How the video game industry tricks players out of money

Make game companies create games again

From the video game, 'Shadow of War.'
(Image credit: Facebook.com/Shadow of War)

Most entertainment markets work like this: You create some book, movie, TV show, and so on, and put it up for sale. If people like the work, then you make money. It's an oversimplified picture, but that's the basic structure.

Many video games are also sold like this. But oftentimes the gaming industry uses psychological trickery to coerce money out of players — and increasingly, they're turning to outright gambling. It's long since time these abusive practices got government regulation.

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Ryan Cooper

Ryan Cooper is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. His work has appeared in the Washington Monthly, The New Republic, and the Washington Post.