On: Understanding gambling addiction (2012)

[synu]

Children have been on a gambling funnel thanks to loot boxes for about ten years, so we should start seeing the societal impacts now.

[MontyCarloHall → synu]

Kids have been at it for way longer than that. What are packs of trading cards, if not loot boxes in the physical world? I knew plenty of kids who spent all their allowance money on packs of Pokémon cards, hoping to score that rare Charizard.

[synu → MontyCarloHall]

They’ve really amped up the dopamine triggers and optimised the addiction loop since the days of opening up a pack of cards.

[elliekelly → synu]

And removed all of the friction. They’re available 24 hours a day in unlimited quantities. You don’t have to wait until after school. You don’t have to wait for the local toy store to open. You don’t have to wait for the store to have them in stock. The next box is always just one push of a button away.

[spaghettiToy → synu]

People might get bored of it too. I know those ultra addictive clicking games were part of my childhood. As an adult I have no interest.

Thank God because I see my parents wasting time. At least when I was a kid I had no money and was bored. They have money and education.