CS:GO Loot Boxes In France Will Show Contents Before Purchase

Valve has changed how Counter-Strike: Global Offensive's loot boxes work in France. Players will be given an X-ray scanner that they can use to view the contents of their next loot box before opening it. To scan another box, the current box must be opened.

It's very similar to the change that was made for Dota 2 loot boxes in The Netherlands last summer, which we criticized as being a half-measure that didn't really accomplish anything. Sure, your next loot box isn't technically random, but the one after that is -- and you won't know what that one holds until you buy the first one. All this accomplishes is making the loot box technically "non-random" while delaying the "random" nature to the next box.

What's strange about this announcement -- detailed in a brief post on the CSGO site -- is that it applies only to France, a country that hasn't been known for taking a stance on loot boxes, unlike The Netherlands and Belgium. Looking through our archives, there was some talk from the French government of looking into loot boxes last summer, but we've heard nothing on that front since. Maybe Valve knows something we don't and is taking a proactive step to try and get ahead of a potential legislative storm front.