Valve Pushes Back Against New York Loot Box Lawsuit

Valve is facing growing legal pressure over its loot box system as lawsuits emerge in the United States while a much larger case unfolds in the United Kingdom.

The company is now dealing with legal action from both the State of New York and the State of Washington. The complaints claim that loot boxes in Valve titles operate similarly to gambling mechanics because players spend money for a chance to receive rare virtual items.

The lawsuits specifically focus on several major Valve games, including Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, and Team Fortress 2. Regulators argue that these systems encourage players to purchase randomized rewards that can later hold monetary value through resale or trading.

Valve Says Loot Boxes Are Comparable to Collectibles

Valve publicly addressed the situation in a letter posted to its New York community on Steam.

The company stated that it does not believe its loot box mechanics violate New York gambling laws. Instead, Valve compared them to physical collectible products such as baseball card packs and blind-box toys.

According to Valve, these products operate under a similar model where buyers purchase a sealed package without knowing exactly which item they will receive. Some items may be rare and therefore more valuable than others, but the purchase itself does not constitute gambling.

Valve said it has been cooperating with the New York Attorney General’s office since early 2023 in order to explain how its systems work.

Valve Says It Already Cracks Down on Skin Gambling

The company also stressed that it does not support third-party gambling websites that use Valve items or skins.

Valve stated that accounts linked to gambling operations are shut down because such activity violates the Steam Subscriber Agreement. The company added that it has issued cease-and-desist orders to several Counter-Strike skin gambling websites in the past.

According to Valve, it does not cooperate with external gambling platforms and actively works to prevent the misuse of in-game items for betting.

Proposed Changes Raise Privacy and Trading Concerns

The dispute also involves several proposed changes suggested by the New York Attorney General.

One proposal would require loot box items to become non-tradable, preventing players from selling or exchanging them through the Steam Community Market. Valve strongly opposes this change and argues that the ability to trade items is a core part of the platform’s ecosystem.

Another proposal would require Valve to collect additional user data to detect whether players are using VPN services in New York. Valve said implementing such measures would require collecting intrusive information from users worldwide and could negatively affect player privacy.

Courts Will Decide the Future of Loot Boxes

Valve said it will comply with any laws that are ultimately passed regarding loot boxes, but decided not to settle under the proposed conditions.

The company believes the suggested restrictions could damage its community and trading systems. As a result, Valve stated that the courts will ultimately determine whether its loot box mechanics violate gambling regulations.

The outcome could influence how randomized in-game rewards are regulated across the gaming industry.

In other gaming developments, Valve recently introduced its new Steam Machine Verified and Steam Frame Verified programs during GDC 2026. These certification labels aim to define performance and compatibility standards for games running on the upcoming Steam hardware platforms.

Via Windows Central