July 1, 2018

Andrew Wilson

209 Redwood Shores Parkway  

Redwood City, CA 94065 

Dear Andrew Wilson,

As one of my favorite companies in gaming EA has released some of the best games on

modern day consoles. Even though I enjoy the games you release at EA that doesn’t mean you

are immune to criticism. Microtransactions have become a growing issue in video games for

years, and gamers are very frustrated with how often they are being implemented. I have been

playing video games for nearly 12 years now, and I was one of the people that was enticed and

encouraged into spending unnecessary money in games like Fifa and Madden. When I was 13,

I would go around the neighborhood and ask if anyone needed any jobs done. I would take the

majority of the money I made and spend it on Fifa packs, motivated by the cards for Messi and

Ronaldo. Of course, I never received a Ronaldo or Messi card. I only received low level cards

and other useless items that were not worth anything in the game. As a kid, I didn’t realize how

manipulative these card packs could be. You always had me on the edge of my seat praying I

got these rare cards. My chances of receiving Ronaldo in a pack was basically impossible, but

young me didn’t think about those kind of things. Consumers should be informed about what

microtransactions are through a higher game rating or information about them when purchasing

a game.

As I am sure you know now, these kind of microtransactions have been banned in

Belgium in April of 2018 (Gerken). Belgium decided that these kind of purchases were under the

category of gambling in their country. I strongly believe that these kind of purchases are exactly
like gambling. What makes these purchases even worse is that anyone of any age can buy

them, meaning people like 13 year old me fell victim to the manipulative practices that your

company currently puts in your games. In 2017 Ubergizmo reported on a teenager that has

have spent $13,000 on loot boxes, and this resulted on him having to dropout of high school

and get two jobs to recover (Lee). This is the kind of effect that microtransactions can have on

an addictive personality. This person will most likely have to deal with the consequences of his

actions for years. I often hear people say that if you don’t want to deal with microtransactions

then you don’t have to buy the game, which I agree makes sense in theory. An issue comes in

when you look at it this way. Many games are great and I would love to play them, and it would

be a shame to have to miss out on the entire game just because microtransactions exist in it. I

love everything about EA games other than the microtransactions and I want to support your

company, so having us make the choice to not buy a game because of a loot box system

doesn’t seem right. Losing out on $60 from a player is not worth the amount that you get from

loot boxes.

Another argument I hear is that microtransactions lead to a large amount of profit for the

gaming companies, which means that they can create better games with those profits. I totally

agree with the statement if the revenue is coming from a fair and reasonable place. I don’t

consider it a reasonable source of revenue when the money is coming from a service that I and

many other gamers consider gambling, especially when it involves children. You are also

sacrificing the comfort of your customers and fans to make more money off of your releases.

Making the customer happy is one of the most important things you can do. A study done at

U.C. Berkeley researched how buying microtransactions can affect other people view of a

person. Included in the results it says “​In one survey and two experimental scenario-studies with

active gamers as participants (total N = 532), we found evidence supporting the idea that a
player using microtransactions will be judged more negatively.” (Evers, de Ven, Weeda) Players

being viewed negatively by their peers is just one of the examples of how it could cause

unhappiness in your player base. ​ I would be on board with your company making a large

amount of money if it came from a legitimate source, but many including me don’t believe that

microtransactions should be one of them.

According to CNBC, your company made 787 million dollars in its third fiscal quarter on

microtransactions (Kim). I am sure that you know this, and I am sure that you have some idea of

how they are affecting the people that play your games. As a gamer, I would love if you could

reevaluate the use of microtransactions in your games. This could mean putting a higher ESRB

rating on games with microtransactions, you could reduce the amount that you put them in your

games, or you could remove them completely. The people that play your games are much more

important than making extra money. Please take some time to reconsider how you implement

microtransactions into your games. The way that I would make a change is to at least inform the

consumer of what these microtransactions are. It is extremely important that kids are not subject

to microtransactions with no information on what they are. They can affect people in a very

negative way, please rethink the way that they are delivered to the players.

Best regards,

Parker Harris

Dear Parents of gamers,

As the gaming industry continues to grow many parents are wondering what affect

games could have on their kids. As someone who grew up gaming, I have experienced first
hand how these games can influence a young minds. One of my biggest issues with the

industry right now is the use of microtransactions to encourage players to spend more money

than in previous years. Microtransactions are in game purchases that can be bought after the

initial purchase or download of a game. With the introduction of a game called Fortnite in 2017,

gaming reached a new level of popularity. With people like Drake and Marshmello publically

playing the game, many people decided to try it out. According to The Wall Street Journal,

Fortnite has reached close to 50 million players in April of 2018 and continues to rise in

popularity (Needleman).

I was a teenager during the introduction of microtransactions. I have experienced first

hand how addicting they are and how gaming companies manipulate people into purchasing

them. Mobile games popularized a format of video game called the free-to-play model, where a

game is free to download but includes optional in game purchases. This style has been adopted

by popular gaming companies and has been pushed into games that already cost $60, resulting

in players spending money on the original game and then spending even more money on the

microtransactions. Not only are gamers spending more money on video games, but they are

also being manipulated into purchasing microtransactions. Microtransactions can come in many

forms, including loot boxes and skin purchases(making your character look wacky or different).

Purchasing a loot box means that the player receives randomized items or characters which

vary in rarity. These can tempt players into buying a large amount of loot boxes because they

want that rare item or character. Loot boxes often have a loud noise go off when they are

opened, which is often accompanied by cheering or clapping. A big show is made when

revealing what you got in your loot box, and most of the time the loot box has very non-rare

items. Some games even have you receive duplicates of the same items. These are often

equated to slot machines, with the loud noise and very rare payout. In 2017 Ubergizmo reported
on a teenager reported to have spent $13,000 on loot boxes, and this resulted on him having to

dropout of high school and get two jobs to recover(Lee). Microtransactions are considered by

some to be a form of gambling, and in April of 2018 loot boxes were completely banned in

Belgium. Belgium decided that loot boxes are in violation of their gambling legislation and many

expect other countries to do the same (Gerken).

According to NPD.com, 28 percent of people ages 12-54 have purchased additional

video game content, with males and teens being the majority of sales (Riley). This statistic is

including all people, not just gamers, so it is safely assumed that the percentage of gamers that

have bought microtransactions is an even higher number. It is very easy to purchase a large

amount of microtransactions over a period of time because the price varies from $1-$100, so for

example many people buy a $10 microtransaction once a week, which begins to add up over

time. Microtransactions can be addicting to players and are considered by some as a form of

gambling that is legal for all ages. They should be closely monitored by parents to ensure that

your kids are not drawn in by their flashy appeal and “promising” reward. The best way to do

this is to research to see if the game your son or daughter wants to buy has microtransactions.

Deciding not to take part in this will save them from a form of gambling and save you money.

The next time your child asks you for some money for a small in game purchase, you should

evaluate what they want to purchase and decide for yourself whether it could have any negative

effects.

Best regards,

Parker Harris
 Works Cited 

-Evers, Ellen R. K., et al. “The Hidden Cost of Microtransactions: Buying In-Game Advantages in 

Online Games Decreases a Player's Status.” 

web.b.ebscohost.com.cod.idm.oclc.org/ehost/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=3cfc8a56-909a-49ea-80da-85ff25

d53fd7%40sessionmgr120&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=112227197&db=a

9h. 

-Needleman, Sarah E. “How Popular Is ‘Fortnite?’ Headset Sales Nearly Doubled in March”. Wall 

Street Journal, 25 Apr. 2018, 

www.wsj.com/articles/how-popular-is-fortnite-headset-sales-nearly-doubled-in-march-1524683752​. 

-Lee, Tyler. “Teen Reportedly Spent Over $13,000 On Microtransactions, Asks EA To Reconsider. 

Ubergizmo, 30 Nov. 2017”, ​www.ubergizmo.com/2017/11/teen-spends-13k-microtransactions/​. 

-Gerken, Tom. “Video Game Loot Boxes Declared Illegal under Belgium Gambling Laws. BBC, 26 

Apr. 2018”, w
​ ww.bbc.com/news/technology-43906306​. 

-Kim, Tae. “Wall Street Is Giddy over EA’s Surging Microtransaction Profits, despite ‘Horrific’ ‘Star 

Wars’ Game Sales.” CNBC, 31 Jan. 2018, 

www.cnbc.com/2018/01/31/wall-street-is-giddy-over-eas-surging-microtransaction-profits.html​. 

-Riley, David. “Latest Report from the NPD Group Provides Insight Into Gamers’ Purchasing, 

Usage, and Perceptions of Additional Gaming Content.” NPD, 16 Oct. 2016, 

www.npd.com/wps/portal/npd/us/news/press-releases/2016/latest-report-from-the-npd-group-provides-

insight-into-gamers-purchasing-usage-and-perceptions-of-additional-gaming-content/​.