In short, Yes. Skins do play an important role in keeping the players engaged with the game and give them a competitive mindset to unlock achievements. Is that it? No there are more. Can you believe that there are gambling sites where betting is done on skins? Millions of dollar-worthy skins are traded during every esports match on those CSGO Gambling Sites. Continue reading to learn more about them.
What is a Skin in CS:GO?
For starters, Skins are virtual objects that can be collected, used, and stored in the game CS: GO. They have no influence over the game. Using rare/special skins won’t give you an advantage over the players who don’t have any skins with them. But still having rare skin will display your expertise and social status in the game. You can never see a pro player in the game with default skins, can you? There are two skin types in CS: GO, skins that are used as outfits for the characters, and skins that are used for items such as guns and knives.
Why Skins are needed?
If you are an avid Counter-Strike: Global Offensive player you know the worth and value of the skins in the game. They really got nothing to do with the game or with the gaming experience. But they are really important in the game for few reasons. Let me list them for you.
- To make a profit by reselling (Interesting isn’t it?)
- To increase the interest to unlock an achievement
- For showing off
- To Improve your social status among the gamers
- Just curiosity / Personal love over the skins
Among all the above, the first reason deals with money via CSGO Gambling Sites. People are selling their skins for a profit to other people who loves CS: GO digital collectibles. And here comes the gambling part. Let me explain to you how gambling with skins works in CS: GO.
Betting with skins
It all started with esports CS: GO competitions. Every CS: GO gamer will definitely know about esports and the unpredictability of the matches. People not only enjoyed the match but also started to bet on them. But the catch is, these betting don’t involve direct money instead they used CS: GO skins they earned by playing multiple matches and unlocking achievements. They will place the bet by pledging their skin and if they win they get their skin back, if not they lose access to their skins. If you win, you will also get the skins pledged by other betters. The number of skins you receive will depend on the type of bet.
Okay, but where can you bet? There are multiple betting sites in the market where you can bet with your CS: GO skins. These CS: GO gambling sites leverage the use of Stream API and get access to their CS: GO accounts from the gamers those login to their website. Most of these sites are taken down because they clearly violate the copyright agreement by the valve, but still many of them are operating. Once you won skins you can convert them to dollars using the sites those offer exchange. Good profit from betting right?
Apart from all this gambling stuff, there are many genuine gamers who love to collect skins as a trophy or virtual collectibles. If you ask me personally I would definitely say skins are really important to keep the CS: GO gamers involved in the game and make them play more by offering a rare skin if they unlock an achievement. If the offered skin is really rare then the gamers will work really hard to get it.
Also if you got some skin more than once, you can trade it with your friend for another skin that you don’t own.
What are souvenir skins?
When talking about the skins it is very important to talk about these souvenir skins. You might hear of these souvenir skins. These are very rare and you can collect them only if you participate in the matches that are sponsored by valve itself. Do you know how much these souvenir skins are worth? In 2014, one of these souvenir skin sold out for $62,000. Shocking right? Yes, there is a very big market and craze for these kinds of skins and these skins are the one that preserves the craze for CS:GO among the fans. To date, CS GO is played by millions of gamers in a month.
Skins are important to keep the gamers engaged and letting them show off their achievements. Without these skins, you are just another gamer with default skins. Even your teammates can’t distinguish you from others. Then how will show off your achievements to others especially if you are a live streamer. Here the skins play an important role. Just imagine when people see you with a gun that has authentic souvenir skin (The one that got sold for $62,000) people will start to respect you automatically. They will follow whatever YouTube channel you ask them to follow.
Conclusion
This is exactly why I say skins are an important factor in CS: GO. Gaming is all about virtual achievements and unique identity. Only when people can distinguish themselves with the achievements they do the game they will love the game more.