How come Pazaak STILL isn't in game...yet you make slot machines?

This has nothing to do with it. It uses in game credits, what does a game using fake money have to do with real world gambling laws?

I had a headache before..now its worse.

Errrrg.

No.

Let's try to settle this quickly. I know everyone wants to flop out their own ideas about what is and isn't "gambling" but law has some pretty clear lines that really, really should end all manners of this "gambling license" nonsense:

In five minutes, I can put up a website that lets you play blackjack with fake gold coins. I don't need a license to do that. It's just a web game.

I can require you to pay $5 to create an account on my fake-blackjack site. Still don't need a gambling license. I'm just charging you a fee for playing a game.

I can charge you for each hand of fake-blackjack that you play. Still no gambling license needed. I've just changed the payment scheme on a pay-to-play game. I could charge you per hand, per hour of play time, or per month. I could even charge you based on your performance (you only pay for hands that you lose). Still no gambling license needed.

I could let you buy digital goodies --mascots that dance on your screen, or impressionist paintings to put in the background, or 3D models of fancy drinks to sit near the cards-- with your fake gold coins. Still no gambling license required. The extra goodies are just part of the game reward system, and its still just a video game that you're paying to play.

However, if I let you buy anything physical --stuffed animals, mufflers, crates of neodymium-- then I've stepped into a grey area. Many places are going to start looking at exactly how that reward system is set up and how much value is being converted. This can even apply (in a much more difficult-to-track way) to certain services. As soon as you get something that has legal value, then you might be considered legal gambling.

And of course, if I reward you with straight-up cash, then I've created a gambling system by pretty much everyone's definition. No real question there.

However, looking at the levels above, its clear that even if Bioware gave us Pazaak and let us play with CC directly, it still wouldn't qualify as gambling in a legal sense, and wouldn't require a gambling license. I doubt they'll even step that far. They'll likely have us gambling with credits... which can't even be turned into CC... and CC can't even be turned into cash.

And to head off some counter arguments: SWTOR credits have no legal value. The existence of credit sellers don't change that. Credit sellers operate outside the rules of the game and are explicitly outlawed by the game. Bioware won't be held liable for a gambling license because players break their usage agreement and pay money for legally worthless ideas (credits are not objects, people). Yes, there is history with Blizzard, but those instances were acknowledged as legal grey-areas, nearly unenforceable, and usually linked with the ability to legitimately convert game items into real-world currency.

That settles it then, they can't put tokens in the CM. Thanks for the confirmation.

However, if I let you buy anything physical --stuffed animals, mufflers, crates of neodymium-- then I've stepped into...

That settles it then, they can't put tokens in the CM. Thanks for the confirmation.

That settles it then, they can't put tokens in the CM. Thanks for the confirmation.

the realm of arcades. I may be wrong but I'm pretty sure arcades don't need gambling licences.