Hi everyone! It recently made news that gamers in Australia are no longer able to use any of the casino functionality in Grand Theft Auto Online. This is something we’ve lightheartedly talked about but it really does deserve to be addressed.
We fully expect there to be negative reactions to our game, we’ve had to fill out specific content surveys about exactly what type of gambling is in our game. We never want to encourage a gambling addiction, this was made to offer a fun alternative to so much of the gambling in gaming we see today.
I learned how to play a lot of casino games from video games. Yakuza started my interest in Baccarat and that became my favorite casino game. My joy from Baccarat comes less from winning, and more from the fun of people yelling “solidarity!” and then you just hope for the best and gamble how they gamble.
It's a fun, social activity, as are most of the table games. I have very fond memories of Vegas with my friends, but I am also aware how hard it was for us to find five dollar tables. I'm not trying to spend/lose a fortune playing Blackjack. I think Vegas is fun, but it isn’t something a lot of people can afford anymore.
Grand Theft Auto ran into issues because the argument can be made that because you can buy Shark Cards, you are essentially spending real money to buy into a gambling game. This, among many other reasons, is why we will never, EVER charge you for chips. We’ve literally spent eight months building an entire system so you can earn chips if and when you run out. We never want you to feel like you’re going to miss out on playing with your friends, your next big win, or whatever hat you’re eyeing next, just because of bad rolls.
So I’m sure we’ll see some negative press, but that's okay. I hope that the places that get upset at our gambling take a chance to try it out before calling us the next online casino.
We’re an online DUCK casino, duh.
If you’d like to follow along and support development, wishlisting the game on Steam
is the best way to stay informed and help us reach more people! If you’d like to stay in touch with us directly, please feel free to join our Discord: https://discord.gg/SUjXUfmumx
- Dogwood Gaming