Teenager spends more than $46,000 in free-to-play game

By Mike Flacy Updated October 6, 2014

Game-of-war

In yet another story that demonstrates both a clear lack of parental supervision over digital devices and a company’s ability to prey on addicts of free-to-play games, a 15-year-old boy in Belgium racked up a credit card bill of 37,000 Euros (over $46,000) while playing Machine Age’s “Game of War: Fire Age” online strategy game.

According to Flemish publication Nieuwsblad, the teenager used his grandfather’s credit card to purchase in-game gold that would improve his performance within the game. While free to download and play, the in-game gold purchases help a player build a city as well as an army to compete more effectively against opponents, similar to the “Civilization” franchise.

Recounting the events that led to the teen gaining access to the credit card, his mother said “When I was planning to go on vacation, I asked Robin to install some e-books on my tablet, something I don’t know how to do myself. To buy these books I have given him the credit card of my father.” According to his mother, the boy also added the credit card number to his personal iTunes account, which was linked to his mobile device.

Speaking about the in-game experience, his mother continued “While you are playing, tons of advertisements are displayed, there is even an in-game casino that you can play. You only have to click once to make a purchase and real money is being spent, which was exactly what he did again and again, not knowing how much money he was actually spending as nothing shows what the amount is that you already payed.”

Oddly enough, the mother claims she didn’t know that her son was making the purchases until a few months later, despite the purchases being racked up over a three-month period. The teen also claims he wasn’t aware that purchases were being made through the credit card.

It’s possible that Apple could refund the hefty cost of the purchases. Apple reached an agreement with the FTC earlier this year to pay more than $32 million back to parents of children that overspent on iOS devices.

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Gaming

With Valiant Hearts: Coming Home, Netflix finds its video game voice

The playable characters of Valiant Hearts: Coming Home all standing together.

As we are in the earliest stages of Netflix’s foray into the games, the company is still trying to discover what a “Netflix game” really feels like. We’ve seen ports of fun console beat ’em ups and enjoyable puzzle games, but I don't feel that those really define the platform’s emerging identity. Valiant Hearts: Coming Home, on the other hand, does. A sequel to a 2014 narrative adventure game set during World War I, it's a thoughtful and emotional journey that naturally reflects some of the film and TV content available on Netflix.
Valiant Hearts: Coming Home | Official Teaser Trailer | Netflix
It’s both highly educational and a solid sequel to one of Ubisoft’s most underrated games. Like Before Your Eyes, narrative is a clear priority, as is the distinct visual style that would work even if this was a traditional animated show. Netflix is known for evolving prestige TV and defining what storytelling in a streaming-focused series could be, so it would benefit from giving its exclusive games a similar focus. Valiant Hearts: Coming Home might not be a perfect game, but it’s a solid example of what a premier Netflix game could look like in the future.
War stories
Valiant Hearts: Coming Home, like its predecessor Valiant Hearts: The Great War, is a narrative-focused adventure game that hops between several stories from soldiers (and a medic) who served during World War I. Familiarity with the first game is helpful, as some characters reappear, but not necessary as the sequel tells a new story mainly focused on the Harlem Hellfighters, a group that fought with the French after the U.S. joined the conflict. It’s a story about the horrors of war and the family and friendships that wither through it all that focuses more on human stories rather than the bloody combat that games typically like to highlight.
While its story doesn’t feel quite as intertwined as The Great War’s, Coming Home is still enlightening, shining light on parts of the war that aren’t typically covered in your standard history class. I’d even recommend it as a good entry point for kids learning about World War I, especially because the game features plenty of collectible objects and facts that allow players to learn more about the battle. Like the best content on Netflix, it’s a creatively rich and additive experience.
It does all that with a minimalist style, as its characters speak in pantomime, only saying a word or two as a narrator eventually cuts in to fill in narrative blanks or give context on the state of the war. While it might seem disrespectful to represent such a brutal war in a cartoonish manner, the horrific moments stand out all the more clearly as a result. One particularly memorable set piece doesn’t contain any dialogue. It has the player walking across the bottom of the sea as you see bodies and ships from the Battle of Jutland sink to the seafloor. It’s equally awe-inspiring and horrifying, bolstered by Coming Home’s distinct visual style.

The gorgeous 2D art is colorful, looks hand-drawn, and almost feels kid-friendly despite how grave the subject matter it’s portraying is. Netflix is home to some great animation, so it would also make sense for that artistry to apply to its games. On the gameplay front, Coming Home is comparatively simple. Players use touch controls to easily walk around, climb, and interact with objects throughout the game to solve simple puzzles. Occasionally, some minigames with unique mechanics, like treating and patching up soldiers’ wounds, spice up the game. It is approachable in design and never particularly complicated, but that also means the gameplay never gets in the way of its storytelling and art.
The biggest downside to is that it’s regularly interrupted by loading screens. Even though they were very brief on my Google Pixel 7XL, they dampened some scenes’ artistic and emotional flow.
What makes a Netflix game?
Valiant Hearts: Coming Home is a beautiful narrative-focused game that feelsat home on Netflix. It demonstrates how titles with compelling stories can be just as engaging on a phone as they are on PC and consoles. That mentality is a perfect match for a platform that made a name for itself mostly through serialized, story-driven TV shows and movies, and now also offers games with strong stories like Desta: The Memories Between, Before Your Eyes, and Immortality.

Gaming

Legends of Runeterra 2023 road map outlined by Riot Games

Jinx fires her special weapon in Legends of Runeterra key art.

Riot Games has laid out its plans to revitalize its collectible League of Legends card game, Legends of Runeterra, in 2023. The backbone of the road map is a recurring three-month release cycle that rotates through the releases of Expansions, Live Balance Patches, and Variety Sets.
Each quarter of the 2023 road map will feature an Expansion, which Riot Games says will primarily focus on new champions and game mechanics. As such, these will be the biggest updates of the year, with Riot Games teasing that brand-new and returning champions are coming alongside a reworking of PvP. The month after an Expansion drops, players can expect a big Live Balance Patch, which Riot Games describes as "dedicated spaces where we’ll be focused on addressing anything that may have room for improvement."

After releasing an Expansion and making any needed adjustments with the big Live Balance Path, Riot Games will conclude the cycle with the release of a Variety Set, which is the developers say are akin to a "quarterly booster pack or a mini-expansion" that contains new non-Champion cards, as well as even more balance updates. After that, the cycle will start anew, ensuring that Legends of Runeterra will get a notable update every month for the rest of 2023.
On top of that cycle, Riot Games also shared a higher-level road map outlining what players can expect in 2023. The developers are promising that new Legends of Runeterra champions and items, relic balance updates, a competitive PvP revamp, and new play formats are coming very soon. After that, new achievements, ways to get legacy content, and monthly Path of Champions adventures will be part of future updates. Riot Games is also working to add ways to play with international players and support player-hosted tournaments, although those updates are further out.
Regardless, it looks like 2023 is going to be a busy year for Legends of Runeterra, and Riot Games is being pretty clear about how it's rolling everything out. Legends of Runeterra is available for PC, iOS, and Android; Xbox Game Pass subscribers can get some special bonuses by syncing their accounts, too.

Mobile

The best iPad Pro games in 2023: the 26 best ones to play

Put the latest iPad Pro to the test with these great games

Someone holding the 12.9-inch version of the iPad Pro (2022).

It's perhaps too easy to dismiss the iPad Pro as a legitimate gaming tablet. After all, it's hard to believe even a 12.9-inch tablet can hold a candle to something like a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X. However, while games certainly play nicer on a bigger screen, the iPad Pro offers internals every bit as powerful as the best video game consoles while giving you the freedom to take your games just about anywhere.

After all, the latest iPad Pro (2022) models pack in Apple's insanely powerful M2 processor — the same chip used in Apple's MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro. It offers more than enough performance for even the most demanding games. Combined with Apple's Metal 3 hardware-accelerated graphics and support for the latest game controllers, it's pretty hard to find a game title that Apple's tablet can't handle — and there's a of games to prove it.