EU proposes banning loot boxes and pay-to-win purchases for players under 18
The Digital Fairness Act would also make games show real-money prices and loot-box odds, and let all players switch loot boxes off. It still needs approval from EU lawmakers and member countries.
SAN JOSE — Game companies would have to stop selling loot boxes and pay-to-win items to anyone under 18 in the European Union, and let every player switch loot boxes off, under a law the European Commission proposed Wednesday.
The Digital Fairness Act is not law yet. The European Parliament and the governments of the EU’s member countries must agree on it first, and the rules would take effect 12 months after it is passed, the proposal says. It covers sales to players in the EU, not in the United States.
For games, the main changes are these:
- Paid loot boxes, which the proposal describes as random rewards “such as loot boxes, wheels of fortune, or collectible card packs,” could not be offered to minors when a game is aimed at them or the company is reasonably sure children play it. Bought in-game currency counts as payment. The text gives no parent override.
- Every player, adult or not, would have to be told what a loot box can contain and the odds of getting each item, and be given a simple way to turn paid loot boxes off.
- Purchases that are needed, or are presented as needed, to progress or win could not be sold to minors.
- Prices in in-game currency would have to show what an item actually costs in real money. For minors, bought in-game currency would be off by default and could be turned on only with a parent’s or guardian’s approval.
The proposal says random-reward systems can cause unwanted spending and “share the speculative features of gambling.” It also lets all users turn off features meant to keep them playing, such as rewards for logging in at set times and penalties for missing a day.
The Commission says its broader package, which also targets fake “almost sold out” claims and subscriptions that are hard to cancel, would save EU consumers up to €13.7 billion a year.
Source: European Commission Digital Fairness Act page; Digital Fairness Act proposal, COM(2026) 1100; European Commission news article, Nov. 11.