Watch H1Z1 Hackers Publicly Apologise For Cheating
Dev is lifting bans for those that release YouTube videos saying sorry to fellow players.
Following a swathe of recent bans, Daybreak Game Company, developer of online zombie survival title H1Z1, has decided to give cheaters a second chance, provided they release a public YouTube apology.
Daybreak president John Smedley took to Twitter to tell players e-mailing him that they'd have to publicly put their tail between their legs to have their bans lifted.
Dear Cheaters who got banned. Many of you are emailing me, apologizing and admitting it. Thank you. However.. You're doing it wrong
— John Smedley (@j_smedley) May 20, 2015
If you want us to even consider your apology a public YouTube apology is necessary. No personal information please. Email me the link
— John Smedley (@j_smedley) May 20, 2015
And I will tweet it.
— John Smedley (@j_smedley) May 20, 2015
Naturally, YouTube apology videos cannot be marked as private and Smedley has asked that they be address to the rest of the H1Z1 playerbase instead of its developer.
"Although you hurt our business, this is about [fellow players] not us," he said.
Thus far, Smedley has retweeted three apology videos and confirmed these three players' bans have been lifted.
"So far we've unbanned three people out of 30k we've now banned. One of which is probably about to get re-banned for taking his video private," Smedley said on Reddit.
"I want to make sure it's clear there are consequences for cheating. You don't just get to make a video and get unbanned. This is a very limited time thing to try and raise awareness of what's actually going on," he added.
"You may say 'hey there clearly aren't consequences if you are unbanning people'. Let's get back to the part where I said we've unbanned three people. If these videos go far and wide and it elevates the importance of getting rid of the cheaters in PC gaming, I feel it's an excellent trade."
For those who enjoy a little schadenfreude, you can watch the three apologies below.
Among the most popular H1Z1 hacks was ESP, a cheat that allows users to see the location of other players, ammo, and weapons.
In February, Sony Online Entertainment was bought out by an investment management firm based in New York called Columbus Nova. SOE, now operating as Daybreak Game Company, looks after Planetside 2, H1Z1, and DC Universe Online.
Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email news@gamespot.com
Join the conversation