RIP Rocket League economy: player-to-player item trading is being removed in December
Come December, Rocket League players will no longer be able to trade cosmetic items with each other: «Player-to-Player Trading will be removed from Rocket League on December 5 at 4 pm PST,» developer Psyonix announced today.
The instantly unpopular decision will bring Rocket League into alignment with «Epic's overall approach to game cosmetics and item shop policies, where items aren't tradable, transferrable, or sellable,» says the developer, which was acquired by Epic Games in 2019.
Rocket League's item economy used to be more like Counter-Strike's: The best stuff came in loot boxes which could be opened with keys, a premium item that also became the commodity used as money in player trades. After Epic bought Psyonix, it retired the crate and key system. Crates are now free to open, but rather than items they contain blueprints for items which can be crafted by spending Credits, the new premium currency. Psyonix also introduced an Item Shop, where a rotating selection of cosmetics can be directly purchased for Credits.
Player-to-player trading lost some of its significance with the switch to blueprints, but players have continued to acquire rare items through trades, mainly using fan-made website Rocket League Garage to find and coordinate transactions.
«It was a pleasure,» wrote Rocket League Garage founder Vicegold in response to a Reddit poster preemptively memorializing the website. The operators of the website, which has its own mobile app, did not know that this announcement was coming.
«After December 5, there will be no way to trade items with any player or between accounts,» reads Psyonix's statement. «Websites or servers advertising such services are fraudulent and have no connection to Psyonix or Epic
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