Counselling centres in Hong Kong have called for a study on gaming trends and intervention measures after the government proposed stricter rules on games with gambling elements.
Augusta Yim Ting-ling is service director at a social service and counselling centre.
She said her centre held workshops from 2022 to 2025 for more than 200 parents whose children frequently played games with gambling elements. These include claw and pinball machines and mobile games with loot boxes. Yim warned that easy access to these machines and mobile games risks young players becoming obsessed.
Nine per cent of the students who played games with loot boxes displayed risks associated with problem gambling, including financial difficulties and mental stress.
Associate Professor Paul Wong Wai-ching from the University of Hong Kong said the study shows how the games can be a gateway to adolescent gambling behaviour.
