Some people play these games responsibly and enjoy spending their money in it. Who are you, or anyone else for that matter, to take that choice away from someone just because YOU don't like gambling?
@@DrewTNaylor just call grinding what it is: developer-promoted addiction
@@biggs2560 Doesn't matter, it's predatory toward children and anyone predisposed to gambling addictions.
I forgot about the anti-lootbox rule and my first thought was 'Damn, time to hear when Nintendo broke the Geneva Convention and used a red cross on a health pack.' This is less funny :(
The real can of worms is that if Japan moves to call loot boxes gambling, it will have the ripple effect of making Pachinko illegal. Gambling is actually illegal in Japan and Pachinko parlors skirt this by not giving you money for your winnings. No for that you have to go to the convenience store down the street which is a totally separate business *wink nudge* and sell the ticket the machine spat out. Since you're not technically getting money from your gamble and because certain people who own pachinko parlors (who are definitely not yakuza) pay police to look the other way, there's been many decades of dancing around the issue. If a court in Japan decides that winning things that aren't money still counts as gambling, guess who's not gonna be happy.
Would be really funny to see what would Konami do
wouldn't that apply to gachapons as well, since they are, in a way, loot boxes as well?
@@wilsonweiseng6485 gachapons actually give you a physical item so I doubt that would be an issue
@@G4rfield But not always, right? Do they not sometimes give you absolutely nothing?
@ Well if the machine is broke yes
thomas game docs is based as hell for this one, there's so many nintendo themed channels (and really, gamer channels in general) that skirt around lootboxes or downplay what they Are and the affect they have on people. it's so refreshing to see someone call them out as gambling point blank
What are you talking about I can't even think of another you tuber that likes loot boxes?
@@nitrosherbert888 good for you? I guess your experience is the only one that exists, I'll try to remember that next time.
@Comic Field *So True*
@@nitrosherbert888 yeah. Literally never seen someone who was like, “aww yeah! This games got loot boxes!”
Nah mate, Nintendo is the most based character here.
I feel like Mario Kart Tour is Davy Jones and I'm a part of his crew. The only way to play "properly" is to buy and buy and keep buying stupid boxes which won't take you anywhere. I was almost addicted to the game a year ago until I realized my unhealthy behavior. It was the worst way to cope my problems.
Maybe in like 2019 the way to win was buy buy buy, but not anymore. Been playing since day 1 and have never felt inclined to spend. I can keep up with everyone without spending. They just hand out free things after free things.
You don't have to pay anything dude.At most,maybe the gold pass for 1 or 2 months,but that's it.I had the game for 6 months,and I earned a lot of the characters and gear.All you have to do is just play on a daily basis,or very frequnetly.If you open it for like twice a month for 10 minutes,of course you're not getting shit.
Now it is more freindly with f2p players i returned just 3 months ago to the game and i've got lots of characters and i can say i am almost covered in every track in the game and i still haven't used the free trial gold pass
I feel like loot boxes should be banned world wide just make an item shop and buy the items that way
@Тоmmу 🅥 bot
@Тоmmу 🅥 what in the world is there ? this comment is so unrelated ! stupid bot !
No, go back to making them unlockables you earn. An indication of skill.
@@Biotear that's actually a really good idea ngl
SOME GAMES NEED IT OR ELSE IT WILL BE BAD
Belgium solved a pretty serious issue in a simple way. It's good that they banned lootboxes in their country. Lootboxes are very predatory and are just a form of gambling wrapped in a red flag and a withered four-leaf clover. Whilst some people would not notice because they are wearing pink-tinted glasses and think any four-leaf clover is lucky.
I really hope that other countries do what Belgium did and help stop this form of gambling in any form of online gaming for good.
Also, some issues that are rampant in Mario Kart Tour prove that it is 'predatory money grab'. These being:
- A leveling system for karts, gliders, and characters that requires grinding.
- Character limited scoring methods.
- "Limited Time" character and kart bundles. (Remember that one Diddy Kong pack that costs like $40)
- And worst of all, the lootboxes.
It's pretty scary how Nintendo slowly changed from being based on quality and unforgettable moments to being based on a slothful form of pride and avarice. *I really miss old Nintendo.*
The first example isn't an example of predatory practices, it's like that in literally every RPG ever made
@@Forzamon42069 In most cases, yes- however, if it requires money to grind then that encorages players to spend more and more money. I have not played Tour and I will never touch that game ever, however considering the original commenter brought it up I'd assume that that's the case.
It is not bro you play that game and assume that the company is like that then your brain dead it is like you play hotel Mario and say Mario series is not a good franchise what kind of mind set is that like do you eat a bad burger from a bad restaurant and say all burgers are bad what shame of a Nintendo fan you are
Me too
Nintendo: "ugh, if only I told kids not to use their parents' credit/debit cards for any of my in-game purchases."
Tour actually has a cap on how much can be spent to prevent a child from wreaking havoc like that
@@whataboutmudkips5749 Nothing can stop children from wreaking havoc. It’s in our nature.
@@batyaggy325 how does that make sense?
@@poorpizzamonke7612 children always find another way to wreak havoc if one way doesn’t work
@@batyaggy325 then parents should probably act quickly when they get all those micro transactions notifications
The crazy thing is Diablo Immortal has lootboxes, but you need to play a tiny 5 minute dungeon before you get your gacha roll. It's not considered a lootbox, so it skirts the law. Insidious
I'm sick of free to play, monetized games. Just let me buy the full game like the old days.
IT WILL BE FINE
Then maybe don't play mobile games
@@Forzamon42069 yep I don't
@@Forzamon42069 :( but i like playing cut the rope
@@cdscissor Then play it on 3DS
”in game earning models”
JUST SAY LOOT BOXES YOU DONT SOUND SMARTER NINTENDO
@@BH-oq7hv That "appeasing one board member" scenario you described actually isn't too far from the truth, from what I understand.
IIRC, the reason Nintendo started making mobile games to begin with was because they had shareholders who were begging them to go into the mobile gaming market after it started booming in the late 2000s, which the people running Nintendo didn't want to do because they wanted to keep _their_ games exclusive to _their_ hardware.
However, after the bad launch of the 3DS in 2011 and the worse launch of the Wii U in 2012 had caused the company to lose money for the first time since entering the video game industry by 2013, they had no choice but to just throw up their arms and give the shareholders want they wanted, so they announced that they'd make and publish mobile games the following year in 2014.
So yeah, they basically entered the mobile market out of obligation to their shareholders, and will presumably stay there out of obligation until it stops being the most profitable part of the gaming industry, which will hopefully be soon if more countries follow Belgium's example.
It's unfortunate that out of all the countries out there that Belgium is the only one that's bothered to classify lootboxes as gambling. Like why are there no other countries that have decided to do the same?
I feel like the video somewhat misrepresents Mario Kart Tour, so I will provide some counterpoints: 1. it is possible to play and enjoy the game without spending any real-world money; 2. The loot box is activated by an in-game currency, not real-world money, and you can obtain a significant amount of that currency by playing well, completing challenges, etc. (although you can just buy that currency with real-world money). This currency is also used for other, non-gambling in-game purchases; 3. The loot box is a major game mechanic, and is not easily removed without significantly breaking how the game works.
That being said, I realize there are counterpoints to these counterpoints: 1. People who pay have a higher chance of doing well; 2. Since you can directly buy the currency, it can just end up as gambling for certain people; 3. If it's a central mechanic of the game, then the game could be considered to have a core game flaw.
Just want to make sure people understand the facts of the game, because the video kind of simplifies it too much.
Well this video aged like milk
Hope it actually releases in Belgium now
Nope, still not here 😢
Honestly incredibly based on Belgium's part. I love giving kids gambling addiction /s
This, but unironically.
First they came for the candy cigarettes and I said nothing. Then they came for the realistic toy guns and again, I said nothing. But now they've come for my loot boxes and everybody else is too busy having an actual life to care about such stupid stuff.
welp, interesting to come here after they announced they're getting rid of the gacha in tour (at least any that work with the premium currency) lmao
for some reason the mario kart app was featured heavilly on the app store but when you downloaded it you couldnt even log in to your account what an absolute scam
Problema is, belgium alone just cant do anything. But if the entire European Union adopt this, maybe the developers think twice about how to monetize their games. This is the same as the USB C port with Apple ; leaving just one country is easy, leaving a entire block like Europe or US , not so much.
If US and EU made lootboxes illegal im sure the game devs will stop making this kind of games, and honestly, that would be amazing. Greetings from Spain, we have regulated recently lootboxes as well
I wouldn't be surprised if Nintendo was like "lmao guess Europe aren't getting these games then"
Man, it's sad what lootboxes have become. From a design-perspective, adding a random element for stuff like equipment could make the game much more fun, and an easy way to make different players' experiences unique. Like how weapons in Borderlands are random, or the blade gacha in Xenoblade 2 (which you can't spend real money on).
But then so many companies tied it to expensive transactions and made the rates stupidly low, and now these kind of elements have such a horrid reputation that most never want to see them again. It's just a tool that's been used poorly for so long that people can't see how it can be fun anymore...
If only it wasn’t just Belgium who banned loot boxes
…
It's strange to see someone make a video on my country for once. I'm proud of this decision, though. Props to the commission for this one.
Loot boxes should be outlawed, but classifying them as gambling sets a dangerous precedent. They aren't really gambling because gambling requires something of value to be gained. If you can't "cash out" your winnings, then it isn't gambling. And there are possible loopholes that are even more predatory and anti-consumer than lootboxes around that corner.
You don't have to cash out something for it to have value. Having currency you can buy for real money is enough.
If loot boxes were free, and the only pay money for items of your choosing, then it would be perfectly fine.
I personally love Mario Kart Tour. Its scoring system leaves much to be desired, but the gameplay itself was a lot of fun for me, and I enjoyed the new controls. I haven't played it in a while, but I might revisit it sometime.
You failed me Mario. And I didn’t even know.
“ Belgium ban loot boxes “
I MOVE TO BELGIUM!
NO, NONONONONONONONO! THE CREW 2 IS BAN THERE!
@@bluey-next777 It isn't tho
People need to be more educated on VPN.... To bypass geographic restrictions.
Cant believe this Nintendo game is "banned"
Bad Piggies commonly has variants of crates, or lootboxes. In order to get these, win a match in Cake Race or collect these guys in certain levels.
I love Belgium. I always found it disturbing when I see a young child run up to their parent wanting the credit card to purchase in game items/upgrade their character, as they have no real grasp on what is going on. It’s so manipulative and exposing/training children to the gambling highs.
Fun fact, you can also not use points predictions on Twitch if you're in Belgium because it counts as gambling despite it not using any real money and there being no real way to convert money into points. (Sure you get more points if you are a subscriber but eh)
For me, ‘loot boxes’ in general are egregious and hinder game development.
For example, rather than spending time to develop content and deliver a full and awesome experience to consumers.
Instead, they develop the game, and decide on what to cut to sell the consumers following them having already bought the game, more often than not these companies decide to label their game ‘free to play’ ignoring the already negative financial implications that would bring to the table, because it’ll make people say; “I mean it is free, so what if I pay money into it now?”.
If you pay for cosmetics in games, you’re not only part of the problem, but you should consider donating your brain to science so that they can understand how the human species are somehow devolving.
Loot boxes are fine if there's no money transaction involved. Because then they have to be designed in a way that is fun. For example, chest drops in Vampire Survivors.
Cosmetics in games that are guaranteed when purchased and not waiting in lootboxes, are completely fine when they're optional and add nothing more than a visual difference like an outfit that doesn't affect your stats, to be perfectly fair, because that's basically just a cheap DLC instead that one can enjoy but is again entirely optional
@@rairinekoine but once the line is crossed atall, for example when Call of Duty put a gun behind a paywall of sorts in the form of the Season Pass, that is purposely over-tuned, that forces the player to feel obligated to buy the pass and play the game regardless of enjoyment, same goes with the infamous Roze skin on Warzone, which was literally pay to win, and also a cosmetic.
You can’t turn off a broken damm, because it’s broken.
@@aterriblesliceoftoast I said specifically when it has no effect on stats, for example Layered Armour sets in Monster Hunter Rise, they put some layered armour sets in just the DLC and there's no weapons or actual armour that is locked behind the paywall in that game, and the same game has free DLCs and event quests that you have to complete to unlock that quest's own rewards, hence why purely cosmetic and no P2W boosters is fine imo, it doesn't work for all game companies as some are more likely to make P2W factors than others but only visual cosmetics should be fine, again, outside of purely lootboxes
Cry harder. I don't need your approval for what I spend my money on. Are you also chastising people who bet on horse races or frequent casinos? Probably not. If you don't like mobile games, don't play them. There's plenty of games without lootboxes you can play - stop trying to dictate my enjoyment.
Something I'm actually confused about is how the Netherlands, where I'm from, banned pokemon masters for lootboxes. But Mario kart tour is still downloadable here
6:14 I live in The Netherlands and things are weird over here, with Mario Kart Tour available, but not Pokémon Masters EX.
The only reason I can think of why this is the case is that while both have Gems, Masters seperates free and paid Gems, only using paid gems for unboxing when you don't have free ones anymore while also keeping daily discounts and some banners locked behind required paid gems. Meanwhile, Tour has simply one set of Gems that can optionally be increased with money.
This seems to check out as other games like Brawl Stars and The Battle Cats, who handle their Gem equivelants basically the same as Mario Kart Tour, are also still available here despite also being gacha games.
I'm just here to say that i love the classical back ground music. Vivaldis Four Seasons Winter is my favourite.
Hey thomas how are you doing?love your videos you always make my day
Asking the right questions
@@Luingi wdym?
@Тоmmу 🅥 what do you want
@@Kingofslay it’s nice how you’re asking how Thomas is doing
@@Luingi oh okay thanks i though you meant something else
1:15 “Our stupid monkey brains can’t help but keep on gambling more and more money.”
loot boxes that cost real money should be banned worldwide
I'm from Belgium. It took me ages to figure out how to how to start playing these games. I loved them (never spent money on them) and once I FINALLY got them to work my phone got banned half a year later because it is 'too weak' even though it is more than strong enough...
I wish lootboxes would become illegal everywhere. xD
Me too but not if games that already have them can’t be played and are removed entirely like Pocket Camp and Fire Emblem Heroes.
I think free mobiles they need loot boxes to earn money
when an american company puts gambling in their game it's "loot boxes" and bad but if its a japanese company it's "a gacha game" and perfectly fine. (please ignore the fact my pfp is from a gacha game)
Belgium are so ahead of our time! So many other countries needs to follow in Belgium's footsteps asap! Go Belgium, love from Finland :3
🇫🇮❤🇧🇪
The only country that's actually "ahead" of our time is Japan
@@Forzamon42069 Is it? Technologically it's on par with the best of the US, culturally it's actually an impressive mix of modern and traditional.
That traditional part can be a little problematic, though. Surely you've heard the stories. Overworked, depressed and likely suicidal people are unfortunately a commonality in that country.
And that's not to count all its other "quirks". Under scrutiny, any country that's seemingly perfect has cracks. Flaws. Just like all of us.
3:10 The brush used here to make the "X" looks to be one from autodesk sketchbook, cool!
The Spanish government is planning to do the same thing but only with players who are under 18. If you want to prove you're over that age, you'll have to insert your ID number in the game to complete the purchase.
This is just a draft of the new law but I don't think it'll change much.
so basically spain wants to do what china does lmao very good decision /s
in china you need to insert your ID to create game accounts
4:49 ey. I see what you did there. 😏 Never finished that kdrama tho 😭
Let's a-go! Super Mario Luigi Bros. Breaks the Law New Super Deluxe 3DS U 2!
I do hope that they get rid of loot boxes because that really is predatory. It is literally the same thing as gambling and casino. You put money in and expect a prize out. At least that casinos what you expect back is more money than you spent even though typically it isn't unlike these loot boxes where you're spending real money and not getting anything back besides some digital prize within the game itself and oftentimes way too common of one that you have like a million of
Remember the good ol days when you buy a game and just play it as is without any updates, DLC, or loot box crap? good times...
I do not mind updates and DLC. I am willing to pay again for additional content. They should not be asking people to pay for a variable change.
updates are really good, dlc makes me excited, but loot box? nah
I'm cool with dlc especially when it's actual added content. I know horse armor gave it a bad rap but dlc for rocksmith and rock band was fair and necessary. You can't launch with every song ever, but you can build up to that over time.
It's ironic as they tried to have Belgium themed skins for multiple characters in tour
i was expecting miitopia being illegal in russia for allowing gay relationships, but ive remembered its just 18+ there
He already made a video on that
If you can get loot boxes but it’s with in game currency that you can buy with real money is it still considered gambling
I've played Mario Kart Tour for a year and literally haven't spent a dime on the game.
@@BH-oq7hv how do you expect Nintendo to make money from a free game? Especially a game like Mario Kart where you can easily win plenty of valuable items simply by playing the game for free. If you have a problem paying for loot boxes I suggest you seek psychiatric help for your addiction problems. But don't make your problem everyone else's.
I buy loot boxes with in-game money when I can. But I NEVER EVER use my real money, especially for Mario Kart Tour, It's more like gambling if you use real money.
Y’all didn’t miss out Belgians.
In beliguim MARIOS GOING TO DO SOMETHING VERY ILLEGAL
to be fair, fire emblem is a whole gatcha game so it's kinda hard to remove the summons without removing the core gameplay mechanic
The series didn't start out as gacha, it existed all through the 90s and 00s as normal, non-gacha games. They could just go back to that.
I have no idea what that is...
@@CayenneGaramonde yea but nintendo won't go that far to fix that in just one country. I totally agree tho
@@bluey-next777 what do you not know what it is? fire emblem or the gacha?
@@BH-oq7hv fire emblem heroes is a gatcha game
Today, lootbox is banned in 8-9 countries in Europe (there is UK, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy and the remaining I don't remember) and in Australia and it's only to who are under 18
Belgium recently unbanned lootboxes for 18+
Also games that are unavailable in your country you can easily get then with a VPN
I know a person in Belgium who really wants to play MKT, everytime someone mentions the game they ask how the game is like. Here's to hoping that they'll be able to play soon.
The FIFA ultimate team thing is recently overuled in The Netherlands, making it legal again, this because ultimate team is a seperate game mode sadly. However, a lot of countrys are working on banning these kinds of gamblng but it is a very slow process
I’ve been playing Mario Kart Tour for a couple of years now, and it’s a real shame that I seem to be one of a few people who really appreciate it for all characters, tracks and variants it’s given us, while everyone else just thinks about the loot boxes.
@@BH-oq7hv Well, everyone’s situation is different.
I have never played Mario kart tour so I don't really have an opinion on this. However I do know that loot boxes are gambling and shouldn't be allowed in video games. And maybe MKT is a good game, but not many people will know because they are driven away by the loot boxes.
@@krocodile55 Well I hope you don’t mind me giving my opinion.
@@krocodile55 That’s fine, but if you do decide to give MKT a try, I think you’ll have a good time with it. Its still Mario Kart through-and-through, and all the original variant designs for the characters are so incredibly charming. Makes me really want to see any of them in another Mario game, or have official merchandise of some of those original designs.
@@BH-oq7hv i dont have a child
I’m from Belgium but fifa still has their lootbox (packs) system in their new games like fifa 22
Nintendo has become so anti consumer
-laughs in none of these games are available in my country to begin with for some reason-
i love how nintendo didn't remove the lootboxes. they're just too damn greedy.
gambling in games is a serious problem. I've known people who have said they've spent over 25 thousand dollars on genshin impact. its serious predatory behavior and its kind of gross we keep allowing it to show up in our games.
I think this is the first ever video he made where he gets straight to the point
When Nintendo was more shady than EA
Loot boxes basically used the same method of getting around the technicality that Pachinko parlors used. A whole different currency. You get more by buying it or by playing the game, then you cash in your currency when you're done for prizes. But I think Pachinko is classified as gambling now too, isn't it?
No matter what anyone says of Mario Kart Tour, I absolutely love all the content it’s added. It’s got such an incredible roster of characters and some amazing variants of characters. It’s got tracks from all across the history of the series, and managed to add some characters that we all dreamed of being in a Mario Kart game, such as Kamek and Dixie Kong.
Neat analysis video! Thanks for uploading!
belgium is based af for that loot box ban
I wonder if this had something to do with them removing the loot boxes in Mario Kart Tour a couple of months back.
The whole gacha collectable thing is kind of a gray area really. In a lot of mobile games they actually give you enough coins/gems for free. I have never had to buy anything. But there are some that push way harder to buy in game currency.
It's still predatory, even if there are ways around it.
They still take advantage of people's impatience.
Some people can't wait to earn the currency on their own, they need to satiate their gambling addiction NOW!
So they spend real money to buy more coins, and there you go.
problem with that is allowing it at all makes it completely legal to do. Where would you place the line between "you can earn it for free or can pay" and "it takes unreasonably long to earn for free, therefore the only realistic way to make progress is to pay"? Best case scenario where you earn it for free easily, it's still worse for the consumer than the alternative without the RNG involved.
The problem with games that just barely gives you enough cash/gems is it takes a long time and they couple it with limited time content. So if you want that item you have to either grind and hope you get it or pay. Add in loot boxes and the odds are stacked against you if want that limited time content.
Love the videos, man. Keep it up!!!
I feel like nintendo has the fairest loot boxes of games I've played
The fairest loot box is like the kindest child molester; I don't care how kind they might be, they are still a child molester. Loot boxes should be banned full stop.
Nintendo just removing their games from the app store in belgium as a response from them wanting to remove loot boxes is a REALLY big middle finger from Nintendo...
Also I believe that if loot boxes were rewards it would be less like gambling, and I believe it would be better as you still have the escense of luck but instead of wasting money, you get rewarded for doing things. They could do it like Clash Royale, If you win a match, you geta chance of getting a common chest, magic chest, lighting chest, etc. and depending on how luxky you were you get different types of chests with different probabilities of getting something nicer or a chest that is very different, like the lighting chest that lets you change the card you unlocked. If we adapt loot boxes to be given as rewards I think it would be nicer for the players, the company and the law...
Lmao, as someone from belgium myself, I actually made a japanese Apple ID to download these games for a video, they work perfectly though... if you have the right country for your nintendo ID, if you have a belgian nintendo ID, mario kart tour will straight up say that you're not allowed to play it
The same law was passed in the Netherlands, though not as many games were affected. Afaik Pocket Camp, FE Heroes and MK Tour are still up here, but Dragalia Lost was never released
Dragalia Lost hasn't released in any European country except for the UK and Ireland, so it might not be because of Lootboxes why it wasn't released in the Netherlands. I believe Lootboxes are only illegal in the Netherlands if their contents can be resold. That's why some games with Lootboxes are still available here.
@@pjslotboom ooh fr? I didn't know that
That explains why TF2 crates are unopenable but for example not Overwatch loot boxes
Well, I guess the Belgians can play the Tour tracks with the Mario Kart 8 DX Booster Pack. I've never played Tour and don't intend to, and when I heard of the presence of lootboxes (or as the kids call them, gacha mechanics) I chose not to play the game. In fact, my brother tried to get me to do Genshin Impact, but the presence of lootboxes was so repulsive I abandoned it after a few minutes and never looked back. Really, all these mechanics do is chase me off and are part of the reason I never play mobile games. Not gonna lie, I think that if you like lootboxes then there is something wrong with you. Say "but pity systems" as much as you want, those things are just a way of getting you to spend more by preying on the gambler's fallacy.
Unlike Genshin, Tour has a guarantee system for gacha. If you can afford to drain a banner, you are guaranteed all spotlight items. Tour gets updates every two weeks which is really refreshing.
@@xp.wesley858 Genshin also has a pity system you are Guaranteed a 5 ⭐ every 90 pulls and it doesn't expire.
I think loot boxes can maybe stay but with a major change, you shouldn’t be allowed to use real money but instead you should use in game currency that you can earn through playing the game (so like playing a bunch of Single player or multiplayer matches or by completing certain task in the game), it gives a similar thrill to gambling with less potential legal issues
But then you can buy the in-game currency with real money. see how easily exploited this loophole can be?
It should be a worrying sign of how far Nintendo has fallen that multiple games haven't released in Belgium because they're so aggressively monetised with very little focus on actually being unique or fun - the complete opposite of what the company stood for just 10 years ago.
I'm glad to see my country in this video ^^
Thank you 🙏 ❤
Hopefully other governments follow suit soon, but a lot of them are ages behind when it comes to modern topics like video games. Also the amount of children defending lootboxes here in the comments is dissapointing, but not surprising lol
CLEMENT! ♡ THE FUTURE IS NOW THANKS TO SCIENCE!
I know. It's pathetic. (I'm knee-deep in FGO)
Which reminds me, Thomas! Whaddya call kids in Belgium? *Brussel sprouts!* Get it?
Can that law PLEASE become a thing in every other country, despite Nintendo and EA's STUPID excuse
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
@@BH-oq7hv what are you talking about?
just to be clear, we are talking abut PAID loot boxes correct?
Belgium is based, honestly. It’s just sad that Nintendo didn’t remove the loot boxes in that country. So people in Belgium who wanted to play those games can’t while in Belgium.
im from belgum n remeber being said not being able to play animalcrossing pocket camp but now im honestly happy n proud of my own country XD
ea moment
6:19, as someone who lives in the netherland and has played mario kart tour, i can confirm
I miss the days when you bought a game and it worked without updates and no online market places. And when expansions were more like a second game than just cosmetic bullshit.
Imagine moving because you want to play Mario kart on the phone
Yay first comment!
congratulations
literally how
ok, no offense, but how did you get access a day early?
@@ashhh2198 he’s fast
@@ashhh2198 Member