Gachas, a vending machine game of chance to win valuable virtual goods, were banned by Linden Lab from Second Life in 2021 "due to a changing regulatory climate", but now, apparently, the winds of change have brought gachas back:
The decision to prohibit Gacha in 2021 was following regulatory guidelines emerging globally at the time. We have continued to evaluate what steps we can take to support creative freedom while also ensuring compliance with evolving legal frameworks, which led to the recent changes announced in 2024.
Since then, the regulatory landscape surrounding Gacha systems has further shifted to the point where Gacha can be confidently reintroduced under current prevailing guidance.
No specifics on how that "landscape" has changed — and Linden Lab won't comment on the record, when I asked — but I'm looking for recent court rulings in pending litigation against other companies with similar online gambling / loot box cases that might have had something do with it. For instance, maybe a recent ruling in Antar v. BetMGM had something to do with it:
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed an earlier US district court ruling that dismissed a lawsuit in Antar v. BetMGM. In the case, the plaintiff is trying to recoup almost $25 million from MGM’s online platforms; he argues he is owed something because the operator was trying to keep him gambling through a VIP program.
However, IANAL, nor do I play one on the Internet, so I put it to readers who may be lawyers: What regulatory changes, do you think, brought gachas back?
Wagner James Au / New World Notes 
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