New York sues Valve, alleging its loot boxes are 'quintessential gambling'

"This loot box model that Valve has developed - charging an individual for a chance to win something of value based on luck alone - is quintessential gambling, prohibited under New York's Constitution and Penal Law. Valve has made "tens of millions of dollars" selling loot box keys to "thousands" of New York residents and has "made millions of dollars more in commissions from New Yorkers who sold virtual items obtained from loot boxes.""

"Users can purchase keys to open loot boxes in some Valve games and receive randomly-selected virtual items as rewards. If they want, users can then sell those rewards on the Steam Community Market and on third-party marketplaces; the rarer items can be worth "thousands of dollars." These systems, however, require that users pay Valve $2.49 plus tax to open the loot boxes, and users often get items that are "worth less than what the user spent on the key.""

"The company's loot boxes are also "particularly pernicious" because they're popular with children and adolescents, according to the complaint. The lawsuit also notes that Valve's experience for opening a loot box in Counter-Strike 2 resembles that of a slot machine."

New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against Valve, alleging that loot box systems in games including Counter-Strike 2, Team Fortress 2, and Dota 2 constitute illegal gambling under New York law. Players purchase keys for $2.49 to open loot boxes containing randomly-selected virtual items, often receiving rewards worth less than the purchase price. Valve has generated tens of millions of dollars from key sales to New York residents and millions more in commissions from secondary market sales of rare items worth thousands of dollars. The lawsuit emphasizes that these systems are particularly harmful because they appeal to children and adolescents, and the loot box opening experience resembles slot machine mechanics.

Read at The Verge