CloverPit developer Panik Arcade has commented on the monetization efforts of AAA games, saying they resemble casinos.
While it has been a landmark year for indie releases with the likes of Hades 2, Hollow Knight: Silksong, Megabonk, and Blue Prince, Panik Arcade took a page out of 2024's top indies, Balatro and Buckshot Roulette, and realized that the people yearn for gambling-inspired roguelites. CloverPit places you in front of a demonic slot machine with nothing but an ATM (and a toilet) to sustain you as you endlessly pay off your ever-accruing debt.
Obviously, CloverPit deals with gambling, which is a delicate issue when it comes to the emulation of slot machines, with England's NHS reporting a 130% increase of referrals to gambling clinics between April and September 2024 compared to the prior year. Matt Buckley of Gamepressure asked the developers at Panik Arcade (mononymously known as Matteo and Lorenzo) if they believe there is space for video games to provide a safe space for people to help deal with real-world gambling issues by removing the real-world consequences.
While the developers say they "don’t have the proper knowledge to answer," with the matter being a "delicate discussion," they did call attention to monetization issues currently prevalent in games. The Panik Arcade devs say, "Many AAA titles have been exploiting players in ways that resemble the mechanics of casinos, so it’s debatable that the game market in its current form can offer a generally safe place."
Elaborating on that point, the developers add, "Dopamine mechanisms are core to fun experiences in all games, board games as well. It’s the exploitation of such a mechanism that is dangerous, and sadly, that’s a well-known practice in the gaming market."
