two & a half gamers by Lancaric.me

October 08, 2025 🚨 EMERGENCY EPISODE 🚨 Is EU’s Digital Fairness Act REALLY killing Free-to-Play games?

Today, we, and special guest John Wright, unpack the chaos surrounding the EU’s proposed Digital Fairness Act (DFA) - a legislation that could redefine how free-to-play games operate in Europe.

Key insights:

Source: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_25_831?utm_source=chatgpt.com

The DFA was proposed by the EU Consumer Protection Cooperation Network in March 2025.

It’s still not law currently in consultation stage, potential enforcement by 2030.

If approved, it would enforce seven major principles for all EU-targeted games.

Transparent Pricing

All in-game currencies (gems, coins) must display real-world value.

Example: “500 Gems (€4.99 equivalent).”

No Mixed Currencies

Games may be limited to one in-game currency.

Multi-currency RPGs or Forex-style economies could be flagged as “misleading.”

No Bundling or Welcome Packs

Forced to sell items separately (no more “Best Value” or “Starter Offers”).

Removes behavioral pricing psychology that drives F2P monetization.

Pre-Purchase Warning Screens

Mandatory “scare screens” before each IAP — adding purchase friction.

14-Day Refund Right

Players could refund any IAP (including gacha rolls or consumables) within 14 days.

No Economy Changes Post-Launch

Developers couldn’t rebalance in-game currency values after release.

Effectively bans live balancing - a core of F2P design.

High-spending users could be classified as “vulnerable” or “addicted.”

Developers could face scrutiny for “exploiting impulse spending.”

Industry Impact

Jakub: “Free-to-play economies just don’t work with one currency. This breaks every RPG and forex hybrid in existence.”

John: “This kills the incentive to operate in the EU - studios will shift budgets to the US and Asia.”

Felix: “The EU will lose jobs and game availability will shrink.”

Matej: “It’s not law yet. Everyone’s panicking, but this might turn into another IDFA - big noise, small impact.”

Main Takeaway

The DFA is well-intentioned but deeply flawed. It confuses gambling regulation with free-to-play design, overreaches into live-ops flexibility, and could reduce the number of games released in the EU.

Lobbying and advocacy will shape its future, not outrage posts.

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This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Special guest: John Wright

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to the Digital Fairness Act

02:53 Overview of the Proposed Legislation

07:05 Principles of the Digital Fairness Act

10:37 Lobbying and Legislative Process

12:14 Implications for the Gaming Industry

20:01 Future of Gaming in the EU

21:33 Industry Reactions to Regulatory Changes

22:50 The Impact of Gacha Mechanics

24:55 Consumer Rights and Game Economics