this post was submitted on 11 Mar 2026
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You ARE the gambling site. That's the issue.
So should we ban pokemon cards as well?
Probably, sorry if that hurts your nostalgia.
The one possible redeeming difference is that those cards are an integral part of playing the game.
A lot of these loot boxes are for worthless cosmetics that can then be sold for real money using the same company that sold the loot box as an intermediary.
Japan deals with the same issue with pachinko parlors. Gambling is illegal there, so they give out useless trinkets as prizes. And they all just happen to be located next to a shop (owned by the same company but legally distinct) which will buy those useless trinkets for a set amounts of money. A casino with extra steps. Sounds familiar?
I've said elsewhere, but for trading card games like Pokemon, Magic, etc, at the very least there is some longevity to the game if the parent company goes under. The rules of Magic are well documented and easy to find. If you have cards, the bankruptcy or buyout of Hasbro can't stop you from playing with your friends at the kitchen table.
If Valve goes bankrupt, or gets bought out, or they shutter Counterstrike, what happens to all the skins you acquired in the game? Poof, they're all gone. Nobody can play with the things they bought (or won in a game of chance) ever again.
The thing you're all fucking missing is no you can't sell the in-game items for real money through the service. Steam money isn't real money. It can't go back into a normal economy. You always have to sell your inventory through a third party if you want it to be USD
This whole lawsuit this whole thing is to try to get age verification checks through steam to lock down our privacy rights, while at the same time throwing another lawsuit on the pile to try to bury valve for not cooperating with the billionaire computing cabal. You're all fucking blind
Your credit card is already tracking and selling all the purchasing data you use it for on steam. Your identity is attached to that account
They list the value in USD. You can use the money to pay your Adobe Subscription. Would you be taking the same stance if I hacked Steam to give myself Steam-wallet money? Would I be committing fraud or merely griefing a fun virtual casino-themed game for fun?
I know guys that made money selling accounts then bragged to me... Don't be foolish
It being against TOS is irrelevant if the TOS isn't enforced...
In a lot of countries casinos and gambling are perfectly legal. So why should loot boxes or blind packs be illegal but not casinos?
Don't get me wrong, I would rather buy a skin than risk money on a loot box, but at least with valve if you open the box and get something you don't want you can sell it or trade it for something else.
Is it legal for children to be gambling in those places?
I bet they're not paying the same taxes that those casinos are.
Regardless, this is a story about an American company being held accountable to American laws. So what is allowed elsewhere isn't all that relevant.
They aren't supporting children gambling. Every game listed in lawsuit is rated M. They ask you your age before you buy these games and before you put in any payment information into steam. It's not verified with an ID or anything but that is a whole nother can of worms in computing that will open up a box we do not want to open. Also, you can't even fucking buy anything on steam without a debit card. Which by the way you need to be 18 to have unless you have parental consent.
The solution here is more parenting. The solution here is to go after gambling culture as a whole. The solution here is to take down polymarket. The solution here is to make it so that gambling is not the main fucking commercial during our super bowl halftime.
Steam gift cards are a thing.
Which can't be purchased with steam points. What's your point?
...you said a debit card is required. It's not. My point: you're wrong
Steam itself still asks your age before verifying any purchase. This is a parenting problem.
By the way, steam actually offers parental controls and family accounts to manage purchasing decisions and the like. If you're so worried about your children, then maybe be involved in their life and pay attention to them and what they're doing?