Japan's Social Game Publishers Nix Controversial Gacha Sales

Six Japanese social game publishers, including powerhouses Gree and DeNA, will put an end to the "complete gacha" microtransactions that drew the attention of the government's Consumer Affairs Agency.

"[We] have decided to cease all 'complete gacha' services in new and upcoming games at each of our respective companies," read a joint statement issued on Wednesday. "Additionally, all 'complete gacha' operations in games currently active will end by May 31 and no new ones will begin after that date."

The six companies participating in this decision are Gree, DeNA, NHN Japan Corp., CyberAgent Inc., Dwango Co. and Mixi Inc.

In a statement issued by the company, Gree said that while it does not consider "complete gacha" to be illegal under current Japanese law, the company was taking these steps "in the interests of improving the content of its services for users."

In a "complete gacha" system, players spend real-world money on a random drawing for virtual goods. By collecting a set of specific items, a rare present would be awarded.

"There is no doubt [gacha sales] stir a passion for gambling," Minister of State for Consumer Affairs and Food Safety Jin Matsubara said on Tuesday.

It should be noted that this move will not put an end to all microtransactions in Japan's social games. Others such as paying to speed up gameplay, improve characters and purchase virtual goods should continue as normal.

The purchase of random items will still be permitted, as the recent inquiries only targeted the aspect of the "complete gacha" process that rewarded users with rare items for completing a full set of random ones.

The six companies plan to create guidelines for developers on all of their platforms and "make them public as soon as possible."

Another social game publisher, KLab, announced separately that it would end all "complete gacha" sales by the end of May.