Behavioral Health Experts Warn Kid Games Use Addictive Design

Many parents who worry about a child’s behavior around screens have long harbored suspicions that the games themselves are engineered to hold attention. An analysis of the top 100 grossing games on Apple’s US App Store found that the vast majority use random-reward mechanics to churn out ad revenue, even outpacing games for adults.

This is more than about game developers trying to cash in on fads. The games’ designs tap into the same brain areas that behavioral science has studied for decades among folks with depression and other symptoms. IIn fact, the World Health Organization already recognizes gaming disorder as a diagnosable condition.

Kids & Games

Up to 83% of the top 100 grossing US App Store games from the past 10 years featured random rewards like loot boxes and surprise prizes. Kids love them, and these apps neatly tie into how kids use social media. Revenue from child-rated games tripled between 2016 and 2025 to over $9 billion while adult-rated games brought in $2.1 billion. Accordingly, games rated for ages 18+ haven’t appeared in the U.S. top 10 since 2023.

Titles like Monopoly GO!, Gossip Harbor and Township are all rated suitable for children and accounted for more than 50% of all revenue in the top 100 mobile games in 2024 and 2025. Players spent $82.5 billion worldwide on in-app game purchases in 2025 across the App Store and Google Play, up more than 50% from 2018.

Games Impact Mental & Behavioral Health

The reporting ties gaming to real clinical concerns. The WHO noted gaming disorder’s symptoms that include impaired control over gaming. The American Psychiatric Association’s DSM-5-TR lists Internet Gaming Disorder with criteria that include inability to quit, deceiving family about time spent and withdrawal difficulty.

A 2023 University of British Columbia study found young people who sought out loot boxes and other gaming rewards had a higher likelihood of starting up gambling and betting after six months. US lawsuits consolidated in Los Angeles allege addiction, withdrawal symptoms and depression in children.

Understanding this connection helps families recognize when heavy gaming goes beyond having a hobby. Gaming becomes a dual behavioral health concern when it displaces sleep, school, friendships and daily functioning, especially alongside co-occurring anxiety or depression.

Care Options

Clinical care for problematic gaming typically draws on the same evidence-based therapies used for other behavioral addictions and co-occurring conditions. Cognitive group behavioral therapy (CBT) helps folks identify the triggers and thought patterns that drive compulsive play. Motivational interviewing supports readiness to change.

When depression or anxiety lurk underneath the gaming, treating both together through dual diagnosis treatment produces better results than addressing either by itself.

Comprehensive Help Right Now

If gaming, gambling-like mechanics, or screen compulsions are interfering with your child’s daily life, a comprehensive mental health evaluation is a reasonable next step. 

Our browsable online directory features mental health treatment facilities and behavioral treatment centers across the country, including programs with adolescent specialists and dual diagnosis treatment experience. 

Call 800-908-4823 (Sponsored) to chat with an expert and compare local programs.

Author

Quentin Blount

Content Manager

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Quentin brings nearly a decade of experience as a writer, editor, and digital publisher to his role as Content Manager for Rehab.com. He aims to help people better understand their treatment options by creating engaging and informative content that is user-friendly, factually accurate, and optimized for search engine visibility. In his free time, Quentin enjoys the company of his friends, family, and his dog, Coop.

Editor

Peter Lee, PhD

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Peter W.Y. Lee is a writer and historian of American history during the Cold War. His primary focus is the relationship between youth and popular culture and its impact on U.S. society during the twentieth century. He has published widely on how the public has used popular culture as a mechanism to address political and social shifts throughout time