Via ResetEra user Creamium: https://www.resetera.com/threads/belgian-gambling-commission-is-investigating-battlefront-ii-and-overwatch.6280/
Original source (Dutch): https://nieuws.vtm.be/binnenland/onderzoek-naar-nieuw-star-wars-spel

The gambling commission is investigating the new video game SW: Battlefront II. In this game, you can pay money for upgrades, only you don't know what you're getting beforehand. Overwatch, another popular game, is also being investigated.

[...]

The game features loot crates, which offer items but the contents are random. "Therein lies the problem", says director of the gambling commission Peter Naessens to VTM news. "It depends on luck and at that point you're gambling."

The commission says this game poses a danger to minors, who are under (social) pressure to spend a lot of money on the game.That's why they're starting an investigation. "If we are dealing with a game of chance, they need to have a permit."

In the worst case scenario, this could lead to fines of hundreds of thousands of euros. The game could also be removed from stores. EA, developer of the game, declined to comment.

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The Dutch gambling authorities are also investigating loot boxes in general: https://www.nu.nl/games/5009924/nederlandse-kansspelautoriteit-onderzoekt-lootboxen-in-games.html
We also don't have any laws allowing online gambling here. If the authorities find loot boxes to be online gambling the publishers have simply broken Dutch law. They might have to pull the games (or the microtransactions themselves) from the various online stores permanently if that's the case.

Regulation is coming. ESRB had better change their mind real fast or draconian US law will be knocking on gamings door. The big companies can only lobby so much before the FTC gets its hands dirty.

Good.

Nothing will happen (probably). They always look into these sorts of things, but the fact that you actually get something (as opposed to handing over money and receiving no compensation) always seems to protect these kind of schemes.

Similar accusations were thrown against subscription service mystery boxes and even things like packs of Pokemon Cards back in the day... so long as you aren't specifically gambling for actual currency with the possibility of zero return, I really can't think of an example where it was deemed "gambling".

*Edit* I should clarify that I'm mostly speaking of the US market... perhaps some other countries have stepped in and I'm simply unaware of it.

Hopefully something comes out of this cause it really is getting a bit craycray. Lootboxes that doesn't affect gameplay is one thing but lootboxes that directly affects gameplay is essh worthy. Even if they have to take down Overwatch with them, I'd prefer if they do something about the situation as a whole.

Things like this is what makes me long for the days of the plug and play era (Atari 2600-PS2) where you bought a system and subsequent games came totally 100% finished, throughly tested and worked right out of the box with no day-one download/patches or installation.

Yeah, regulation will happen, it's a matter of time.

Some good developments coming, hopefully. This stuff is a form of gambling, pretty much.

Sony's doing lootboxes?

There is only one thing for which the Belgian state regulates for and that's money. EA or the player are going to pay for this one if they regulate on this. My bet is on the player then.