Scratch Team is really promoting gambling ON A CHILDREN SITE?

WPONTA

The newest SDS What are the Chances is about chances…
But because of that, this can lead to many creators make their own “Gambling games”, or slot machine for literally childeren which is inappropriate
Seriously, do they even check the theme of this SDS or the're just busy for the SC camp event

hydrofungus

games of chances aren't exactly gambling yknow. do you call flipping a coin to see who has to take out the trash gambling

WPONTA

hydrofungus wrote:
games of chances aren't exactly gambling yknow. do you call flipping a coin to see who has to take out the trash gambling

Yes, but you know that, this allows many creators to make their gambling projects freely
Like I guess there should be a better SDS theme instead of this, as this encourages people to make inappropriate things

Last edited by WPONTA (Aug. 4, 2026 12:47:27)

Za-Chary

WPONTA wrote:
But because of that, this can lead to many creators make their own “Gambling games”, or slot machine for literally childeren which is inappropriate

These are not considered inappropriate for Scratch. I always like to cite my own “gambling” project, Drop Guts, as an example of a gambling game that is okay for Scratch. (A Scratch Team member confirmed this, and it was also front-paged.)

Even aside from the “gambling” aspect, note that the SDS is not literally about gambling, it is about chances in general. In the thumbnail, the examples are flipping coins (which I argue is not really gambling), playing cards (where many games don't involve gambling), spinning a wheel (which often doesn't involve gambling), the weather (which isn't gambling at all), and dice (which are used in many contexts outside of gambling). The studio description also gives several examples of starting points that don't involve gambling:

Looking for ideas to get started?
- Create a game where a ball bounces through pegs and lands in different point slots each time.
- Make a game show where players spin a prize wheel or roll dice to determine what challenge comes next.
- Design a fortune-telling project using cards, a Magic 8 Ball, or a lucky cookie that gives a different result every time.
- Create a game where treasure chests contain random rewards, helpful power-ups, or unexpected surprises.
- Build a machine that creates a unique piece of art or a colorful pattern using randomness each time the green flag is clicked.
- Make a story where a coin flip, lucky find, or unexpected coincidence completely changes the ending.

I could maybe understand your concern a little more if the SDS was really “The Gambling SDS: Make a project all about betting!”, but seeing as the SDS is about probability/chance in general (which occurs in many contexts outside of casinos that are appropriate for Scratch), I don't think there's anything worth worrying about here.

scratchy_boy106

I literally just shared a project like this called “Don't Chicken Out” where you bet chips, in my opinion I do not think it is bad because some people bet in card games like black jack which isn't gambling.
Also my project does not encourage gambling and doesn't even mention it in the description.

blackcow29

Not everything involving chances, cards, dice, and other similar things is gambling. Gambling is when money is put on the line, and winnings are reliant on chances. Just rolling dice or playing cards is not gambling. Playing a simple game of solitaire isn’t gambling since there’s no money involved.

Take the board game community, for example. There’s plenty of games that I can name off the top of my head that obviously aren’t gambling that a kid can understand: Ticket to Ride, Catan, among others. They all involve cards and/or dice, but they aren’t gambling games. They are for entertainment purposes

But the Scratch Team would not have made the studio had they thought it would promote gambling.

Last edited by blackcow29 (Aug. 4, 2026 13:02:13)

scratchy_boy106

blackcow29 wrote:
Not everything involving chances, cards, dice, and other similar things is gambling. Gambling is when money is put on the line, and winnings are reliant on chances. Just rolling dice or playing cards is not gambling. Playing a simple game of solitaire isn’t gambling since there’s no money involved.

But the Scratch Team would not have made the studio had they thought it would promote gambling.

Exactly!

AdaVesta_

chance games don't have to have gambling in them. what I'm concerned about is what other scratchers are gonna make, if they're gonna say “oh, a gambling theme, easy”, and it gets on the front page.

Za-Chary

AdaVesta_ wrote:
chance games don't have to have gambling in them. what I'm concerned about is what other scratchers are gonna make, if they're gonna say “oh, a gambling theme, easy”, and it gets on the front page.

What is a hypothetical example of a Scratch project that uses gambling and is inappropriate for Scratch? (Note that not all gambling-type games are inappropriate for Scratch; see the Drop Guts project that I linked in my other post above.)

AdaVesta_

Za-Chary wrote:
AdaVesta_ wrote:
chance games don't have to have gambling in them. what I'm concerned about is what other scratchers are gonna make, if they're gonna say “oh, a gambling theme, easy”, and it gets on the front page.
What is a hypothetical example of a Scratch project that uses gambling and is inappropriate for Scratch? (Note that not all gambling-type games are inappropriate for Scratch; see the Drop Guts project that I linked in my other post above.)

don't know… my mistake, I may have misunderstood :p

WPONTA

For an example:
Someone creates a game where you collect money, then gamble for a super rare item that has only a 0.01% chance

Za-Chary

WPONTA wrote:
For an example:
Someone creates a game where you collect money, then gamble for a super rare item that has only a 0.01% chance

That doesn't sound inappropriate for Scratch.

Scratch itself especially defeats the purpose of it since you can just remix the project to make it a 100% chance.

axalotlautomaster_2

Something not okay for scratch to have is something that would encourage kids to go gamble irl. Having a game of chances isn't necessarily going to make a kid want to go gambling

purplebunny63

WPONTA wrote:
For an example:
Someone creates a game where you collect money, then gamble for a super rare item that has only a 0.01% chance

1. It’s not real money
2. You can edit the code
3. It’s not promoting because spinning a wheel definitely is not the same as saying “hey everyone go gamble at [gambling place]”

gdfsgdfsgdfg

WPONTA wrote:
For an example:
Someone creates a game where you collect money, then gamble for a super rare item that has only a 0.01% chance

Scratch has different rules when it comes to loot box “gambling”
theres no actual money involved

Cheezzychiknzzz

blackcow29 wrote:
Not everything involving chances, cards, dice, and other similar things is gambling. Gambling is when money is put on the line, and winnings are reliant on chances. Just rolling dice or playing cards is not gambling. Playing a simple game of solitaire isn’t gambling since there’s no money involved.

Snip.

Additionally, anything involving real currency are not allowed

code_master_felix

i don't think its inappropriate for kids, the SDS studio isn't about gambling, it does give scratchers a reason to add projects about gambling, but just that probably wont make a lasting impact on a child. i honestly dont know what else to add

r3hehehehehhe

For example take the Gotcha Machines from Kirby and the Forgotten Land
It wouldn't be gambling, it'd just be chances

purplebunny63

purplebunny63 wrote:
WPONTA wrote:
For an example:
Someone creates a game where you collect money, then gamble for a super rare item that has only a 0.01% chance
1. It’s not real money
2. You can edit the code
3. It’s not promoting because spinning a wheel ≠ “hey everyone go gamble at [gambling place]”

WPONTA

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