Video game terminology on Notably News

Video game terminology

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June 5 2025	Handheld game console Nintendo released the Nintendo Switch 2, a hybrid console that can be used as a handheld device or connected to a TV via a docking station, succeeding the original Nintendo Switch.
February 2025	Loot box Overwatch 2 introduced a new loot box system that allows players to earn cosmetic items through gameplay or battle pass, with guaranteed high-rarity items to minimize gambling concerns.
January 2025	Loot box MiHoYo settles with the FTC over Genshin Impact loot box practices, paying $20 million and agreeing to implement controls preventing younger players from purchasing loot boxes without parental approval.
September 2024	Loot box Enforcement of new classification rules begins: games with simulated gambling will be rated R18+, and games with chance-based in-game purchases will be rated M.
March 2024	Loot box Enforcement begins for South Korea's law requiring loot box odds disclosure, leading to changes like Respawn Entertainment publishing loot box rates for Apex Legends and EA disabling Ultimate Team packs in FC 2025 for Korean users.
2023	Skin gambling Valve released Counter-Strike 2, the successor to Global Offensive, automatically transferring players' digital weapon skin inventories to the new game. In this year, Valve was estimated to have earned US$1 billion from weapon case key sales and Steam marketplace trade commissions.
2023	Fatality Mortal Kombat 1 introduces an accessibility feature for visually impaired individuals, providing in-game narration of Fatality properties.
June 2023	Skin gambling Valve issues bans to over 40 high-profile Steam accounts involved in supplying skins to gambling sites, resulting in over $2 million being locked in accounts.
May 2023	Skin gambling Valve adds 'commercial practices' including gambling to their prohibited practices in the Steam code of conduct.
May 2023	Loot box Sony failed to appeal the court's previous ruling, resulting in an order to refund money to plaintiffs who had spent money on FIFA Ultimate Team packs.
April 2023	Skin gambling A single gun skin was sold for more than $400,000, indicating renewed activity in the skin gambling market following Valve's announcement of Counter-Strike 2.
March 2023	Loot box The district court of Hermagor ruled that loot boxes in FIFA video games constitute gambling, deeming them illegal. The court determined that virtual goods have real value and promise potential gain, particularly noting the existence of a black market for player trading.
March 2023	Loot box Wilkie's bill was modified to address all video games with simulated gambling, including loot boxes.
February 2023	Loot box South Korean National Assembly passed a new law mandating games with loot boxes to publish item acquisition odds or face fines.
2022	Battle pass Overwatch 2 introduces a new battle pass system where new heroes are awarded at level 55, replacing the previous loot box system and causing player controversy.
2022	Loot box Epic Games removed the ability to buy loot boxes and starter packs with real money in their games.
November 2022	Loot box MP Andrew Wilkie introduced a bill proposing that video games with loot boxes be automatically rated R18+ or refused rating to prevent sales to minors.
October 2022	Fatality Justin Clark of GameSpot celebrated the 30th anniversary of Mortal Kombat by selecting the 10 best and worst Fatalities in the series' history.
July 2022	Loot box DCMS released findings concluding that loot box games increase risks of gambling, mental health, and financial harm, but did not propose immediate legal changes.
July 2022	Loot box An academic study revealed that the Belgian ban on loot boxes had not been effectively enforced, with 82 of the 100 highest-grossing iPhone games still selling loot boxes.
May 2022	Loot box Fifteen advocacy groups send an open letter to the Federal Trade Commission urging an evaluation of FIFA's Ultimate Team packs following a Norwegian Consumer Council report on loot boxes.
May 2022	Loot box Norwegian Consumer Council, supported by 18 EU countries, releases a report characterizing loot boxes in games like FIFA and Raid: Shadow Legends as 'exploitative and predatory', paving the way for potential EU regulatory discussions.
March 2022	Loot box The Dutch Administrative Jurisdiction Division overturned the previous ruling against EA, determining that Ultimate Team packs were part of a game of skill and did not violate gambling laws.
February 25 2022	Handheld game console Official release of the Steam Deck to the US, Canada, the EU, and the UK, after being delayed from the initial December 2021 shipping date.
January 2022	Loot box A class action lawsuit filed in Illinois against Take Two Interactive over loot box mechanics in the NBA 2K series, alleging deceptive practices that psychologically distance purchases from real-world financial costs.
2021	Microtransaction Activision Blizzard earned $8.8 billion in its fiscal year, with the majority of profit generated from microtransactions
2021	Loot box The Ministry of Home Affairs of Singapore initiated a review of The Remote Gambling Act, with potential plans to create technology-agnostic regulations that could specifically address loot boxes and other non-traditional gambling products.
2021	Loot box A leaked EA presentation revealed the company's intent to drive FIFA 21 players towards the Ultimate Team mode, positioning it as the 'cornerstone' of the game.
2021	Loot box Researchers in England released a report concluding that loot boxes are structurally and psychologically akin to gambling.
2021	Free-to-play Legal action was taken against Epic Games using the findings from the 2020 German study about Fortnite's monetization practices.
December 2021	Handheld game console Analogue released the Analogue Pocket, an FPGA-based handheld game console designed to play games from fourth, fifth, and sixth generation handheld consoles, featuring compatibility with Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance cartridges out of the box.
October 2021	Loot box The Office of the Mufti for Federal Territories in Malaysia declared loot boxes in PUBG: Battlegrounds as a form of gambling (maisir) forbidden in Islamic jurisprudence, citing that item acquisition is not guaranteed despite requiring payment with real money.
October 2021	Crunch Eidos-Montréal and Eidos-Sherbrooke became some of the first major game development studios to announce a shift to a four-day workweek, aimed at improving developers' quality of life during the COVID-19 pandemic.
September 2021	Loot box The Advertising Standards Authority issued guidance requiring mobile games to disclose loot box information in store pages and advertisements.
July 16 2021	Handheld game console Pre-order reservations for the Steam Deck began, causing such high demand that it briefly crashed Steam's servers. Pre-orders were limited to Steam accounts opened before June 2021 to prevent reseller manipulation.
July 15 2021	Handheld game console Valve officially revealed the Steam Deck, a handheld computer device running SteamOS 3.0 with Proton compatibility layer for Windows games.
June 2021	Loot box EA introduced Ultimate Team Preview Packs in FIFA 21, allowing users to preview pack contents before purchase.
March 2021	Loot box The November 2020 lawsuit against EA regarding Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment was dropped after EA provided technical information and engineer access.
March 2021	Loot box Germany's Bundestag passes revisions to the Youth Protection Act to mark games with loot boxes or similar mechanics as 'cost traps' in the ratings system.
January 12 2021	Browser game Adobe completely shut down Flash, marking the end of the Flash games era.
2020	Skin gambling Market activity of skin trading and gambling weakened due to increasing governmental regulations and scrutiny of skin gambling and loot boxes.
2020	Microtransaction A study found that 58% of games on Google Play Store and 59% of games on the Apple App Store contained loot boxes, highlighting the widespread prevalence of microtransaction mechanics in mobile gaming.
2020	Handheld game console Ninth generation of handheld game consoles begins, potentially marked by enhanced connectivity and more powerful mobile gaming platforms.
2020	Free-to-play A German study investigated free-to-play game monetization strategies, specifically examining Fortnite's use of in-game currency and its potential to obscure the true cost of purchases through the 'money illusion' concept.
2020	Browser game The Flashpoint project began preserving thousands of browser games to prevent their loss after Adobe Flash's discontinuation.
December 31 2020	Browser game Adobe Flash was officially shut down, marking the end of an era for browser games that were predominantly created using this technology.
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This contents of the box above is based on material from the Wikipedia articles Fatality (Mortal Kombat), Skin gambling, Crunch (video games), Browser game, Free-to-play, Battle pass, Microtransaction, Loot box & Handheld game console, which are released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.