For those that aren’t in the know, some CSGO skins can be worth… A lot. In the past (and we mean the recent past), some of the most sought-after skins in Counter-Strike have been auctioned off for hundreds of thousands of dollars. It’s a massive market that has been developing for ten years, and over time, it’s only getting increasingly valuable.
It was revealed today that one insanely lucky player started playing CSGO for the first time ever, and then three days later, unboxed a 387 Pattern Blue Gem Karambit that is worth ‘at least $150,000’ – but in the past has been valued at $1.5 million.
Mo’ Money
Reported by Jake Lucky on Twitter, the story goes that this individual had just thirty-one hours of playtime in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive – which he started playing just a week ago for the first time ever.
It was apparently the first knife he’d ever opened, and it just so happened that he secured one of the rarest items in the history of Counter-Strike – the Blue Gem Karambit. In a conversation between Jake and this remarkably lucky player, it was revealed that the 18-year-old that picked up the Karambit is in the military, and he plans to sell the knife and save almost all the money – smart!
According to CSGOSkins.gg, there’s around a 0.001% chance of unlocking a Blue Gem-patterned knife in a case.
Apparently, it took around 200 case openings to land the Blue Gem Karambit – but that’s still a fantastic return on investment, all things considered. In Jake Lucky’s original tweet, you can see a video showcasing the knife in all its glory:
Why exactly are CSGO skins worth so much? It’s mostly driven by rarity – as people can literally end up owning a one-of-one. It then comes down to aesthetics, the collector quality, the demand, the versatile usage of the skins (skin gambling, for example), and the fact that they’re basically investment items now on par with classic cars, art, and jewels.
That’s as simple an explanation as I can muster – it runs much deeper than that.
In March, we covered a CSGO skin sale that was worth $160,000 – it happens all the time.
For more Insider Gaming news, check out our coverage of the return of the Xbox Game Pass $1 upgrade deal
