creator Steamvalve, It could face a $900 million lawsuit in the UK because it accuses the PC gaming market of being a “scam”, but it isn’t only a legal challenge the publisher is currently facing. Recently, New York Attorney General Letitia James has also begun the process of suing Valve “for illegally promoting gambling through video games popular among teenagers.” Hagens Berman filed a similar lawsuit just two days ago.
The lawsuit against Valve alleges that loot boxes — in-game containers players can pay for in hopes of a valuable cosmetic item, such as skins for in-game weapons — in its games (Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, Team Fortress 2) “allow users to gamble by inducing them to pay a rare virtual network value.”
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Valve then explained its problems with the changes it believed needed to be made to the NYAG’s work. First, he took a strong stand against the push to make loot box contents untradeable and non-transferable, arguing that players can sell their items for money on Steam’s Community Market like you can sell a baseball or Pokemon card.
“Transferability is a right that we believe should not be taken away, and we refuse to do so,” he said.
He later objected to the NYAG’s proposal to collect additional user data, stating that “someone in New York anonymized their location to appear outside of New York, for example using a VPN,” noting that “It would involve introducing invasive technologies to every user worldwide.” The publisher “knows that our users care about the security of their personal information,” and honestly, then All recent disputes with Discordwho doesn’t?
Valve also challenged the NYAG’s insinuations that there is a link between video games and real-world violence. “These outliers are a distraction and a mischaracterization we’ve all heard before. Numerous studies over the years have concluded that there is no connection between media (movies, TV, books, comics, music, and games) and real-world violence.”
He ended his letter by stating that he would abide by any laws passed regarding loot boxes, noting that while it “could have been easier and cheaper” for Valve to contract with NYAG, he believes the deal will end.
“Ultimately, a court will decide whose position—ours or the NYAG’s—is correct. In the meantime, we want to make sure you’re aware of the potential impact to users in New York and elsewhere,” Valve concluded.
🗨️ Who do you agree with?
Valve can’t avoid lawsuits from regulators and government agencies, can they? I’m curious: do you believe the New York AG is correct here, or do you believe Valve is correct in saying that loot boxes in games are ultimately no different than baseball cards or blind boxes?
Let me know what you do below and be sure to vote in our poll:
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