- Valve Corporation is being sued in New York for promoting illegal gambling through their case openings.
- New York Attorney General Leticia James filed the lawsuit on Wednesday claiming that the features violate state gambling laws and are harmful for children.
- Counter-Strike is rated M for mature (17+) and intended for adults.
NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Leticia James is suing Valve Corporation for promoting illegal gambling through video games. Valve, the video game developer behind Counter-Strike 2, Fortress 2, and Dota 2, offers in-game loot boxes called cases that cost real money, but can contain cosmetic weapon skins worth over $1,000,000.
According to the official lawsuit, AG James aims to “permanently stop Valve from promoting gambling features in its games, disgorge all ill-gotten gains, and pay fines for violating New York’s laws.” James argues that “Valve has made billions of dollars luring its users, many of whom are teenagers or younger, to engage in gambling in the hopes of winning expensive virtual items that they can cash in on,” but does this lawsuit really have any weight?
EA Sports FC 26, which is rated E for everyone as a soccer video game, has featured loot boxes in their game for years. These loot boxes can be purchased for real money and contain desirable items, just like Counter-Strike, yet EA FC 26 is rated E and Counter-Strike is rated M with Steam parental controls. Minors that play Counter-Strike do so under required parental supervision for those 13+ years old.
Lawsuit Focuses On In-Game Gambling, Not CS2 Betting Apps
Since Steam, the main computer gaming platform, doesn’t allow direct cash outs, users connect their accounts to third-party marketplaces to sell their items. These marketplaces also often serve as legal sports betting apps for Counter-Strike matches and commonly sponsor professional Counter-Strike teams. The lawsuit alleges that Valve facilities the ability for these items to be sold externally by “assisting in their operations”, but that is unconfirmed.
Ultimately, “Attorney General James seeks to permanently stop Valve from promoting gambling features in its games, disgorge all ill-gotten gains, and pay fines for violating New York’s laws.” Meanwhile, New York sportsbook apps are advertised throughout the city and constantly on television where young people could be influenced.
