TF2 Are bots inflating the value of keys, and what should we do about it?

Discussion in 'Game Discussion' started by Sugoni, Dec 6, 2016.

  1. Sugoni

    Sugoni 19 =/= 14
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    EDIT: Mods, if this is in the wrong section please feel free to move it to the right one. I wasn't sure which forum section was most appropriate for this type of discussion.

    So as we all know key prices have been increasing to ridiculous amounts.

    Something i'm not sure how many people have noticed is that when key prices go up, some of the first people to increase their prices are the network of trading bots. And what do they do every time? buy for about 5 or 6 scrap above the new bptf price.

    I feel like this hyperinflation is due to a maniuplated market, and obviously I feel like something should be done about it but i'm not sure what can be done.

    My question is: Should we try and fix this?
    Should the bots be allowed to infate the market like this? This is the highest price keys have ever been with the price increasing faster than ever before, and it's mostly not due to the majority of players, and while I don't think this is riht in the slightest I want to hear the opinions of everyone else.


    p.s. Please don't fill this thread with "Yeah i agree key prices are too high" and very simple complaints such as that or something like "Well now i can't buy x cause i had x ref and it was worth a key but now key prices have gone up". I want this thread to be filled with a proper economics discussion for TF2, and possible fixes to how unstable the market has become in general.


    p.p.s Identical thread on backpack.tf forums for other views/opinions is located here , mostly to keep the discussion as wide as possible.
     
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  2. Tsundere Baka

    Tsundere Baka "A Little sugar in my tank, and watch out!"
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    I'm not too well versed in Economics/TF2 Trading and such, but this is how I feel it would go down.

    The only fix for bots that I could see is if they are removed, which seems a bit drastic/hard to do, but for me, bots are a necessary evil so to speak. If bots were to be removed, this would cause quite a large disruption within trading, bots are able to provide quick trades, for a bit over regular price, but its quick, so you'd be willing to take the dive. Now bots are gone, it's harder to find keys/hats/ref for good prices, buyers will pay more for an item they want if they're spent looking for it for a while, they don't want to continue searching, so they'll be willing to buy for higher. This would cause an increase as demand becomes much more apparent and supply is dwindled down significantly. Honestly, removing bots would do more harm than good in this case.

    TL;DR- If bots were to be removed, Supply and Demand would go out of whack, as bots with most of the supply would go extinct, and demand for these items would increase, causing sellers to go higher and buyers to buy higher.
     
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  3. Sugoni

    Sugoni 19 =/= 14
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    I don't think removing bots is a good idea at all. For the majority of trades they're doing fine, providing people with a way to sell stuff quickly for z bit lower than bptf, but it's only keys i'm talking about here. I feel the only reason the key prices have gone up is because of the bots instantly creating buy orders above bptf. If there was something to stop this then the economoy would do fine, but this is artificial inflation that i feel is hurting the economy badly.
     
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  4. Newt

    Newt "Great we're all bloody inspired."
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    Its not so much that keys go up in value, its rather that refined goes down. It's been doing that for a while. It drops then it surges, that's how economies work.
     
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  5. Sugoni

    Sugoni 19 =/= 14
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    Just fyi, the link to the backpack.tf versions of the forums i posted has alot of great discussion going on, and if you're at all interested in this discussion you should read what people have said on there.
     
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