Month: January 2018

Few could have predicted the international headlines that Star Wars: Battlefront II spurred over its highly controversial microtransaction implementation. The latest chapter has now commenced, with three Washington State Senators submitting a bill this month that asks the state to determine if loot boxes constitute gambling. And if they do, the effects could be significant and potentially industry-changing.

Senate Bill 6266 in the Washington Legislature [PDF] was introduced on January 11 and referred to the Labor & Commerce committee. It is scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce at 1:30 PM on January 31.

The bill asks for the Washington state gambling commission to conduct a study that looks into whether video games that use loot boxes that contain “mechanisms that provided randomized virtual items in online games or apps” should be considered gaming under Washington law. The bill also wants to examine if these mechanisms have any place in games whatsoever. Perhaps more importantly, the bill wants to put in motion an examination into if minors and young people,” who may be more vulnerable to gambling addiction,” should have access to games with loot boxes. Furthermore, the Senators are calling out game developers for the “lack of disclosure and transparency” about loot box odds.

The Democratic senators who submitted the bill, Kevin Ranker, Reuven Carlyle, and Karen Keiser, are asking for a relatively quick turnaround on the study. They are asking the Washington state gambling commission to have it submitted no later than December 1, 2018. At this time, the commission is asked to provide “written findings and provide recommendations regarding how to best regulate the practice of including loot boxes and similar types of mechanisms in online games and apps, including options for the adoption and implementation of a regulatory and enforcement system, restrictions on the sale of games containing these mechanisms, and any appropriate disclosures.”

There are some very important lines in there, perhaps most notably that the Senators are looking for potential regulation on games with loot box mechanics. Significantly, the “regulatory and enforcement system,” while vague in its terms now, could have major implications. If this bill becomes law, it sounds like such games would be considered gambling. That would mean that people under 18 (the legal gambling age in Washington; it is 21 in other states) would potentially be blocked from buying these games. Perhaps more notably, this bill, if it becomes law, could serve as a precedent that could potentially sweep to other states and parts of the world.

Importantly, however, it is very early days, and–statistically speaking–most bills never become law, on a state and federal level.

Speaking to Washington’s News Tribune (via USGamer), Ranker did not hold back in his takedown of games with controversial loot box systems.

“If (parents) realized how predatory these games are then they wouldn’t want them under their Christmas tree, they wouldn’t want them going to their kids,” he charged.

You can read the full text of Bill 6266 right here on the Washington legislature website. As mentioned, the public hearing related to this bill is scheduled for January 31. We’ll report back when more details are made available.

Loot boxes in video games are not new; their existence pre-dates Battlefront II. However, that EA-published game brought the controversy to the forefront due in part to how loot boxes contained game-affecting items instead of those that are cosmetic in nature only as games like Overwatch offer. This led some to believe that the loot boxes, which you could buy with real money, amounted to a pay-to-win situation. This did not go over well with players, and EA removed all microtransactions from the game–but they may or may not come back later.

Washington state’s bill is not the first from a state senator about loot boxes and microtransactions. A United States senator from Hawaii is also looking into the matter, saying recently that he wants the sale of some games with loot boxes banned for minors. Internationally, Belgium has also launched an investigation to try to determine if games with loot box mechanics represent gambling. New Zealand, meanwhile, has come forward to say loot boxes do not constitute gambling.

This is an ongoing matter that we expected won’t reach any conclusion anytime soon, so keep checking back with GameSpot for the latest.

Updated with the results of the Universal Championship match, and the men’s Royal Rumble, and the women’s Royal Rumble match!

Get lots of Zeni to unlock characters and lobby goodies in Dragon Ball Fighterz with these tips.

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It’s Royal Rumble time! This year, the women, for the first time ever, get in on all the Rumbling! Will Undertaker show up? Will Ronda Rousey make her WWE debut? Will ECW icons pop the Philly crowd? Will the Women’s Rumble match close the show? Will anything be able to top Gargano vs. Almas from NXT: TakeOver last night? There are so many questions!

Oh, and don’t you worry. On Friday, ex-IC Champ Roman Reigns officially entered himself into the Rumble (you just have to say, out loud, that you’re in it) so there’s a strong possibility we might re-live the last time Reigns won the Rumble. In Philly.

Continue reading…

WWE fans are hopping on the Road to Wrestlemania, and the first stop is the Royal Rumble on January 28. This year’s event marks a special occasion as it’s the first time there will be a women’s Rumble match, alongside the men. 2017’s Rumble had one of the best matches of the year with AJ Styles vs. John Cena, so hopefully, the 2018 edition will deliver something equally as exciting.

This year’s event takes place at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA. The 31st edition of the winter PPV will be huge with four championship matches and two Rumbles, plus three more events taking place on the Kickoff show. You can check out an in-depth match card with the predictions here and every confirmed wrestler for the Rumble matches here. If you’re looking for a bit more information, learn everything you need to know about the event, including where to watch it and betting odds.

Here’s the card lineup for the event:

• Bobby Roode’s United States Championship Open Challenge (KICKOFF SHOW)
• Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson vs. The Revival (KICKOFF SHOW)
• Kalisto, Lince Dorado & Gran Metalik vs. TJP, Gentleman Jack Gallagher & Drew Gulak (KICKOFF SHOW)
• The Usos (c) vs. Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin (2-out-of-3-falls match for the Smackdown Tag Team Championships)
• Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman vs. Kane (For the Universal Championship)
• AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn (2-on-1 Handicap Match for the WWE Championship)
• Women’s Royal Rumble
• Men’s Royal Rumble

The Royal Rumble Kickoff Show starts on the WWE Network at 5PM ET/2PM PT. The actual Rumble begins at 7PM ET/4PM PT on the WWE Network and on PPV. Below, you’ll find the winners of each match as it happens, as well as every participant in both Rumble matches.

In case you’re not caught up, don’t worry; we put the final results in spoiler blocks.

Kickoff Show

Kalisto, Lince Dorado & Gran Metalik vs. TJP, Gentleman Jack Gallagher & Drew Gulak

Kalisto pins TJP at 13:14.

Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson vs. The Revival

Dash Wilder pins Karl Anderson at 9:13.

Bobby Roode’s United States Championship Open Challenge

Mojo Rawley answers the call.

Bobby Roode pins Mojo at 7:36.

Main Card

AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn (2-on-1 Handicap Match for the WWE Championship)

Styles pins Owens at 15:51.

The Usos (c) vs. Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin (2-out-of-3-falls match for the Smackdown Tag Team Championships)

Usos get pin at 12:12.

Usos get second pin at 13:50.

Men’s Royal Rumble

• 1. Rusev
• 2. Finn Balor
• 3. Rhyno
• 4. Baron Corbin
• 5. Heath Slater
• 6. Elias
• 7. Andrade Almas
• 8. Bray Wyatt
• 9. Big E
• 10. Tye Dillinger… Sami Zayn took his place, after beating him up backstage
• 11. Sheamus
• 12. Xavier Woods
• 13. Apollo Crews
• 14. Shinsuke Nakamura
• 15. Cesaro
• 16. Kofi Kingston
• 17. Jinder Mahal
• 18. Seth Rollins
• 19. Matt Hardy
• 20. John Cena
• 21. The Hurricane
• 22. Aiden English
• 23. Adam Cole
• 24. Randy Orton
• 25. Titus O’Neil
• 26. The Miz
• 27. Rey Mysterio
• 28. Roman Reigns
• 29. Goldust
• 30. Dolph Ziggler

Shinuske Nakamura wins by eliminating Roman Reigns at 1:05:30.

Afterwards, Nakamura stated he’ll be challenging AJ Styles at Wrestlemania.

Seth Rollins & Jason Jordan (c) vs. The Bar (For the Raw Tag Team Championships)

Cesaro pins Seth Rollins at 12:45.

Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman vs. Kane (For the Universal Championship)

Lesnar pins Kane at 10:58.

Women’s Royal Rumble

• 1. Sasha Banks
• 2. Becky Lynch
• 3. Sarah Logan
• 4. Mandy Rose
• 5. Lita
• 6. Kairi Sane
• 7. Tamina
• 8. Dana Brooke
• 9. Torrie Wilson
• 10. Sonya Deville
• 11. Liv Morgan
• 12. Molly Holly
• 13. Lana
• 14. Michelle McCool
• 15. Ruby Riott
• 16. Vicki Guerrero
• 17. Carmella
• 18. Natalya
• 19. Kelly Kelly
• 20. Naomi
• 21. Jacqueline
• 22. Nia Jax
• 23. Ember Moon
• 24. Beth Phoenix
• 25. Asuka
• 26. Mickie James
• 27. Nikki Bella
• 28. Brie Bella
• 29. Bayley
• 30. Trish Stratus

Asuka wins by eliminating Nikki Bella at 59:05.

Are you in the market for a new Xbox One X? Best Buy has launched a new deal you might want to consider. The US retailer is now throwing in an extra controller (black or white) and three months of Xbox Live Gold when you buy the $500 console.

Controllers go for $60 and Xbox Live Gold memberships cost $25 for three months, so you’re saving around $85 with this deal on stuff you might want to add anyway. This offer also works with standard Xbox One systems, including the Madden NFL 18 and Forza Horizon 3 systems. You can find the landing page for this deal on Best Buy’s website here.

This isn’t the only Xbox One X deal going on now at Best Buy. The retailer has launched a separate deal where you can get a system and your choice of an Xbox One X-enhanced title at no extra cost. The free game options include: Middle-earth: Shadow of War, Destiny 2, Star Wars: Battlefront II, Call of Duty: WWII, Madden NFL 18, Forza Motorsport 7, Assassin’s Creed: Origins, and NBA 2K18. More details on this deal can be found on Best Buy’s website here.

The Xbox One X launched in November. Microsoft does not release sales statistics for any Xbox consoles, but we do know that the Xbox One (comprising the Xbox One and Xbox One X) outsold the PS4 (comprising PS4 and PS4 Pro) in December.