Loot boxes are a mechanic that has gradually been disappearing from video games, since it is considered basically random and predatory, because it takes advantage of people’s addictive tendencies. And in just a few weeks, it will also disappear from one of the few games that still used it: Mario Kart Tour for iOS and Android.
According to information from Games Industry.biz , Nintendo announced that loot boxes (also known as loot boxes) will disappear from the mobile title in an update that will be released at the end of September. In this system, users can use gems to win new racers, cars or gliders, prizes that are awarded randomly.
The criticism of loot boxes is that, assuming the odds are bad that day, a user can spend their real money on gems, open a lot of boxes and still get nothing of value. Therefore, the system will be replaced by a rotating store, in which users will have limited time to get the brokers or cars, but at least they will know exactly what they are paying for, and it will not be a random expense.
Here’s a peek at #Mariokartour’s update coming late September! Battle mode will be added, along with a Spotlight Shop, where you can exchange rubies for drivers, karts, and gliders! Also, pipes you can fire by using rubies will be removed. See the notification for details. pic.twitter.com/brsI1tH8YD
– Mario Kart Tour (@mariokarttourEN) September 2, 2022
“(In the new store) new drivers, cars and gliders will be available, as well as drivers, karts and gliders that have appeared in the past,” Nintendo mentioned to users in a message inside Mario Kart Tour. “Along with this, the pipeline that you can activate using rubies will be removed.”
Thanks to loot boxes and season passes purchased by users, Mario Kart Tour is one of Nintendo’s most successful mobile titles, having generated almost $300 MILLION since its launch in 2019. And although it might seem that this change of business model will affect the title, it must be remembered that the rotating store model is a concept already used by other very successful free-to-play titles, such as Fortnite.
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