In the past decade, the popularity of cosmetics in video games has soared. Games such as Fortnite, Roblox, and Call of Duty all offer cosmetic changes to characters in exchange for real-world money. Naturally, these games have developed real-money markets, both official and unofficial, as players try to get the rarest cosmetics.

In 2013, Counter Strike 2’s developer and publisher Valve Corporation released an update to their Counter Strike 2 game containing loot boxes that give players cosmetic weapon skins. These skins have different colors and erosion values, with “Factory-New Gold” skins being the rarest. Counter Strike 2 allows players to buy and sell these skins on virtual marketplaces, and these markets have been developing since its introduction over a decade ago. Counter Strike 2’s market has grown significantly, with analysts reporting appreciations greater than that of stocks. However, these video game markets can be very volatile in response to new releases or versions.

On October 22, Valve Corporation released an update for Counter Strike 2 that allows players to trade less-expensive skins in exchange for “Red” and “Gold” skins. This caused a large-scale market flood of the more-expensive skins, which caused the prices to plummet overnight. It was recorded that this update caused around two billion dollars to be lost. For people who had placed investments in skins, suddenly these skins were worthless.

One of these people is Pedro Olivera Santos, a student at Cypress Lake High School and a long-time player of Counter Strike 2. “I lost, if I’m not wrong, the equivalent of $1,484 dollars,” said Olivera Santos, who may give up the game altogether. “After this incident I don’t think I’m going back. It doesn’t bother me that much because it was money that I did not need, but it still bothers me because it was a lot of money.”