ANJ Study Identifies Hybrid Video Games as Gateway to Gambling for French Adolescents
ANJ and ARPEJ surveyed 5,000 French teens aged 15-17 and found 39% played hybrid games mimicking gambling mechanics, with two-thirds doing so before real-money gambling. Dual participants showed 26% higher severity scores on the CAGI inventory. The study adds to parallel research in Sweden, Denmark, Spain and the Netherlands on loot boxes and gamification.
SCCG Take — Regulators are mapping direct behavioral pathways from free-to-play mechanics to paid gambling, requiring operators and publishers to reassess microtransaction design and ad targeting ahead of potential rule changes.
France’s Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) has raised concerns over hybrid video games that mirror real-money gambling mechanics and shape adolescent behavior. A new study by the Association for Research and Prevention of Excessive Gambling (ARPEJ), conducted with the ANJ, surveyed 5,000 teenagers aged 15-17 on participation in jeux numériques hybrides (JNH). The formats cited range from social casino titles using virtual currencies to randomized reward purchases in titles such as EA Sports FC Ultimate Team, Genshin Impact and casino elements in Grand Theft Auto.
The survey found 39% of respondents had played these games in the preceding three-month period, with boys at 42.4% and girls at 35.4%. 15.6% reported a linked financial transaction. ARPEJ highlighted a gateway effect, stating that two thirds of the minors engaged in hybrid casino games before real-money gambling. Nearly 69% encountered advertising on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram that encouraged bets on real-money products.
Gateway Effect and Measured Severity
The research references an earlier ARPEJ finding that nearly 43% of the respondents had played a real-money game of chance in the prior 12 months, up eight points from 2021 data. Applying the Canadian Adolescent Gambling Inventory (CAGI), the study found that minors who played both traditional gambling games and hybrid digital games had a higher severity score (26%) than those who played only traditional gambling games (3.9%). Associated health impacts noted include sleep disturbances, stress and mood-regulation difficulties.
European Context on Loot Boxes and Classification
The ANJ joins authorities in Sweden and Denmark in dedicated research on video gaming and youth gambling links. Spain and the Netherlands have concentrated on loot box design and consumer protections. The European Union maintains no common legal framework classifying loot boxes as gambling, leaving the matter to national authorities. This gap fueled a Dutch case in which Electronic Arts overturned enforcement penalties totaling €10m over FIFA loot boxes in 2022. The findings precede the scheduled 19 November 2026 launch of Grand Theft Auto VI, according to reporting by SBC News.
Reporting: SBC News
Generated by SCCG’s automated editorial system from published source reporting. SCCG Management holds editorial responsibility.
Gaming, betting and prediction markets — the desk’s read, every weekday.
Subscribe →