A Brazilian court has handed out one of the biggest loot box rulings in gaming history, with a group of major publishers and platform holders ordered to collectively pay BRL 298 million — roughly $58.4 million — in what it calls moral damages over randomized reward mechanics accessible to minors.
Apple has been slapped with the biggest penalty, with their fine set at $9.8million. And with other lawsuits shaping up, including issued by New York, the damages could be unparalleled.
The 1st Child and Youth Court of the Federal District issued the ruling following public civil actions brought by the National Association of Child and Adolescent Defence Centres (ANCED). ANCED argued that loot box systems exposed young players to "predatory in-game reward systems." Targets include esports publishers Valve, Riot Games, Electronic Arts, Tencent, Ubisoft, and Konami, alongside platform holders Apple, Google, Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo.
What each company owes
Financial penalties are based on each company's market reach, with Tencent facing a much bigger bill than Konami. Apple and Microsoft also face steep fines, with both required to pay BRL 50 million (approximately $9.8 million), as reported by 9to5Mac. The esports-facing publishers received smaller but still significant penalties:
| Company | Games | Fine (BRL) | Fine (USD approx.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tencent | PUBG Mobile | BRL 50 million | ~$9.81 million |
| Electronic Arts | Apex Legends, EA FC | BRL 20 million | ~$3.92 million |
| Riot Games | League of Legends, others | BRL 15 million | ~$2.94 million |
| Valve | Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2 | BRL 10 million | ~$1.96 million |
| Ubisoft | Rainbow Six Siege | BRL 10 million | ~$1.96 million |
| Konami | eFootball | BRL 8 million | ~$1.57 million |
Sony, Google, and Nintendo are also in the mix, with their penalties ranging from BRL 40 million (about $7.8 million) to BRL 5 million (about $1 million), according to sources.
All the money is expected to be donated to the Federal District's Fund for the Rights of Children and Adolescents – but only after corporate appeals have been used up.
Why the court ruled this way
🚨 CONDENADA!
— Wiccano Arena X | WILD RIFT (@ArenaXWiccano) June 16, 2026
A Riot Games foi condenada a pagar 15 MILHÕES de indenização por danos morais coletivos devido às práticas de Loot Box!
Além disso, a empresa possui 90 dias para a implantação de advertência sobre o sistema de aleatoriedade, divulgação das probabilidades exatas… pic.twitter.com/NvQeuVIX1w
Loot boxes give players the chance to spend money without actually knowing what reward they’ll get. The court found that the concept mimics gambling mechanics and can easily lead to addictive behavior. Brazil's judiciary determined these systems violated protections already embedded in the country's 1990 Child and Adolescent Statute (ECA), the Federal Constitution, and the Consumer Protection Code, independently of any newer regulation.
The ruling potentially means we might see individual claims, too. Underaged players who purchased or opened loot boxes might seek separate compensation but they’ll need to prove what happened, as well as any actual harm suffered.
What companies must now do
The court has imposed a set of operational mandates on how loot boxes function in Brazil. The requirements are concrete. Companies must now:
- Build refund systems for purchases made by minors without parental approval
- Deploy age-verification tools that block underage users from accessing randomized crates
- Display clear warnings about the random nature of microtransaction rewards
- Publish the statistical odds for every possible item drop — what the court called "probabilistic transparency"
These requirements take effect immediately on local operations, even as appeals proceed.
Riot Games took early steps — but still got fined
One wrinkle worth noting: Riot Games was not entirely caught off guard. The Esports Radar reported that ahead of the March 2026 ECA Digital deadline, Riot raised the age rating and verification requirements for Teamfight Tactics, Wild Rift, League of Legends, 2XKO, and Legends of Runeterra to 18+. Most other publishers stayed silent about their compliance steps.
And yet, in a nightmare twist, Riot’s efforts didn't save them. Despite those precautions, the court still fined them BRL 15 million.
A broader crackdown taking shape
In more bad news for the publishers, the ruling doesn’t even exist in isolation, with Valve facing a separate loot box lawsuit in New York. The Brazilian decision signals that regulators and courts in multiple jurisdictions are increasingly willing to treat randomized monetization as a consumer protection issue rather than a design choice.
Appeals are coming. All companies retain the right to challenge the ruling, and the largest financial penalties likely face a protracted legal process before any funds change hands. The compliance mandates, however, are already in force.
