The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has fined Cognosphere, the publisher behind popular games like Genshin Impact, $20 million. The penalty comes as a result of allegations that the company misled users,

"Genshin Impact deceived children, teens, and other players into spending hundreds of dollars on prizes they stood little chance of winning. Companies that deploy these dark-pattern tactics will be held accountable if they deceive players, particularly kids and teens, about the true costs of in-game transactions."

The developer behind the popular video game Genshin Impact, Cognosphere Pte. Ltd., has agreed to a $20 million settlement with the

ORIGINAL STORY 17/01/25 UK: Genshin Impact maker HoYoverse has agreed to pay $20m to settle a complaint - filed by the US Department of Justice on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission - accusing it of violating children's privacy laws and deceiving users over the true cost of obtaining rare loot box prizes.

Genshin Impact developer Cognosphere (aka Hoyoverse) has agreed to a $20 million settlement with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over its gacha loot box monetization and is now banned from selling them to teens under the age of sixteen without parental consent.

The FTC penalized the Genshin Impact developer for misleading marketing around loot boxes and breaching child privacy laws.

HoYoverse, publisher of the popular gacha game Genshin Impact, has agreed to pay a $20 million fine and change its marketing practices. The Latest Tech News, Delivered to Your Inbox

Cognosphere, the US subsidiary of Genshin Impact developer miHoYo, agreed to a $20 million settlement over allegations of "deceptive marketing" in the game’s gacha system and violations of child privacy laws.