Brazil, the 13th largest videogame market in the world as of
2017, may be the latest jurisdiction to adopt rules prohibiting or
limiting loot boxes in video games. At the urging of a public
interest group – the National Association of Child and
Adolescent Defense Centers – the Public Prosecutor's
Office in Brazil has accepted a request for Public Civil Action
against several game publishers, including Electronic
Arts, Riot Games, Garena, Nintendo, Konami, Valve, Ubisoft,
Tencent, Microsoft, Apple, Google, and Sony. The action alleges
that loot boxes are essentially gambling, and thus illegal under
Brazilian law. Brazil's independent courts will ultimately
investigate and determine the legality of loot boxes. Although game
developers are not currently required to remove loot boxes from
games sold in Brazil, if the courts determine that loot boxes
violate Brazilian law, the Public Civil Action seeks $700,000 per
day in fines for ongoing violations.
