Network Ten star Melanie Bracewell has made a shocking discovery about her partner Shaun McCullough’s finances, leading to the couple losing thousands of dollars.
The New Zealand comedian, 28, took to TikTok recently to reveal that her boyfriend had bad luck reselling valuable virtual ‘stickers’ for the online multiplayer game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO).
Shaun discovered that an in-game item he had previously bought and sold for $12 (A$18) was now worth $42,832 (A$64,668) on the online marketplace.
If Shaun had kept the DLC, he and Melanie would have been left with a sizable chunk of the deposit on a house or apartment..
Melanie, co-host of the comedy show The Cheap Seats, explained: “My boyfriend is going through his CS:GO collection of things he sold and decals he customized his gun with and seeing how much they’re worth now.”
Barely able to contain her laughter, she turned the camera towards her boyfriend, who was in front of his computer looking at his CS:GO profile, and asked him to explain what had happened.
Shaun went on to tell viewers that “back in the day” he purchased a “nice little” AK-47 skin for his in-game weapon, as well as a $12 virtual sticker to put on it to improve its aesthetics and value.
Network Ten star Melanie Bracewell, 28 (right), made a shocking discovery about her partner Shaun McCullough’s finances, leading to the couple losing thousands of dollars.
The sticker, which Shaun had long ago sold for an unknown amount, was the holographic Ninjas in Pajamas from the EMS One Katowice 2014 esports league championship held in Poland.
Melanie then zoomed the camera in on Shaun’s second computer monitor to reveal the sticker was being sold on an online marketplace for US$42,832 (A$64,668).
Filled with disbelief that her boyfriend had missed out on such a lucrative business deal, Melanie could do nothing but let out a cry of frustration.
She captioned her video: “WE COULD HAVE A HOUSE DEPOSIT.”
The New Zealand-born comedian took to TikTok recently to reveal that her boyfriend had bad luck reselling valuable virtual stickers from the online multiplayer video game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO).
CS:GO, now known as Counter-Strike 2, has developed a very complex trading and market economy over the years, with players engaging in trading virtual cosmetics and weapons for real-world cash through from third-party sites such as Skinport, BitSkins or CS.Dinero.
Over time, with the rise in popularity of the Electronic Sports League, some stickers have become incredibly valuable, selling for thousands if tied to a winning competitive gaming team.
Holographic stickers are rare and are also considered very valuable; The most expensive market value recently observed was more than US$60,000 (AU$90,602) for a Titan squadron sticker from the EMS Katowice 2014 Legends capsule.
Shaun discovered that an in-game item he had previously bought and sold for US$12 is now worth A$64,668 (US$42,832), meaning he and Melanie lost the opportunity to cash in on tens of thousands of dollars.
There are generally considered to be five levels of rarity among CS:GO stickers, ranging from High Grade to Contraband, although there are some exceptions to the rule.
The lowest rarities are Blue (High Grade), Purple (Notable/Holo/Shimmer), and Pink (Exotic/Foil).
Meanwhile, Red (Souvenir/Gold) and Gold (Smuggled) are considered at the upper end of the rarity scale with a single sticker, Howling Dawn, currently in Contraband status.
While paying real money for cosmetic features that don’t provide any functionality or gameplay advantages may seem strange, these cosmetic upgrades are popular with hardcore gamers and a real source of income for online game developers.
