Unknown Worlds is taking up the grey-market storefront after shedding tons of of hundreds in illegally-obtained copies.
G2A does inventory the studio’s breakout underwater sandbox, Subnautica. But it’s not the developer’s breakout submarine sandbox that’s landed them in bother.
Unknown Worlds claims somebody bought 1,341 Steam keys for hybrid RTS/FPS Natural Selection 2 by way of G2A utilizing a stolen bank card. When the cardboard’s proprietor discovered, Unknown Worlds was handed a $30,000 invoice.
As per G2A’s tenfold chargeback program, the shop ought to now be paying Unknown Worlds a good-looking $300,000 in compensation. Blimey.
Hey @G2A_com – thanks for providing to pay 10x the income misplaced as a result of our @NS2 game keys offered in your shady platform. CC @RaveofRavendale
You now owe us $300,000. Thanks. https://t.co/J5qof6wBZD pic.twitter.com/Oq97ofLoLD
— Charlie Cleveland (@Flayra) August 12, 2019
G2A hasn’t but made a public response. But – as with Factorio dev Wube Software – the shop will most likely stress needing an unbiased auditor on the scene to verify the chargeback. Since discovering the breach, Unknown Worlds has needed to quickly shut its personal retailer, and deactivate keys hapless purchasers picked up from G2A.
Unknown Worlds is, naturally, none-too-happy in regards to the state of affairs. It doesn’t declare to have requested to have its games offered on G2A’s retailer and has suffered a hefty effective as a consequence of it being listed there. Founder Charlie Cleveland has joined No More Robots founder Mike Rose and others in calling for indie games to be taken off G2A.
“It’s terrible to put the impetus on developers to have to take action with G2A to get this proposal moving in the first place, while G2A profits off grey market sales and credit card fraud.”
Cleveland feels excuses that G2A’s proposed key blocker tool is “expensive to develop” are bogus. He additionally finds the shop’s coverage of naming builders who don’t want to be listed on its platform is suspect. A name to rally store-loyal followers into harassing studios who don’t bend the knee.
“Mike Rose is right – it IS better for players to pirate than buy a key off G2A.”
Source
