Valve Responds to New York Lawsuit, Compares Loot Boxes to Magic Cards and Labubu
Last month, Valve found itself in hot water as New York state Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit over the company’s use of loot boxes in games like Counter-Strike 2 and Team Fortress 2, labeling them as “quintessential gambling.” In response, Valve has issued a statement asserting that it does not believe its loot boxes breach New York’s gambling laws.
In a message shared on Steam, Valve expressed its disappointment regarding the NYAG’s classification of its loot boxes as illegal gambling, especially after efforts to clarify the nature of their virtual items and mystery boxes since early 2023. In titles such as Counter-Strike 2, players can receive loot boxes but must purchase a key to unlock them, with the contents remaining a mystery. Players might end up with anything from a common skin to a rare item that could fetch thousands on third-party resale sites.
The complaint from the New York attorney general claims that “nearly every user who buys a key and opens a loot box receives a virtual item that is commonplace and worth only pennies — far less than what they spent to open the loot box.” It suggests that players engage with loot boxes for the same thrill as gambling, driven by the chance of winning a significant prize.
Valve counters this by likening its loot boxes to physical products like blind-boxed toys and trading card packs. “Generations have grown up opening baseball card packs and blind boxes and bags, and then trading and selling the items they receive,” the company stated. Valve also expressed concerns about the NYAG’s proposed changes, particularly the idea that loot box contents should not be transferable.
“They seem to think digital mystery boxes and items in our games are different from tangible items like baseball card packs,” Valve noted. “We believe that allowing the transfer of digital game items benefits consumers, enabling them to sell or trade unwanted items just like they would with physical collectibles like Pokémon or baseball cards.”
Additionally, Valve highlighted its efforts to combat fraud and theft, including measures to “shut down accounts found to be using Valve game items on gambling sites.” Toward the end of its statement, Valve took a subtle jab at the NYAG, stating, “We will of course comply if the New York legislature passes laws governing mystery boxes—something it has not done despite considering the issue a few times.”
This marks just the start of the legal challenges Valve is gearing up to face. The company is also dealing with a class-action lawsuit recently filed in Washington, to which it has yet to publicly respond.
