The monetization process of gaming has caused quite a stir over the last few years. As games have advanced, so too have the ways in which publishers and developers get money from you. One of those that’s been at the center is loot boxes, which has prompted the ESRB to now label games that include them, and has come under fire from government officials in various regions. But regardless of what you think, they are big business and a new reports estimates they are only going to get bigger.
As reported by GamesIndustry, Juniper Research estimates that within 4 years, the total revenue from loot boxes will be up to, or exceed, $20 billion in revenue. They said mobile gaming will be the biggest area for the method with the ‘Far East and China’ being the biggest contributor with North America a close second.
Even if Juniper’s math is slightly off, no doubt the amount of money from the loot box method of monetization will only grow. There are several lawsuits and governments looking into the practice, so any regulations coming about to stifle that growth remains to be seen.