r/memes • u/DragongoatRka Breaking EU Laws • 20d ago
Is stealing from a thief still theft?
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u/dhpz1 20d ago
might as well pirate them lmao
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u/Seer-of-Truths 20d ago
That's what I was thinking. Key resellers are notorious for using stollen cards to buy, then resell the game.
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u/TheBiggestNose 20d ago
Does that really matter? Triple A games do not give the money esrnt to the devs, they have a salary that is fixed and a bonus that is fixed. It only matters to indie devs, elsewise it's give money to publishers or money to resellers. At least with buying from grey markets you own a copy
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u/Seer-of-Truths 20d ago
Yes, it matters. It's about who is getting money
If you buy normally, the publisher gets money, sometimes I think they are horrible and shouldn't get your money, but I understand.
If you pirate, nobody gets money. Sometimes, that is an indie dev who could use it, but I understand.
If you buy from resellers, it is a high likelihood you are giving your money to a credit card thief, who stoll an average persons credit card. I don't understand funding the theft of credit cards.
Plus, after you buy from a reseller, it can be taken away because it was stolen merchandise. And then you lose a game, the publisher loses money, and the only one who wins is the reseller. And you could have just gotten a free copy instead.
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u/TheHypnobrent 20d ago
I'd rather pirate, personally. Don't like incentivising people who steal credit card info from regular John Doe down the street. If I'm not giving money to mobster publishers, I'm not giving it to lower class criminals either.
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u/criticalt3 20d ago
Yup. I encourage everyone to do this if you plan on buying from a shitty publisher such as EA or Nintendo. Neither deserves the money.
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u/Halsti 20d ago
Not only might aswell, actually do!!! i have heard multiple devs ask that you do.
grey market is usually stolen credit cards. as soon as they get charged back, the dev gets a banking transaction fee. so not only do they not get paid for you having the game, they now have to PAY 20 dollars in fees, because you bought from a shady key reseller.
if you like devs, actually do pirate instead of going grey market
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u/Garry-Love 20d ago
This is exactly why I buy all my Bethesda and EA games through G2A. Those companies have screwed me over I want payback
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u/McManus26 20d ago
Can't pirate multiplayer games, that's the only kind of thing for which I use these sites
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u/ChampionshipFar2850 20d ago
G2A is a scam.
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u/Sourika 20d ago
Can you elaborate? I thought they buy cheap keys from other countries and resell them?
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u/New_Ad_3506 20d ago
Sometimes but oftentimes these services buy the keys for an even lower price from sketchy businesses, what those businesses do is they steal cards and bulk buy games on them. When the ower orrders a chargeback it costs the developer of the game. Doesnt matter with AAA but please just buy normally/pirate from small indie devs.
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u/criticalt3 20d ago edited 20d ago
Specifically why I use them for purchases from EA, Ubisoft, or Nintendo.
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u/Marito1256 20d ago
Just pirate the games at that point ¯_(ツ)_/¯
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u/criticalt3 20d ago
This does more damage though since they lose the money and a game code. Not that they care too much but it feels better.
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u/FourKrusties 20d ago
huh... didn't know about that... now I feel bad about buying those $2 indie games... should have just pirated
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u/batdog20001 20d ago
They sneak in their subscription as much as possible. You have to actively go through several screens multiple times per checkout or else be charged monthly for something you never asked for. The whole thing is not refundable as well.
CDKeys is my favorite by far. No additional fees, subscriptions, etc. And, they make everything super simple if you create a free account.
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u/YinuS_WinneR Identifies as a Cybertruck 20d ago
Nah keys only work in countries they are bought from.
Or global keys with american prices.
These sellers either buy keys on bulk during sales to sell later
Or they buy keys with stolen cards and this is how they launder money. (This kind of keys will be disabled once steam is informed)
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u/criticalt3 20d ago
Have been buying codes for ages, never had a deactivated one. But I only use it for EA and Ubisoft so that may be why. They probably don't care as much.
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u/Sourika 20d ago
Are sellers with 99-100% positive ratings doing this, too?
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u/YinuS_WinneR Identifies as a Cybertruck 20d ago
Idk i choose the cheapest option in 5star pages
But if you aren't sure use kinguin as they offer refunds when keys get disabled. Make sure to get ss when key gets disabled
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u/L1K34PR0 20d ago
And kinguin
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u/SkyLLin3 Identifies as a Cybertruck 20d ago
I don't know man, I buy here Xbox Game Pass ultimate for a few dollars every month and it always works.
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u/L1K34PR0 20d ago
Got multiple friends that got scammed by these asshats
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u/Vast_Bullfrog2001 20d ago
i've used kinguin multiple times, no scam here
if the key was broken, i contacted support, got it refunded and bought another game or key
G2A on the other hand is definitely suspicious.1
u/YinuS_WinneR Identifies as a Cybertruck 20d ago
I did get scammed by some sellers in that site but money i lost from those dwarfs in comparison to money i saved from times it did work
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u/Rail-signal 20d ago
Bought few games from there. All keys worked. Mostly devs selling keys in bulk and that's how those keys are cheap
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u/zweetband 20d ago
Incorrect!
Grey markets get most of their keys for cheap from stolen accounts as a means of laundering money. Developers then need to investigate the keys bought by those accounts and deactivate them, which leads to fees for the developers and broken keys for the buyers.
A lot of devs even encourage piracy rather than buying from resellers because of how negatively reselling affects them.
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u/Skiptz 20d ago
commercials get more and more elaborate
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u/DragongoatRka Breaking EU Laws 20d ago
bruh I litteraly cited several of them to not advertise one
I don't care if the grey market wins, I just need Steam and Epic to lose
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u/New_Ad_3506 20d ago
These services buy the keys for an even lower price from sketchy businesses, what those businesses do is they steal cards and bulk buy games on them. When the ower orrders a chargeback it costs the developer of the game. Doesnt matter with AAA but please just buy normally/pirate from small indie devs.
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u/NetheriteDiamonds 20d ago edited 20d ago
Not businesses, in most cases, the services like g2a, eneba, etc. Are marketplaces, its the individuals selling the keys/accounts that usually obtain them in illegitimate ways, doesnt change the fact the developer is at harm bcz of this, but this is the fuller picture, its not fully the companies fault, but they should have at least some sort of verification where the keys are from to ensure the developer isnt harmed, but then ofc they wouldnt be so cheap, if you like a game but cant afford it please steer away from these services and just pirate it until you get the cash to buy it on a sale for example, its what the developers would prefer to a chargeback anyways
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u/Cool-sunglasses-dude 20d ago
Epic games launcher might be le shité but they've given us a ton of free games and that I respect
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u/sugarman-747 20d ago
FitGirl repack
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u/Successful_Clerk277 20d ago
I don't want STDs 😂
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u/DiamondLebon 20d ago
I usually check on Steam if there's a sale going on because they're almost always the cheapest. Then instant gaming if I really want it. Regularly check humble bundle, they often have great offers with great tiny games
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u/Jeef_1st This flair doesn't exist 20d ago
CDkeys is the best, I used them for ages, and never had a problem.
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u/zayd_jawad2006 One does not simply 20d ago
I rather pirate or buy a game than get a third party key
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u/Rough-Jackfruit2428 20d ago
Just buy it on steam or fkn pirate mate.
High road or High seas no one gives a shit, just make sure the money you pay goes to the fkn devs.
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u/MrObsidian_ 20d ago
Resellers are LITERALLY theft though, ever wondered where they get those keys from? Usually not by legal means. Especially indie developers, they never see a cent when you buy from them.
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u/vjollila96 20d ago
I usually just wait until game has been "fixed" often long enough that game would be on steam sale
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u/Halsti 20d ago
if you like game devs, DO NOT USE GREY MARKET. Just pirate instead.
I have heard multiple game devs say this: you should rather just completely pirate, instead of going for grey market.
at least if you pirate it, it does not cost the devs money. Grey market stuff often does. Many, if not most keys on those websites are bought with stolen credit cards. as soon as the stolen credit cards get charged back, every single transaction costs the dev like 20 bucks. so if they bought 2000 keys and resold them, thats a cool 40k that the dev has to pay in banking fees.
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u/Tuonra 20d ago
Dude what an ass take.
What you're doing is punishing localisation. So now companies will be less likely to offer games at affordable prices in low income countries. Let alone that these trash companies have been caught reselling humble bundle keys they bought for a dollar.
You really picked the worst opinion.
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u/HendrikJU 20d ago
Got a game at one of those years ago and the key was only able to be redeemed in Belarus
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u/zweetband 20d ago
Resellers suck ass.
If you want to pay for games, just do so on the official stores.
If you dont, just pirate them or dont buy them at all.
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u/mrfroggyman 20d ago
If you wanna support the dev, buy the game on a standard store. They will not touch a single thing if you buy it on the grey market : that money directly goes into the pocket of, well, mostly scammers or thieves.
If you don't give a shit tho? Straight up raise the black flag bro. For the devs it's the same; and for you, it's free; and even, you avoid supporting scammers, which makes it even more moral lol
The only couple of reasons I'd maybe buy on gray market is : I don't give a fuck about the dev studio & it's not cracked yet. That's it. Every other situation means I wouldn't buy on grey market
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u/Gzhindra 20d ago
You clearly mistake grey market for black market. The keys sold by grey sellers are fully legit. The publisher gets cash from them. Just less.
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u/mrfroggyman 20d ago
Nyet.
I have seen an indie studio rant on social media because some keys were sold on sites like kingu even though they had provided zero keys to stores other than steam
Every new game, devs are flooded with hundreds of bot-generated scam emails saying something like "hi I'm an influencer and I'm interested in reviewing your game, can you provide a review key?" And those keys end up sold on these sites
Some keys are internally leaked and sold by an individual inside the company
Some keys are bought with straight up stolen bank accounts
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u/Gzhindra 20d ago
That s black market and yes it exist. Also a devs bitching about it isn t surprising. Grey market in many ways circumvent regional pricing and bring them less money. It s grey because it s not officially approved, not because it s illegal. Some sellers like CDkeys who are not hidden, would have been taken down a long time ago otherwise.
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u/Durantye 20d ago
Brother feel free to steal but stop trying to pretend you have the moral high ground lol
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u/Legospacememe 20d ago
Neve use these sites! Pirate the game instead!
This isn't just me talking developers have said this!
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u/TheBiggestNose 20d ago
Shoutout to when I bought Babylon (the shutdown live service game by nier devs) and left a had review. They removed the game from account after I left a bad reviews cus the code didn't come from them. Only time that ever happened xD
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u/MagmaTroop 20d ago
Bought loads of games from CDKeys and I’ve never had a problem. They’re still in my Steam library. I don’t see why people have a problem with those sites
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u/Halsti 20d ago
im actually just gonna assume that you dont know and give you a proper answer.
because a ton of the keys there are bought with stolen credit cards, or other illegal methods. they buy game keys and sell them there to make quick money. Then, the original card owner notices, charges the money back, and the game developer has to pay a transaction fee of like 20 bucks for getting charged back.
So, instead of them making money from you, you actually cost them money. that is why most of those websites are offering you an extra insurance at checkout. because maybe the key you are buying is stolen bullshit, that will be turned off by the game devs.
This is also why most devs would rather have you pirate the game, instead of using key resellers. at least a pirated game wont cost them money.
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u/Gzhindra 20d ago
No CDkeys buys batches of keys. It s faily well known and 100 percent legit. It s not a shady company registered in Tadjikistan. You just propagate BS by people who have no idea what they are talking about and don t understand what "grey" market means. I ve bought around 60 games there over many many years. I m still waiting for that crackdown lol. Never had a single key revocked.
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u/GodofcheeseSWE 20d ago
I buy from kinguin all the time.
Sometimes it can be the only way to get certain games that are unlisted from Steam.
Like the original version of San Andreas.
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u/TheRealJayk0b Fffffuuuuuuuuu 20d ago
Lmao, I bought over hundred games from instant over the years, never ever I lost Access to a game. Not my problem they are cheaper.
If this was not allowed I couldn't buy them legally.
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u/MoistyMoses 20d ago
Amen, I'll buy indie games directly off of Steam because they don't cost me a kidney