Criticism has long since been levied against EA for this extremely lucrative practice, which is essentially "pay-to-win" and encourages kids to buy packs in order to get better players. While the U.K. eventually ruled FIFA loot boxes didn't constitute gambling, other European nations with
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aren't quite so sure. In 2018. the Belgium Gaming Authority decreed loot boxes did, in fact, constitute gambling and threatened criminal prosecution against EA if they refused to remove them. EA complied with the order with minimal complaint, and several other mainstream companies, such as Valve and Blizzard, followed suit.
The case laid the groundwork for the Netherlands Gaming Authority to make a similar decision. Per Video Games Chronicle, The District Court of The Hague, the central court for international law and arbitration located in the Netherlands, deliberated on the case for nearly two years, eventually ruling in favor of the Netherlands Gaming Authority.
EA was ordered to remove Ultimate Team packs from its Dutch market, or it and its Swiss subsidiary will face a fine of €260.000 apiece, or €500.000 total per week, every week they refuse to comply, up to €5 million. Naturally, EA insists it will appeal, but this is likely just another stop in the long, legal battle the company will continue to fight worldwide for its in-game loot boxes.
Loot boxes have long been a source of contention in the gaming community as an exploitative and expensive practice, and EA has always been the primary target for the community's ire. The legal battles EA has faced and will continue to deal with are a natural progression in a long, drawn out discussion over whether microtransactions and loot boxes are a necessary evil in a world where the price per unit of a game hasn't really increased, but budget demands have. It also calls to attention an aspect of this practice that hasn't been given much thought before: do loot boxes create gambling addictions in younger or otherwise more impressionable players?
EA will most likely never give up its fight to keep loot boxes in its games for as long as the microtransaction economy in FIFA Ultimate Team alone has earned the company over $6 billion, more than enough to make the potential €5 million fine to the Netherlands look like chump change. The only way to remove microtransactions and loot boxes from games is for every country to follow in the Netherlands' footsteps, but it'll be a long time before kids stop emptying their piggy banks in a vain attempt to score Lionel Messi.
The next-gen editions of FC 26 and Madden NFL 21 will be available to download on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S starting December 4. several weeks after the new consoles launch, with free upgrades for current-gen owners. Just like every other major publisher and developer, EA has begun preparing for the launch of the next-gen consoles and has already revealed that EA Play will be included in Xbox Game Pass beginning on November 10.
EA has already confirmed that players who have already purchased a copy of either game on current hardware will be able to upgrade to the next-gen edition at no extra cost. This will be part of the Dual Entitlement program with
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that the publisher is running for its titles, which lets players upgrade to an enhanced version on the same family of consoles. For the new FIFA and Madden games, players will be able to get the next-gen releases for a year when the offer will be withdrawn. The deal will also work for physical copies, but users will need to contact EA directly to get an upgrade code.
