"The problem here is 100% the ability to resell the items from the loot boxes. A loot box/gacha mechanic is fine when you can't turn around and resell the items because you're not getting something of value. When Valve is also providing a marketplace for those items, they've added the third element."
"Operating that kind of official exchange for players to extract value from items won 'starts to look a lot more like gambling,' as Hoeg put it. Where Valve might have some unique legal exposure, lawyers tell Ars, is in its operation of the Steam Marketplace, where players can trade in-game items for Steam Wallet funds."
"While taking a commission on digital item sales 'strengthens the argument that these items have economic value,' that fact alone 'doesn't transform a randomized purchase into gambling,' Loiterman added. The existence of the Steam Marketplace resale market 'matters, but it's not decisive' in this case."
Digital loot boxes present complex legal questions regarding gambling classification. While digital sellers typically claim items have zero cash value to avoid gambling regulations, Steam's marketplace creates unique exposure by allowing players to trade items for Steam Wallet funds. Legal experts identify the resale capability as the critical factor transforming loot boxes into potential gambling. However, the fact that wallet funds remain confined to the Steam platform and cannot directly convert to cash complicates gambling arguments. Courts must determine whether the ability to extract economic value through an official marketplace constitutes gambling, despite the indirect nature of monetization.
Read at Ars Technica
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