As indicated in a Gamelevate report, more than 709,300 people played CS:GO on average in January 2023. And the peak was 1.13 million players that same month. That’s almost 13% more than it was in December 2022. At the same time, numerous players purchase items to improve their gaming roles. You can buy almost any weapon at corresponding marketplaces — from a simply designed CS:GO bowie knife to a sniper rifle with spectacular prints.
The aforementioned trends mean gaming skins have become a kind of asset worth investing in. As a result, plenty of skilled players become CS:GO item traders. The gaming market enables investors to buy skins to sell them for higher prices in the future. However, predicting an asset cost for some CS:GO traders is difficult. That’s why experts decided to project some future tendencies in the market to simplify the analytical process holding for such investors.
What Will Affect CS:GO Skin Prices the Most in the Near Future?
Initially, it’s worth noting that the information below is fair only if you trade items on trustworthy online marketplaces (for instance, DMarket). That’s because dubious platforms frequently charge their clients too high fees and sometimes can’t even provide investors with the proper transaction security level. As a result, there is often high and unpredictable volatility on such sites.
CS:GO Popularity Level
Some analysts claim that CS:GO may become much less popular worldwide. This is because numerous new gaming applications appear on the internet. So, could plenty of CS:GO lovers change from the shooter to another, more contemporary game?
Actually, this is a very unlikely scenario. That’s because CS:GO creators regularly release fresh updates and patches, so players systematically obtain chances to find new cases with original rifles, knives, gloves, etc. Consequently, the game becomes more diverse and engaging. Therefore the probability of the game decreasing in popularity is negligible. In fact, rare skins will become even pricier.
Item Float Range
Generally, the newer the skin, the higher its price. Traditionally, Factory New CS:GO items are the most expensive, and Battle-Scarred the cheapest. Consequently, traders consider old skins less worth investing in. However, some players buy, for example, Field-Tested items and keep them until the same skins of better float values become rarer. Then they just sell their battered inventory at a higher cost.
CS:GO Skin Uniqueness
Original items are much more expensive. These include:
- souvenir skins (e.g. received as a part of tournaments);
- items from special cases (Legendary, Restricted, Covert etc);
- contraband skins (such as M4A4 | Howl).
You may find rare CS:GO inventory items, for example, on the DMarket official website.
Tips on Modern Skin Trading
First, experts recommend setting a certain budget. Item trading is an incredibly captivating business, so investors can easily get carried away and spend more than they originally planned. The other tips are:
- Don’t invest all your money into a particular single item. It’s always better to buy several prospective skins to spread the risk of fund losses.
- Newly-released items are typically volatile, so be careful when trading them.
- Be patient. Occasionally, skin prices rise and fall rapidly. So for instance, if you believe a skin cost will rise, but it suddenly becomes lower, don’t sell it. Instead, carefully analyze the ongoing situation in the market first to understand if this is a temporary or long-term trend.
Additionally, experts recommend always negotiating deals. Never accept the first offer you obtain.
Final Thoughts
You should deeply understand skin trading to become a successful item investor. It’s always necessary to consider an inventory’s float value and uniqueness when making deals. Furthermore, the successful future of skin trading lies in diversifying your investments, setting limited budgets, as well as being patient throughout the trading process.
