Ragnarok Online is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game created by Gravity based on the manhwa Ragnarok by Lee Myung-jin. (Image courtesy of Gravity)
SEOUL, Apr. 6 (Korea Bizwire) –With a new law mandating transparency on loot box odds in video games taking effect, multiple South Korean game companies have acknowledged errors in how they previously disclosed the probabilities of receiving rare in-game items, raising concerns among gamers about potential manipulation.
In recent days, major publishers including Gravity for its blockbuster Ragnarok Online, Webzen for the longrunning MU ArchangeL, and Wemade for the popular Night Crows mobile game revealed mistakes in the published odds compared to the actual probabilities coded into the games, they said.
The companies insisted the discrepancies were unintentional errors that occurred during the process of manually tracking and reporting chances.
“It was a mistake made when entering the probability information on the website,” said the Night Crows operations team in a March 29 announcement about a labeling inaccuracy in which overstated rates were displayed.
Night Crows (Image from WEMADE YouTube channel)
Ragnarok Online’s team similarly explained on March 26 that having staff manually track probabilities across multiple items led to issues with overlooked entries or outdated data that failed to incorporate odds adjustments.
While the game publishers offered compensation packages and emphatically claimed the mismatched odds were not deliberate deceptions, many vocal gamers remain skeptical.
The new law requiring loot box odds transparency took effect on March 22, though the industry had already been voluntarily self-reporting probabilities amid an assumption of minimal impact.
However, the wave of admitted errors immediately before the legal mandate has stoked lingering doubts among some users about whether the stated chances of obtaining coveted character skins, weapons and other randomized loot can truly be trusted.
MU ArchangeL (Image courtesy of Webzen)
Angry gamers deluged regulators with complaints, prompting South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission to open a formal investigation into the probability disclosures across multiple major titles.
The antitrust regulator has been aggressive in its oversight, recently imposing high-profile fines on gaming titan Nexon’s blockbuster MapleStory for violations of e-commerce laws related to its loot box mechanics.
President Yoon Suk-yeol’s administration spotlighted enhancing legal protections for gamers as a key priority accomplished during a recent public policy review.
“We will strengthen cooperation across agencies to ensure gamers’ rights are protected and any damages are fully compensated,” Fair Trade Commission chair Han Ki-jeong vowed after the administration’s follow-up meeting this week.
On 3 January this year, the Korea Fair Trade Commission imposed a corrective order and a fine of KRW 11.64 billion on Nexon for secretly manipulating and falsely disclosing the probability of items sold in its online PC games MapleStory and BubbleFighter. This is the largest penalty ever imposed for a violation of the E-Commerce Act. (Image courtesy of Nexon)
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
