no it doesn't raise their chance of winning, and yes it is encouraged by mods

better than entering a giveaway without even saying anything, even a small thank you.

I say thanks because I'm thankful when people give away games for free without expecting some sort of compensation in return.

Good manners not something you like?

I think its a nice gesture, good to see that some people can take a second to put a comment thanking the giveaway person for their offering.
It's annoying however when the giveaway is a fake, and the first comment CLEARLY says its a fake, yet there are always dozens of goobers who enter and say thanks anyway...seriously people just READ alittle.

The point is people can not see "actual" comments because of "thanks bro" spam. Yeah, its great to be thankful and have manners. But comment section is not what it is made for and it completely destroys the point of the comment tool.

Ehhhh It's a "nice gesture" when people actually mean it lol, it seems as common as people saying "good morning" I don't think those people really care how my morning is =P I don't mind it though. I'll thank someone if I WIN otherwise I don't bother, although I am still thankful for everyone donating games =)

Indeed you are

It is respectful to say it because the creators of the giveaways spent their own money on it to give away.

People say thank you because they are grateful that someone would spend their own money to give a gift to the community. If you aren't grateful for gifts then you don't have to enter any giveaways, it's really not that big of a deal.

Because there is no button to say "thanks".

Oh hey, it's this thread again.

i find people who complain about such minor stuff annoying especially when u havent given something yourself

You people who always open topics like "why do people post thanks/why is it necessary" don't actualy realise that the lack of thanks in public giveaways are the same reason why are there so many private groups.
It's because it's normal thing to and that's how i was taught and raised to always say thanks for gifts, especially when people have bought them with their hard earned money. I will always assume that most of these don't post thanks are nothing more than ungrateful bastards

Nah, 90% of them don't care at all, it's just their inner conscience telling 'em not to be quiet. Like "I must say tytyty or else I'll be a bad person in the eyes of others". I mean they said and then cannot remember anything about it, while not even 10 seconds is past.

I just ignore all those soul-less and automated "ty" and "thx" (not everyone is so grateful even just to type the full "thank you" or "thanks"). Wanna say something good about giveaway for real? Make it a lot more original and warm-hearted. And hey, don't use some sort of copypast thing-shming in every giveaway you enter or not, or else there's not much difference.

There are only so many creative/funny/random ways of saying "thanks". Especially with how fast points accumulate on this site (especially during popular steam sales) you're bound to just plain run out of ways to say thanks. It's not "spamming".

I'm so lonely and tired, I need all the thank yous I can get

RTFM!

Every time I see one of these threads it kills a little part of me. : /

Also, I don't see how "thanks spam" hides real comments. Scrolling down a page it's easy to distinguish what isn't just "thanks" unless you are legally blind. The only concern is when you have like 20 pages of thanks, but even then if the gifter wants to sift through comments it won't take much time.

I say thanks if i dont have anything better to say, i guess a thanks its the least they deserve.

I'm a relative cynic when it comes to how human nature is, and how people act. But I still don't see why someone would be upset by a thank you, no matter how small. I know when I say thank you, I mean it. Does that mean everyone does? Of course not. But it does show, that for whatever reason, that they cared enough to show some form of gratitude, no matter how small. It's better then just clicking the "enter contest" button and saying nothing. It requires a small amount of effort. I'm cynical and all, but it's nice to think that other people are grateful in some small way, enough to show it even in a token regard.

Anyone spotted the puzzle yet?

Thanks for Skyrim!

Whatever I said the last couple of times this subject came up still holds.

I actually think that most people say thanks not because they're thankful, but because they are fools. Seeing as there are quite a few fake giveaways, people making giveaways for their wanted games, I think saying thx (in their minds) increases their chance of winning, seeing as everyone else does it.