Game monetisation terms explained: battle passes, loot boxes and DLC
How games are sold and how they earn money after launch, explained without the marketing language.
Ten or twenty years ago, most games were bought once and that was the end of the transaction. Today, many games are free to download and earn money while you play, and even full-price games often sell extra content. The words used for these models can be confusing, and some of them matter a great deal for parents.
How games are sold
A free-to-play game costs nothing to start but sells optional items. A live-service game is updated continually over years, often in seasons. DLC (downloadable content) adds extra content to a game, and a season pass bundles future DLC. Early access lets you buy a game before it is finished, and a remaster is an updated version of an older release.
Spending inside games
A microtransaction is any small in-game purchase. Many games sell a premium currency bought with real money and spent in the game, which can make prices harder to judge. A battle pass is a paid track of rewards unlocked by playing. Cosmetics change how things look without affecting play. Pay-to-win is the criticism made when spending gives a real advantage, and a whale is industry slang for a very high spender.
Paid random items
A loot box is a paid item with random contents, and a gacha game is built around paid random draws for characters or items. In the UK, loot boxes are not regulated as gambling; the government has opted for industry-led protections. PEGI changed its criteria in 2026: paid random items now push newly rated games to PEGI 16, and from October 2026 PEGI began updating existing digital-only games rated PEGI 3, 7 or 12 that contain them to PEGI 16.
The entries in this section explain each model plainly, and point to the settings and descriptors that help families manage spending.
Every business & monetisation entry
- Battle passA battle pass is a tiered reward track, usually lasting one season, where playing unlocks items and a paid tier unlocks extra rewards.
- CosmeticsCosmetics are items that change how a character, weapon or vehicle looks without changing how it performs.
- DLCDLC, or downloadable content, is extra material for a game released separately, such as new levels, story chapters or items.
- Early accessEarly access means buying and playing a game while it is still being developed, before its official full release.
- F2P (free-to-play)Free-to-play games cost nothing to download and play, and usually make money through optional in-game purchases.
- GachaGacha is a game system, common in mobile games, where you spend currency to “pull” for random characters or items.
- Live serviceA live-service game is designed to be updated and run for years, with ongoing content, events and purchases rather than a single finished release.
- Loot boxA loot box is a virtual container you open to receive random items, sometimes bought with real money or premium currency.
- MicrotransactionA microtransaction is a small in-game purchase made with real money, such as an outfit, a currency bundle or a time-saver.
- P2W (pay-to-win)Pay-to-win describes a game where spending real money gives a meaningful advantage over players who do not pay.
- Premium currencyPremium currency is an in-game money you buy with real money, then spend inside the game on items, passes or random rewards.
- RemasterA remaster is an updated re-release of an existing game with improved graphics, sound or performance but largely the same design.
- SeasonA season is a fixed period, often a few months, during which an online game runs a set of content, events and rewards before resetting.
- Season passA season pass usually means buying a bundle of upcoming DLC in advance, though some games use the name for a battle pass.
- WhaleIn games, a whale is a player who spends a very large amount of real money on in-game purchases.