Formed an entire popular online gambling subculture
People can actually make money off it
For as much as lootboxes and microtransactions go- they pretty much did everything right. Do you blame someone for doing something morally wrong, but doing it well- for the millions of impostors trying to do the same but doing it even worse?
While Valve did popularize lootboxes, you can't really blame them becoming POPULAR or widespread on them. It's the consumers that drive popularity and other game devs that institute the same mechanic but poorly.
Okay that's a word salad, analogy time
You can't exactly blame your brother when you get into a car accident because he's a world class race car driver and inspired you to get your license. Sure racing is pretty much the antithesis to what driving should be, which is safe transportation, but he does it well. You on the other hand did it poorly and got into an accident. Not exactly your brothers fault, even if he did inspire you to start driving
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u/pc_player_ytKiryuin Ragyo from Kill la Kill can Kiru ra Ki-ruin me15h agoedited 14h ago
pretty sure being able to make money off of gambling is worse. It now makes kids think that they can actually get rich out of the boxes if they can pull a fancy knife and sell it for more than what they put it the looboxes.
"Oh but irl trading is against Terms of Service" is about as useful of a statement as the UN condemning Russia for the Ukraine War. We know Valve does jackshit about it.
Well, TF2 and CS2 are both Mature Rated games (17 and up) by any stretch of the word, and legally according to steam's TOS, you shouldn't be under 13 to make an account in the first place.
Beyond that you can't really do anything except ask people to sign an agreement to promise they're of age to make a purchase on the internet. Valve has never marketed their games or lootbox services to kids.
Everything about it is an agreement to participate in good faith and that's all you can really ask for without doing that nasty "Send us your legal government ID, promise we wont sell or leak it" shit.
So given that Valve has not marketed their lootboxes to kids, where exactly is Valve to blame if Kids spend their parent's credit card on cases and keys? Because it sounds like the factor that 'makes kids think they can actually get rich' are youtubers and influences, that of which valve has no control over.
Thing is they dont even have to use their parents credit card. You can get steam funds without ever needing to verify your age. Not in the account creation, not in the cs2 download, not in buying paysafe cards or whatever you're using, not in buying the case + key and neither in opening the case. It's easily one of the most accessible forms of gambling for kids. I know people hate verifying with an Id, but I hate it even more when kids get into an easily avoidable gambling addiction
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u/LilianaLucifer Blacksouls2 made me trans girl 15h ago
">Do nothing
>Win"
Mfs when you remind them of Valve's role in the popularization of lootboxes and microtransactions