"These types of [loot] boxes in our games are widely used, not just in video games but in the tangible world as well, where generations have grown up opening baseball card packs and blind boxes and bags, and then trading and selling the items they receive. On the physical side, popular products used in this way include baseball cards, Pokémon, Magic: The Gathering, and Labubu."
"Valve does not cooperate with gambling sites. To date, we've locked over one million Steam accounts that were being misused by third parties in connection with gambling, fraud, and theft. We've also shipped features (like trade reversal and trade cooldown) to discourage gambling sites' ability to operate and protect Steam users from fraud."
"Gamers don't have to pay to open loot boxes to enjoy their games because all items are cosmetic. According to Valve, this means there is no disadvantage to players who don't pay, with data showing that most players don't open any boxes at all and just play the games."
Valve responded to a lawsuit from New York's attorney general regarding paid loot boxes in Counter-Strike 2 and DOTA 2. The company defended its loot box mechanics by drawing parallels to physical collectibles such as baseball cards, Pokémon cards, and Magic: The Gathering. Valve emphasized that all loot box items are cosmetic and provide no competitive advantage, claiming data shows most players never purchase boxes and simply enjoy the games. The company highlighted its efforts to combat gambling-related misuse, including locking over one million Steam accounts involved in gambling, fraud, and theft. Valve stated it implemented features like trade reversals and cooldowns to protect users and discourage third-party gambling operations.
Read at Kotaku
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