Gaming: New York Sues Valve For 'letting Children And Adults Illegally...

The lawsuit aims to "stop Valve from promoting gambling features in its games, disgorge all ill-gotten gains, and pay fines for violating New York’s laws."

Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.

New York state attorney general Letitia James announced on X and Bluesky today that the state of New York is opening a lawsuit against Valve for violating the state's gambling laws through its games.

In the brief post, James says Valve has "made billions of dollars by letting children and adults illegally gamble for the chance to win valuable virtual prizes. These features are addictive and harmful."

In a subsequent press release, the attorney general's office called out Counter-Strike 2, Team Fortress 2, and Dota 2 specifically.

"An investigation by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) found that Valve’s video games, including Counter-Strike 2, Team Fortress 2, and Dota 2, enable gambling by enticing users to pay for the chance to win a rare virtual item of significant monetary value. In Valve’s most popular game, the process resembles a slot machine, with an animated spinning wheel that eventually rests on a selected item.

"The randomly selected virtual items have no in-game functionality but can be sold online for money, with one item reportedly being sold for more than $1 million. The lawsuit alleges 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. With this lawsuit, Attorney General James seeks to permanently stop Valve from continuing to promote illegal gambling in its games and to pay disgorgement and fines."

Valve, a video game developer, has made billions of dollars by letting children and adults illegally gamble for the chance to win valuable virtual prizes.  These features are addictive and harmful. That's why I'm suing to stop Valve’s unlawful conduct and protect New Yorkers.

The claim goes on to describe aspects of the Steam marketplace that many readers are likely already familiar with: the odds set by Valve, the casino-like presentation of loot box openings, and the lucrative third-party markets that've sprung up around Counter-Strike 2 skins and knives. In 2023, a single Counter-Strike gun skin sold for $400,000.

"Valve’s loot box model can be especially harmful to children," the claim reads. "Attorney General James asserts that young

Source: PC Gamer