The PC first-person shooter “Counter-Strike 2″ (CS2) is known for players with their expensive hobby of gambling for valuable pixels in the form of weapon skins.
Players buy and open cases with the hope of unboxing something valuable. It’s like packs of Pokémon cards, with people often ripping them until they pull a satisfying card.
When players open cases, they are hoping for a rare special item (gold) or a weapon skin such as patterns and conditions that can raise its value, sometimes worth more than $100,000.
Why do prices get so high?
Some players know CS2 from trading websites or famous streamers opening expensive weapon skin cases live on stream.
Case openings are where CS2 players spend money to open cases for a chance at a fancy, valuable skin.
There’s multiple different types of cases, most ranging between $1-5 while some can reach $50-100.
Why are cases so expensive?
Some cases have rare items that can be unboxed and sold for real life currency. Lower end skins can range from $1-2 while the expensive skins can be sold upwards to $100,000-$200,000.
When opening most cases, people only want two things: a pair of gloves or a knife.
Knives can average anywhere from $100-$30,000, but there is a very good reason why these items cost so much.
What makes these skins so expensive? The rarity of unboxing an expensive skin is a very low odds.
First thing players have to do is get a rare special item, which guarantees players knives or gloves depending on the case they open. The odds of this happening is a 1 in 400 chance.
The second thing a player has to do is get a rare float and pattern on the knife. A pattern gives a unique style on the knife, some of the patterns being different from others.
Depending on what the pattern and float is can make the skin jump in value because it looks brighter and more unique than other knives. These rare and bright knives are what people call sapphires, rubies and emeralds, and getting these three rare patterns is a 1 in 500 chance of unboxing.
Unboxing one of these rare knives and having the ideal pattern is a 1 in 19,230,769 chance, which is what makes the item so rare and valuable.
Even smaller effects drive value
Conditions and sticker capsules are a huge part of the CS2 economy.
Every float has a range of which the condition is called: “Factory New.” “Minimal Wear,” “Field-Tested,” “Well-Worn” and “Battle Scarred.” Factory New skins are higher in price because there are no scratches on the skin and it looks brand new.
Sticker capsules are the most expensive thing when it comes to unboxing items.
The most expensive sticker capsule is called a Katowice 2014 Legends capsule; this capsule is in very limited stock because they stopped selling in 2014.
If CS2 players wanted to open a Katowice 2014 Legends capsule, it would run the wallet $40,000 for one of them. Opening this capsule gives players the chance in getting the Titan Holo which currently sells for $73,000 on CS2 trading website csgoskins.gg.
Titan was a CS2 eSports team back in 2014, but due to the team’s funds, they could no longer stay together and had to disband.
If CS2 players want a cheaper route to sticker capsules, the capsule they will be looking for is called EMS Katowice 2014 Challengers Capsule. This capsule will run the wallet for $45,000 for a chance at the iBuyPower 2014 Holo Sticker.
CS2 administrators found out that the iBuyPower team was betting against themselves on gambling websites and purposely losing the games to gain money, and so the team was banned from playing eSports tournaments for 10 years which makes their sticker so rare on the market today.
The iBuyPower Holo sticker currently sells for $56,000 on CS2 trading website csgoskins.gg.
Scams demand caution
The CS2 scammers affect the economy by deflating prices. Scammers hack into players’ accounts and under sell the skins at below market prices.
One such instance happened to a CS2 collector who goes by the name HFB, who currently has his CS2 inventory set to private so players can’t see it.
HFB is a very private person and communicates with only trusted people, but the last known calculation of his inventory value is estimated at $2,000,000.
In 2017, HFB’s account had been compromised by an anonymous user. HFB didn’t initially know of the hack, but the community found out quickly once HFB’s expensive skins were up for cheap prices for a quick sell.
HFB found out, regained account access, changed the credentials, and was offered a refund of all of the skins back into his inventory.
Boone students have participated in CS2 economy
Students hoping to cash in shouldn’t get their hopes up, because the odds are slim, and some later regret the money they spent.
“I’ve lost more money than you can imagine playing Counter-Strike,” said senior Ricardo Reyna. “The more I watch famous streamers open cases and profit, the more I lose money from wanting to open them. I could’ve bought a car.”
Even students who hit on a pull, can still lose it all.
“One time I pulled a $1,000 knife from a CS2 case,” said junior Jordan Killion. “It was my number one gaming experience. Ended up gambling it away, but hey, at least I pulled it in the first place.”
Like any form of gambling, students should research before spending money on games like CS2 and be sure to purchase responsibly.
