CS:GO Roulette: What Is It & How It Works

Have You Heard of CS:GO Roulette?

You probably already know that there are many variants of roulette: This traditional casino game has been played for centuries and comes in many different forms. For example, when searching for offers for Australian roulette players, we are sure that you have come across the three basic variants: European, American, and French. But did you know that in addition to all this, there is also a variant for CS:GO? You heard it right: CS:GO roulette does indeed exist and has been played for years. So, what kind of game is this and what are the rules? You can find detailed information about this below.

It Is Called Skin Gambling

Valve added skin support to the Counter-Strike Global Offensive in 2013. By doing this, it aimed to increase interaction between players and further expand the Steam marketplace. The rules were simple: a player could trade a skin with other players or put it up for sale on the marketplace. As you know, this feature still continues. However, the Steam marketplace has many restrictions and those skins turned into a virtual currency on their own. Because in 2016 alone, these skins created a virtual economy worth about 5 billion dollars.

The restrictions of the Steam marketplace have caused players holding these skins to initiate a kind of “underground trading”. For about the last 5 years, we can say that a kind of “black market” has emerged for CS:GO skins. Sites that sell skins make them part of a game of roulette, so even if you have money, you can’t buy a particular skin directly. Think of a big roulette wheel: each pocket has different skin. The most valuable ones are placed in only one pocket, and the common ones are placed in the others. After making a real money deposit, you get the right to spin this wheel, and luck determines which skin you win. However, it would be a mistake to view it as a simple game, as some analysts estimate that this market will reach 20 billion dollars in 2020. This is an incredible number, and most surprisingly, a market of this size is subject to no control.

And Yes, It Is a Black Market

In practice, CSGO roulette sites offer a service quite similar to online casinos. But online casinos are licensed and have RNG certificates. Being licensed means they are regulated by a government agency and must comply with the law. For example, a casino cannot accept anyone under the age of 18 and is prohibited from accepting members from some countries. RNG certification means games are audited and guaranteed not to be rigged.

The problem is that CSGO roulette sites have none of this. Because they don’t have a license, it’s unclear who they belong to, and if they ever decide to shut down the site, there’s nothing you can do. It is not possible for you to know how fair the games are because they do not have an RNG certificate: You may be playing a fraudulent game. Moreover, there is a possibility that you may not be able to add a purchased skin to your account, as Valve prohibits trading from such sites.

For all these reasons, we strongly recommend that you stay away from CSGO roulette sites. The action you take is also prohibited by Valve and may even cause your account to be banned. However, as we mentioned above, what is surprising here is that such a large market is not regulated in any way. Valve has sued and shut down multiple skin trading sites to date, but it is surprising that official authorities have not taken action on this. The measures that Steam can take in this regard are limited: For example, the reason for the seven-day cool-off period in the marketplace is to prevent skin trading, but it is not possible to say that it works very well. Skin trading is an issue that affects other games with this feature too, and it doesn’t look like it will be resolved anytime soon.