00:00Merrick Wolski escapes into sensory overload using the gaming platform Roblox, but he's
00:09worried some gameplay feels like gambling.
00:12Rolling dice and depending on your luck you get different pets.
00:16The 17-year-old buys Roblox's virtual currency for a chance to win.
00:21I get a 0.01% chance to get a good drop.
00:25This is gambling without limits and real manipulation.
00:30A new report examined design features which manipulate gamers known as dark patterns.
00:36Almost all of the players surveyed had encountered them and the most common were free games with
00:41ads or paid features known as freemiums, hidden costs and redirections or pop-up ads.
00:49More than half of players had their privacy compromised and left games feeling annoyed.
00:54Almost 50% suffered financial loss.
00:58We've heard from people who've spent hundreds of dollars or thousands of dollars more than
01:02they've intended to.
01:0511-year-old Yo-Yo is also an avid Roblox user but gets frustrated with pop-up ads.
01:12I can't zoom out and click the X button to ignore it and I have to leave the game.
01:18Oh, did it just go?
01:20Researchers found Australia's classification system has serious limitations because games
01:26are getting around restrictions on gambling-like content.
01:29It has to look like a casino.
01:32Whereas a lot of these games, they might have different cute animated features but they work
01:36exactly like gambling.
01:38Despite Merrick's experience, Roblox maintains it takes action on unacceptable content and
01:44games must disclose the odds of winning or losing.
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