Gaming industry warned over 'aggressive practices'

The online gaming industry has been warned over "pay to play" games that target impressionable youngsters, under proposed principles drawn up by the Office of Fair Trading.

An OFT investigation found that some games include "potentially unfair and aggressive commercial practices to which children may be particularly susceptible", such as implying that the player would somehow be failing other players, or characters, if they did not buy content.

The regulator said such practices blurred the distinction between spending virtual currency and real money and used statements or images to encourage children to make a purchase.