My two cents on
#Valve/CSGO Ban Waves starting with a TLDR: Your money in any format (skins, crypto, nfts) will never be safe if it is on a centralized market/exchange. Why the future of gaming digital assets is entirely on chain, and to create a true content creator economy, we need
#Blockchain.
Building on top of an API controlled by one party will always be risky. John and I had no idea how long OPSkins would survive for. We knew we were in violation of their ToS, and after literally taking over the skin economy (60% before I sold), it was obvious to us that it was a matter of time. Yet, we got banned once during the early days, the community revolted, and they unbanned us and said it will never happen again.
Which makes me think that Valve has a bigger picture in mind on all of these gambling of skins / 2ndary marketplaces game. It obviously is in their best interest to keep these sites one way or another.
The CS:GO skins obviously made CSGO huge. At the beginning of the OPSkins era in 2015 , I remember the ESWC Montreal CS:GO Grand Finals that we sponsored. Less than 100 people and in a very small venue, with legends like
@n0thing @OnFireAnders @Sadokist @Ska @seangares in the building.
The purges makes sense to filter the shit/scammy/ruggy sites from the ecosystem, but the way they went with it seems just a bit off.
Banning traders instead of actual sites API keys make me think that their backend/platform tracking skins is a probably a total shit show.
They probably never expected their skin economy to pick up the way it did through their API. Why they always tried to get control back in one form or another.
The only way to make this a legit industry, and stop being in the shadows/grey zones, is through Blockchain. I can not wait for the day that every single game ecosystem and economy is connected to ONE Ecosystem ONE Economy, with true digital ownership. This is what I am fighting for with my team over @nftsgen and
@TheForgeArena
#WAXFAM @WAX_io $WAXP #FORGEUP