Genshin Impact maker will pay a $20 million fine to settle FTC charges that allege they misled players about lootbox odds

They'll also be banned from selling lootboxes to teens under 16

Genshin Impact's developers have agreed to pay a $20 million (around £16.4m) fine to settle charges brought by the US Federal Trade Commission. The FTC allege that HoYoverse "unfairly marketed loot boxes to children that obscured real costs and misled all players about the odds of obtaining prizes." HoYoverse will also be banned from selling lootboxes to children under 16 without parental consent.

The complaint (PDF) alleges that Genshin Impact's warren of different currencies is "challenging and confusing, particularly for children and teens.

"Players must exchange real dollars for bundles of virtual currency that then have to be re-exchanged multiple times to open loot boxes, with exchange rates in unusual denominations. This complicated system, according to the complaint, misleads consumers about the amount of money that players spend on loot boxes on an ongoing basis, and the amount of money that players would likely need to spend to obtain certain prizes."

The same complaint also alleges that HoYoverse collected personal information about children in violation of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA).

The allegation that Genshin Impact misleads children about the odds of winning "Five-Star Prizes" in part relates to the Event Banners and "influencer campaigns", which the FTC says "give players the impression that they will have better odds of obtaining the five-star prize being promoted than they have in reality."

HoYoverse describe the FTC's allegations as "innacurate", but the ruling would see them pay the fine, delete the data held about children aged under 13, and no longer sell lootbnoxes to children under 16. It requires approval by a federal judge before it can go into effect.

"Genshin Impact deceived children, teens, and other players into spending hundreds of dollars on prizes they stood little chance of winning," said Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection in a press release. "Companies that deploy these dark-pattern tactics will be held accountable if they deceive players, particularly kids and teens, about the true costs of in-game transactions."

"Animation-style games and shows are well-received by global audiences and players across various ages. Genshin Impact is a popular free-to-play, anime-style game designed for older teens and adults. While we believe many of the FTC’s allegations are inaccurate, we agreed to this settlement because we value the trust of our community and share a commitment to transparency for our players," said HoYoverse in a public statement. "Under the agreement, we will introduce new age-gate and parental consent protections for children and young teens and increase our in-game disclosures around virtual currency and rewards for players in the U.S. in the coming months."

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Note: This story was amended on 20/01/2025 to add a statement from HoYoverse.