“We believe that Valve deliberately engineered its gambling platform and profited enormously from it,” said attorney Steve Berman. “Consumers played these games for entertainment, unaware that Valve had allegedly already stacked the odds against them.”
Valve, the video game developer that owns Steam, is being sued in a Washington-based federal court for alleged violations of the state’s gambling statutes.
According to The Seattle Times, Valve was originally founded by former Microsoft employees in the 1990s. It later developed Steam, a digital marketplace for computer games. Steam is currently the largest electronic retailer of video games, both in the United States and worldwide.
Valve also sells so-called “loot boxes” for games like Counter-Strike.
In the case of Counter-Strike, loot boxes can be purchased for as little as $2.49. Loot boxes typically contain virtual “skins” for in-game weapons and characters. Most of these items are purely cosmetic and do not connote or afford any type of gameplay advantage. Upon being opened, a loot box provides rewards randomly selected from a much larger set. Some items are rarer than others, such that players have only a very small chance of receiving them from any given loot box.
The lawsuit notes contends that the loot box system usually works to players’ disadvantage.
Citing an analysis, attorneys claimed that roughly 96% of all items awarded through Counter-Strike’s loot boxes are worth less than the $2.49 key used to open the case.
“But on rare occasions, a player wins an item worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars. … It is this possibility — remote but tantalizing — that drives players to keep buying keys and opening loot boxes,” the lawsuit alleges.
Attorneys say that both the mechanics and the aesthetics of loot boxes are designed to resemble real-world gambling. If a player purchases a key and opens a loot box, they’re often shown a slot machine-like visual, with images of different prizes spinning across the screen before one is selected and awarded.
The lawsuit contends that loot boxes are likely unlawful under Washington state’s gambling law.
“We believe that Valve deliberately engineered its gambling platform and profited enormously from it,” said attorney Steve Berman. “Consumers played these games for entertainment, unaware that Valve had allegedly already stacked the odds against them.”
The Seattle Times notes that Valve owns two other popular franchises that award loot boxes: Team Fortress, and Dota. All three games have included free-to-play variants for years, meaning that many customers do not spend anything to download the title or play it online. Valve relies on loot boxes and related commissions to make money.
The lawsuit is a proposed class action filed on behalf of “consumers nationwide.” It seeks restitution for players who spent real-world money on loot boxes and has asked the court to prohibit Valve’s sale of loot boxes and begin implementing “meaningful age verification and consumer protections.”
Sources
Bellevue-based gaming giant Valve accused of fostering ‘loot’ gambling
Every Lawsuit Against Steam Storefront Owner Valve Explained
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