In Japan, online game company Nexon is pressing charges against three gamers, ages 17 to 18, for obstruction of business. In short, the gamers were allegedly using in-game cheats for online FPS Sudden Attack. That, it seems, was hurting the game and Nexon.
Update: According to Nexon, it's the police who are pressing charges.
Yomiuri Online, one of Japan's largest newspapers, reports that this is the first time gamers have had criminal liability charged against them in Japan for allegedly using cheat programs.
One of the gamers is a university freshman, another is a 17 year-old vocational school student, and the last of the trio is a 17-year-old high school student.
In Nexon's statement about the legal charges, the company explains that these three players allegedly used the cheat tools repeatedly in the game. IT Media reports that distribution of cheats was also allegedly involved.
For years now, cheaters, I mean players, have been using such tools in Sudden Attack. That doesn't make it right. However, some of the Sudden Attack cheats, like the one you can see above, are pretty damn funny—though, probably less funny if you are playing against them.
Here, you can watch the full clip.
And here's another interesting cheat.
Here, you can see another player, who is apparently not cheating, showing what looks to be a cheat, which looks to be a ghost-like character.
It's unclear whether the three gamers that Nexon is going after allegedly used these particular cheats. Obviously, using such tools violates the game's user agreement.
Cheating is wrong, but couldn't Nexon simply ban these players? Maybe the company tried, but was unsuccessful. Or maybe Nexon should've tried harder to combat the cheats. But making them a crime?
「チート」でキャラ不正強化、３少年を書類送検 [Yomiuri]
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