How might this game put people at risk for addiction, and how is randomness feeding into addiction? How does it compare to other games that use chance or probability? When is it morally permissible or impermissible to use chance in your games?
I grew up playing Counter-Strike. Something about the ranking ladder, precise gameplay, and improving technical skills was addictive. While this isn’t the addiction that the question is talking about, getting so heavily invested in Counter-Strike as a game and a community inevitably led me to my first experience of true addiction: gambling.
CS is, in actuality, two different games. One is an intense first-person shooter where reaction time, aim, mechanic memorization, and map knowledge are what determine your value as a player. The other is a virtual casino where players dump thousands of dollars to get valuable in-game items. Every case you open is a chance to unlock a $2o00 AK fire serpent or a $50,000 Karambit blue sapphire. I remember being a kid, daydreaming about opening a case and seeing that golden knife icon roll into view. This isn’t helped by the thousands of videos online of people opening these ultra rare skins and freaking out. I wanted to feel that.
Many people online believe that without skins, CS would have a tenth of the player base that it has today. Not only is there an in-game slot machine, but this system has developed into a thriving online casino economy where players trade their skins to act as money in the casino. Since they are using skins and not real money, anyone, in any country, at any age, can legally gamble. I was 13 when I first started using these casinos. I don’t think I need to state how easily this could lead to a gambling addiction.
When comparing to more modern forms of randomness in games, such as Fortnite or Marvel Rivals, I would say that CS looks barbaric. At least you know what you are getting when you buy the Battle Pass or a skin. However, the randomness of the items in the shop is still incredibly similar to a slot machine. So, is there a morally correct way to implement randomness into a game?
I believe that using randomness techniques to elicit certain purchasing behaviors isn’t moral. However, there are better ways of doing it than others. While I haven’t played Overwatch since it first came out, I remember being impressed by the loot box system that Blizzard implemented. The loot boxes were random. They were a slot machine. You could buy them for real money. However, you could also get them by simply playing the game. This system was just beneficial because it was less predatory, but I believe it shaped the culture of the game to be less focused on cosmetics. When you saw someone with really stylish skin, you didn’t think “Wow! They must have been playing this game since season 1” like Fortnite, or “That skin is so expensive! I would give anything to have that!” like CS. Comparing Overwatch to CS or Fortnite, where skins are at the center of the community, Overwatch skins were just a small part of the game. By changing the culture of their game, Blizzard took the pressure off their players to “fit in” and buy skins.
