Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted

Ludeon Studios announces that they've been forced to stop giving Steam keys to those who buy the DRM-free edition of Rimworld from their site, though the game is still available for purchase directly from Steam (thanks Tessier). Word is their generosity was being rewarded by thousands of dollars in chargebacks due to fraud:
If you bought before today, you can still get a key. However, I’ve been forced to stop offering Steam keys for those who buy today and in the future. We’ve been getting hammered by fraudsters who are obviously more experienced at this than I. Shutting it down for now is the only way to avoid thousands of dollars in chargeback fees and lost sales. It’s time to take a breather, because I can’t fight this ‘live’.

The game is, of course, for sale on Steam if you want a Steam copy. Buying from our site will give DRM-free copies as before, but no Steam key.

All the stolen keys are being cancelled, and should be deactivated before they can be sold (or soon after, depending on how fast Valve does it). The funds they were stolen with are being returned to their rightful owners. If you don’t want to get ripped off by fraudsters, be sure to buy direct from Steam.

If you bought direct from us before July 17 and find your key cancelled, it may be due to a separate glitch we had (affecting only a few dozen people). You should be able to get a new key immediately from the Steam key giver, and continue playing where you left off.
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31 Replies. 2 pages. Viewing page 1.
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31.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 19, 2016, 22:50
Kxmode
 
31.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 19, 2016, 22:50
Jul 19, 2016, 22:50
 Kxmode
 
HoSpanky wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 18:06:
Lol @ Cutter's new Signature. I cannot wait to see how many things in NMS get named "[color] Florp".

I already got dibs on naming a fish Florp. Called it! I've also claimed name ownership for Planet Bob and Planet Steve as well as creatures called "Wire Fraud" and "Class Action Lawsuit." Don't take them or else I'll sue!
"...and in stonks, Fizzy Squeezy Stocklebocks leaped over Droopy Whoopy Bondfluffs, hitting 300-gigglebits to their 150-snorebucks. Meanwhile, in Whimsyland's market, the pancakes reached parity with pogo sticks."
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30.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 19, 2016, 08:32
nin
30.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 19, 2016, 08:32
Jul 19, 2016, 08:32
nin
 
RedEye9 wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 21:27:
Rimworld dev, TynanSylvester, is doing an AMA on Wednesday.
https://www.reddit.com/r/RimWorld/comments/4thgt4/tynan_here_ill_be_doing_an_ama_on_rgames/

Too much Game of Thrones lately, read that as "Tyrion"...

29.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 23:15
29.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 23:15
Jul 18, 2016, 23:15
 
Been wondering if this game was close to done, now that's it back in the news. Its looking pretty nice so far.
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28.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 21:27
28.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 21:27
Jul 18, 2016, 21:27
 

Rimworld dev, TynanSylvester, is doing an AMA on Wednesday.
https://www.reddit.com/r/RimWorld/comments/4thgt4/tynan_here_ill_be_doing_an_ama_on_rgames/
"I expect death to be nothingness and by removing from me all possible fears of death, I am thankful to atheism." Isaac Asimov
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27.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 20:30
27.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 20:30
Jul 18, 2016, 20:30
 
HoSpanky wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 18:06:
Lol @ Cutter's new Signature. I cannot wait to see how many things in NMS get named "[color] Florp".

Actually, this is a cause I can get behind. I had my eye on this game (I can enjoy Elite for hours at a time so I have a high tolerance for repetitive and attractive space games) but maybe I'll turn the retard dial to 11 and actually pre-order before reviews so I can help "Make the Galaxy Florp Again".
26.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 20:06
Rigs
 
26.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 20:06
Jul 18, 2016, 20:06
 Rigs
 
Be sure to download and read my new e-book, 'How to Live and Prosper in a World of Florps', purchased wherever reputable e-books are sold! And look for my add-on book, coming soon, 'Florps, Profits and YOU!', which is free to Florp Season Pass holders!


=-Rigs-=
Survivor of the 12/10/21 Mayfield EF4 tornado
'Sorry, we thought you were dead.'
'I was. I'm better now.'
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25.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 18:06
25.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 18:06
Jul 18, 2016, 18:06
 
Lol @ Cutter's new Signature. I cannot wait to see how many things in NMS get named "[color] Florp".
Avatar 15603
24.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 17:34
24.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 17:34
Jul 18, 2016, 17:34
 
It's not Valve's fault, its on the CC for not having better security. It's just a PITA for the devs because they have to waste time supplying the information to Steam to get the keys revoked when they could be focused on other things. I've never had a problem with Mastercard but so many with VISA over the years that I finally just dumped them entirely. Valve has no way of identifying if a valid key was purchased with a fraudulent card or it gets chargedback after the fact. That's not on them.
"The horse I bet on was so slow, the jockey kept a diary of the trip." - Henny Youngman
23.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 16:37
23.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 16:37
Jul 18, 2016, 16:37
 
Darks wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 13:51:
Valve is so supposed to do their due diligence by going in and revoking those keys that have been reported as stolen. This is almost entirely Valve not doing their jobs.

Is anyone really surprised about this? Valve barley does anything but collect money and could give a rats ass about supporting us customers.
(rolling eyes) Typical half-baked Darks foot stomping. For someone that claims to be so 'in the know' when it comes to devs and business, you don't even understand what a chargeback from a CC company entails.
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22.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 16:05
22.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 16:05
Jul 18, 2016, 16:05
 
RedEye9 wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 14:50:
Sounds neither elaborate nor rare.
Cmon man. These one man studios are hyper focused on building the game. There is no bandwidth to learn how the entire digital distribution industry works. That is why Steam exists. This guy is a bit naive perhaps but to expect him to have predicted this is a bit much.
If Russia stops fighting, the war ends. If Ukraine stops fighting, Ukraine ends. Slava Ukraini!
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21.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 15:50
Quboid
 
21.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 15:50
Jul 18, 2016, 15:50
 Quboid
 
Beamer wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 15:12:
ItBurn wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 15:10:
Luke wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 14:56:
Creston wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 14:47:
Do a good thing, get kicked in the balls for it. The state of the world in 2016. Yay.


The state of the world in 2016

Look out ya window and see pukemon hunters all over the place sad sad sad thats the state of the world 2016

What's bad about pokemon "hunters"? They're doing exercise and getting some vitamin D. The game is very simple, but that doesn't make it a bad thing.

"It's different and not to my tastes and therefore objectively bad!"

I mean, don't get me wrong, a lot of things that are different and not to our tastes are objectively bad, and the Pokemon craze is kind of hysterical given how little content is there and how little there is to do once you've captured something, but the exploratory aspects of capturing something is kind of funny, in a good way.

Uhh guys, did you not see where he called it pukemon? Pukemon. Like Pokemon, but with the word puke in it. You lost this argument before you even posted, there's no beating such an eloquently made point.
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20.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 15:17
20.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 15:17
Jul 18, 2016, 15:17
 
RedEye9 wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 14:50:
That all sounds like a load of crap.

Sorry to have hurt your feelings. However, if you`re so offended because some guy on the internets may have indirectly alluded to your comment as "not commendable" then perhaps you should take a break from the medium, or grow a bit thicker skin.

Source? Do your own research, buddy. I don`t have to link up everything I say, it`s not a court of law, nor a matter of national security. I was never interested in getting a key, so remember this being mentioned vaguely and most likely not because he was predicting being scammed. Something more along these lines: https://www.reddit.com/r/RimWorld/comments/40g64v/some_concerns/

Overall, I suppose it`s easy to be oh-so-clever in hindsight but I tell you what: go on and spend 3 years coding an uber-complex game nearly non-stop (hence the burnout mentioned in the link), try to get it in best possible shape to release on a huge medium (unlike heaps of other devs who put few Unity assets together and call it EA), then release it - and if all goes without a hitch I will redact my "not commendable" post. Sounds fair, eh?
19.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 15:12
19.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 15:12
Jul 18, 2016, 15:12
 
ItBurn wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 15:10:
Luke wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 14:56:
Creston wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 14:47:
Do a good thing, get kicked in the balls for it. The state of the world in 2016. Yay.


The state of the world in 2016

Look out ya window and see pukemon hunters all over the place sad sad sad thats the state of the world 2016

What's bad about pokemon "hunters"? They're doing exercise and getting some vitamin D. The game is very simple, but that doesn't make it a bad thing.

"It's different and not to my tastes and therefore objectively bad!"

I mean, don't get me wrong, a lot of things that are different and not to our tastes are objectively bad, and the Pokemon craze is kind of hysterical given how little content is there and how little there is to do once you've captured something, but the exploratory aspects of capturing something is kind of funny, in a good way.
18.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 15:10
18.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 15:10
Jul 18, 2016, 15:10
 
Luke wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 14:56:
Creston wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 14:47:
Do a good thing, get kicked in the balls for it. The state of the world in 2016. Yay.


The state of the world in 2016

Look out ya window and see pukemon hunters all over the place sad sad sad thats the state of the world 2016

What's bad about pokemon "hunters"? They're doing exercise and getting some vitamin D. The game is very simple, but that doesn't make it a bad thing.
Avatar 56211
17.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 14:56
17.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 14:56
Jul 18, 2016, 14:56
 
Creston wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 14:47:
Do a good thing, get kicked in the balls for it. The state of the world in 2016. Yay.


The state of the world in 2016

Look out ya window and see pukemon hunters all over the place sad sad sad thats the state of the world 2016
16.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 14:50
16.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 14:50
Jul 18, 2016, 14:50
 
Tachikoma wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 14:38:
Well, you can always depend on humanoids to pull off a douchiest possible move in any given situation.

It`s a great shame, especially seeing as Ludeon was very wary about the keys and it was clearly stated in the past that they`re not sure if it will be possible to get them when buying straight from the site (before Steam launch) Seems they went with it and got burned v. badly.

And yeah, this is basically a tiny studio with Tynan at the helm and few helpers onboard. Blaming them for failing to predict any elaborate scam out there is not really commendable.

First of all the scam does not sound very elaborate, second of all if what you say is true (source please) he was wary of doing something something with steam keys in the first place. But then changed his mind, obviously fully aware of the risks because he had been very wary.
That all sounds like a load of crap.
If he is ignorant of a scam that has been happening since the invention of credit cards, it's his fault. If you don't find my thoughts commendable in your limited world view of morality, so be it.

from http://www.pcinvasion.com/rimworld-chargeback-fraud-forces-ludeon-end-steam-key-bonus
An all-too-familiar situation involving chargeback fraud has been reported by Ludeon Studios, developers of Rimworld.
Sounds neither elaborate nor rare.

This comment was edited on Jul 18, 2016, 15:16.
"I expect death to be nothingness and by removing from me all possible fears of death, I am thankful to atheism." Isaac Asimov
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15.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 14:47
15.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 14:47
Jul 18, 2016, 14:47
 
Do a good thing, get kicked in the balls for it. The state of the world in 2016. Yay.

Avatar 15604
14.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 14:42
14.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 14:42
Jul 18, 2016, 14:42
 
Darks wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 13:51:
jdreyer wrote on Jul 18, 2016, 13:33:
I'm not exactly clear what's happening here.

1. A thief steals a credit card number
2. The thief uses that credit card number to buy the game for themselves.
3. They actual CC owner initiates a chargeback for a fraudulent purpose and the thief gets to keep the key?

Do I have that right?
Basically yes, but, Valve is so supposed to do their due diligence by going in and revoking those keys that have been reported as stolen. This is almost entirely Valve not doing their jobs.

Is anyone really surprised about this? Valve barley does anything but collect money and could give a rats ass about supporting us customers.

Dude. Your Valve-hate has become all-consuming. Not only does Valve have nothing to do with this, there's no way they can stop this. The issue is not them.

Here's what happens:

1) Dev opens a storefront that offers CD keys
2) Thief uses fake CC to buy a CD Key
3) Dev says to Valve "I need a key," and Valve generates one
4) Dev gives key to thief
5) Thief puts key on a key resale site
6) Someone buys key on resale site
7) Resale site takes 30%, thief keeps 70%
8) 30+ days later, CC provider says "hey, that was a fraudulent purchase" and denies the funds to the dev
9a) If dev had kept track of who got what key, they can go to Valve and have that key turned off. Now the buyer from the grey market site loses access to the game he thought he bought
9b) If the dev didn't keep track of who got the key, they have no retaliation
10) Thief still has his 70%, Resale Site still has their 30%. The Dev has 0%, plus the cost of the transaction, and possibly gets hit with penalties from the CC provider


Valve has no way to change this unless they force the Dev to give them a credit card, or some unique identifier, for each key the dev requests. Devs often request bulk keys in advance, at least with some sites like this. There's no way Valve can be blamed here.

The resale sites? Yes. They can probably do something here. The Dev can, but only in policing and shutting down.
13.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 14:38
13.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 14:38
Jul 18, 2016, 14:38
 
Well, you can always depend on humanoids to pull off a douchiest possible move in any given situation.

It`s a great shame, especially seeing as Ludeon was very wary about the keys and it was clearly stated in the past that they`re not sure if it will be possible to get them when buying straight from the site (before Steam launch) Seems they went with it and got burned v. badly.

And yeah, this is basically a tiny studio with Tynan at the helm and few helpers onboard. Blaming them for failing to predict any elaborate scam out there is not really commendable.
12.
 
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted
Jul 18, 2016, 14:27
12.
Re: Rimworld Steam Key Fraud Halted Jul 18, 2016, 14:27
Jul 18, 2016, 14:27
 
There is a lot of misinformation going around about this problem. This isn't an issue with Valve or with the developer, this is an issue with how chargebacks work.

1) Credit Card gets stolen
2) Thief uses card to buy a number of keys
3) CC Owner reports theft and starts to issue chargebacks(rightfully so)
4) CC Company takes money back from point of purchase(Steam or Developer depending on where they bought it from.)
5) This is the big part, CC Company takes an ADDITIONAL amount from point of purchase. This is money LOST from the seller, in this case Tynan.
6) It is the developer's job to disable Steam keys which often happens and is happening in this case. To be honest, I'm not sure if devs can deactivate keys directly or not but based on various indie developer reports I've read they do get deactivated somehow.

This is why buying from grey market sites such as G2A and CDKeys is WORSE than piracy. I know there are legitament sellers on those sites but you have no way of knowing if a key was bought from a chargeback or not. If it was, then not only did the developer lose money from the initial sale, they lose money from chargeback fees as well. I believe it was the Factorio devs that straight out said they would rather you pirate than buy from these grey market sites. Not because all sellers are bad, but there are enough bad sellers that it encourages this type of fraud to continue happening.

Either way you look at it, I think that it mainly boils down to CC Chargeback fees. It can be argued that there shouldn't be these fees from the CC company, but it can also be argued that it is up to the seller to prevent fraud like this. I don't personally know enough about selling from a shop online to know which side is more right but either way as it stands at the moment, the indie devs are getting hurt the most.

I believe Factorio got around this by requiring users to link their Steam accounts directly to their Factorio account and assigns the CD Key that way, like Humble Bundle used to do it(they might still do it that way, not sure). This will probably be the way Tynan goes as well if he decides to sell Steam keys through his site again.

Just keep in mind when buying this game, it has always been $30 for the cheapest version. If you see it selling for any less it is most likely a stolen key unless they are just buying keys and selling it for less out of the goodness of their heart.

Here is a link to the Facotrio post where they address this directly about midway down: https://www.factorio.com/blog/post/fff-145
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