Now that the Faker Ahri bundle is officially released across all League of Legends regions, players in Brazil are questioning whether the Immortalized Legend Collection breaks consumer protection laws in the country due to laws against the sale of digital bundles.
The Ahri bundle has already been met with much controversy as fans have been debating for weeks about the bundle’s exorbitant price tag. By spending upwards of $450, players can unlock an exclusive skin for Ahri and limited-time battle cosmetics like chromas, emotes, and icons. However, as discussed by League players based in Brazil in a June 13 Reddit thread, Riot Games may actually be breaking the country’s law regarding the sale of such a product.
Article 39 of the Brazilian Consumer Defense Code forbids “conditioning the providing of a product or good to the providing of another good or service.” In layman’s terms, Brazilian law forbids companies to sell exclusive products solely in bundles. The elusive Ruby Chromas are a good example of this law in action, as these bundle-exclusive chromas can be purchased separately within Brazil.
“[The Ahri skin bundle parts] are not available separately, despite Riot always having kept the law of Venda Casada in mind when selling bundles in Brazil—always offering the parts of any bundle separately in store,” the post’s author explained. Another player likened the situation to that faced by Blizzard back in 2022 when a hero skin was locked within a Halloween-specific bundle and couldn’t be purchased on its own.
Some Brazilian players reported Riot to PROCON, the country’s consumer protection agency. If these players lobby enough complaints against Riot, it’s believed the developers will be forced to sell the items in the bundle separately, or completely remove the bundle for anyone playing in Brazil.
Otherwise, much of the discourse remains based on the price of the bundle. Brazilian players have pointed out the skin costs roughly the same as the monthly minimum wage in the country. These players feel like the price is far too steep for the region, especially after purchasing RP became more expensive.
It is unclear if the reports to PROCON will bring about any change to the price or sale of the bundle, but Brazilian players are adamant about holding Riot accountable to their country’s laws.
Published: Jun 14, 2024 07:34 pm