Genshin Impact maker Cognosphere – which conducts business as HoYoverse – has agreed to pay a $20 million fine to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), settling a case which alleges it’s misleading children over the true cost of obtaining rare gacha rewards.

Genshin Impact remains one of the most popular gacha games in the world, constantly adding new regions and characters, but now they’ve run afoul of the FTC

"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 allegation that Genshin Impact misleads children about the odds of winning "Five-Star Prizes" in part relates to the Event Banners and "influencer campaigns", which the FTC says "give players the impression that they will have better odds of obtaining the five-star prize being promoted than they have in reality."

Kids and younger teens might soon be unable to play Genshin Impact's gachas. The developer behind the game has agreed to block players under 16 years old from making in-game purchases without parental consent in order to settle a complaint from the Federal Trade Commission.

The Federal Trade Commission announced on Friday that Genshin Impact developer Cognosphere has agreed to a $20 million settlement and several restrictions on how it sells its loot boxes and manages children’s personal data.

The maker of the video game Genshin Impact has agreed to pay $20 million and to block children under 16 from making in-game purchases without parental consent,” a press relea