Blizzard has announced that it will be removing paid loot boxes & chests for players located in Belgium today, August 27th, 2018. The removal comes as part of Blizzard’s compliance with the Belgian Gaming Commission that published a report that was endorsed by the Belgian Ministry of Justice in which they ruled that paid loot boxes in Overwatch are considered gambling under local law.
Blizzard stated that they were surprised by this conclusion, and do not agree with the ruling. However, they are choosing to comply by removing the option to purchase paid loot boxes for all Belgium players. They did note that players from Belgium are still eligible to earn loot boxes by playing the game. However, they are no longer able to purchase them with real money or gems. Belgium players will still have access to all in-game content.
Blizzard finished up the press release by saying that they will remain open to further discussions with the Belgian Gaming Commission and the Ministry of Justice on this topic. You can read the official Blizzard press release here.
