Image Credits:https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-the-brain-gets-addicted-to-gambling/
Nowadays the pandemic has influenced many Brazilians to migrate to a different platform where everything works digitally. The traditional games of chance in Brazil are currently prohibited by the federal government and are considered a crime for disobeying laws, online games are currently causing many discussions about their legality under the law. With this in mind, I would like to express my opinion about this subject from the perspective of someone who has experienced this way of “gambling” that is unknown and little studied by many.
Those online games are being so much discussed because they include several betting modes that may or may not benefit the player with prizes. These bets are being compared to games of chance because, just like any other game, you run the risk of losing or winning the money you have put down on your video gaming platform. The reason why many are debating whether or not these bets should be included as games of chance is that you run the risk of losing what you have put in or simply making an absurd profit on your bottom line. In order to make the difference between these games and casinos and games of chance clearer, we can start with the simple fact that these games are first and foremost based on statistics and not entirely on luck, that the games and the winnings can be sold on the Steam marketplace (largest gaming platform in the world), that they can bring in profits out of the ordinary, and that they are the basis of an entire market in the gaming community.
First of all, the law Decree 9.215, dated April 30, 1946, signed by President Eurico Gaspar Dutra constitutes that gambling is degrading to human beings and that these games are therefore prohibited by law in Brazil. On the other hand, the law also contradicts itself because the federal government cannot interfere in the life of any specific individual. Following this trajectory, there is a big difference between betting games and options to win extra things in the game you already play. When it comes to bingos, casinos, and others of that class of games, the person is aiming to bet his money, when in online gaming, gaming in all circumstances that I know of, offers a “safer” way to the player, where he can simply buy his extra character by paying a much higher amount, or he can try his luck in a box at a much more affordable price where he has a lower chance of winning the desired card, but also saving money. Along with this in-game betting, you always get a reward, it may vary in rarity or price, but in the end, there is always a prize, unlike in many games of chance.
Along with this, the online bets in the games have the option of selling in the steam marketplace where they can sell the items acquired with the bet, often recovering or even making more money than they had initially. These sales can be converted to real money and be used in real life. Because of this, I would like to bring the example of a professional trader named Cachorro1337, he started with bets on boxes and prizes within the game, and with that, he was selling and making deals within the platform, profiting more and more. Currently, this player has more than half a million dollars in skins (textures for weapons) in the game cs go, so as we can see, he had a good performance of his money that in the beginning was not much, but he can turn the bets and the online market, his profession. Another example that I would like to present is about myself that manages to earn a certain amount of money that started with bets, and soon I could start to trade between players.
Games of chance are different from online betting because in them, yes, there is a much greater chance of loss, in many the times the corruption where they bet money, there is no guarantee that you will not lose all your money and also the game is much more limited than in an online platform that offers you several possibilities to recover or even profit your money. Gamblers in real life have no other alternative to earn money than betting, unlike games that as your understanding and experience, will open a huge range of possibilities for profit and income. In conclusion, we should not compare online games with gambling, we should leave things as they are because no act of corruption, bankruptcy, or extreme addiction to gambling in video games has been proven. It is up to each person and how they make their decisions on how to apply for this money like anything else in life.
EAC PRESS 