Valve are challenging artists to create the CS:GO weapon skins of their dreams. Or someone else’s dreams. Any kind of dream or nightmare theme you like, really, so long as you slap it on a CS:GO weapon to enter. They’re launching a total $1 million contest tomorrow in which ten creators will win $100,000 and have their CS:GO weapon finishes added to the game. The contest runs through the middle of October, in part to celebrate and support the community of Steam Workshop creators, Valve say.
“We launched the Workshop on Steam almost 10 years ago in the hopes of creating a centralized hub for community created content. Since then, over five million content creators have submitted and published over 20 million new items for a variety of games on Steam, making them available for purchase to millions of gamers around the world. And, as everyone who plays these games knows—including CS players—many of the most iconic in-game items, maps, and more have been authored by members of the community. The Dreams & Nightmares Content Contest is designed to help further support this community.”
Seems like a pretty swell contest, really. Importantly, Valve don’t own the artwork you submit either. “By submitting an entry you give us non-exclusive license for the artwork to use in CS:GO,” they explain. “You keep the rights. Past artists have licensed their successful CS:GO artwork elsewhere.”
You’ll just need to have a Steam account that’s purchased at least $5 of anything, document your artistic process a little bit, and note the winnings split between you and any collaborators you work with. Valve say that the CS:GO development team will choose the ten winners each receiving $100,000.
Submissions open tomororw, July 22 and run through October 21. You can spot the rest of the contest FAQs here and all the other details you’ll need.