How Is This Fair Or Acceptable?

[fairuza]

So about 1 year ago I bought Half-Life: Game of the Year Edition.

Last week I installed Steam and entered my CD key only to find out it is already in use. Clearly the key has been generated by a keygen from some random person.

So I have to send in my HL cover with the key now and wait for them to unlock the key for me and I don't even get the cover back which I paid for, which sucks.

But what sucks worse is that Valve says they can't unlock a key if it is banned for cheating. WTF! How is that my fault and how is this legal or acceptable to anyone. Fine my key was "stolen" and that's not Valve's fault (or mine) either, so I understand this process. BUT how on Earth can they tell me I can not play my game online with a key I LEGALLY paid for. I have no control of whether someone used it to cheat or not and then got banned.

If it turns out that someone used my key and got banned what can I do. Is this even legal?

And does anyone else find it offensive that on Steam's help page they say your key is being used by someone else because they bascially hacked you or you that had a worm or trojan or virus.

HELLO, VALVE YOU ARE ONES WHO GET HACKED, not me. I have never had a single worm/virus/trojan on my computer in my life. It's not a hard thing to do when you have half a brain about computers and security. And companies are so stupid when it comes to worms or viruses anyway. We all know how many worms are created daily to steal video game keys... riiight. Yeah, that's some real motivation for hackers there. Let's all break into computers and do it the the hard to steal video game keys when it's so much easier to warez shit and use keygens.

Oh and the kicker, I never used my key or even opened the shrinkwrap case. I bought it and stuck away in my locked cabinet immediately after buying it. So it wasn't stolen FROM ME OR MY COMPUTER, it was generated on a random keygen. Why doesn't Valve mention that keygens exist and brute force registering methods are used in conjunction with them. Why deny reality!

 

[Link]

This is a tricky one. You see, say you the key had worked and you were the one hacking (I belive what you say about someone keygenning it, but just for example), if valve let you have another key, you could do it again.

However, legally, you are entitled to a working key with your product.

 

[theJack]

Why can't they give people new keys, but make the old one they are substituting for invalid? Seems like that would solve the problem, as long as you physically prove you have the key. I realize this may not be easy with keygens, but if I pay for a game, I want to be able to play it online - no exceptions.

 

[Link]

They will do unless it has been used for cheating. As I said, if they replace keys that are banned for cheating, then people would cheat, get banned, get a new key from valve, cheat, get banned, get a new key from valve, cheat, get banned, get a new key from valve, cheat, get banned, get a new key from valve, etc etc ad nausium.

 

[Link]

Oh, as a side note:
"but if I pay for a game, I want to be able to play it online - no exceptions"
thats nice, I want a million pounds, but no-one is going to give it to me. You are entitled to use one copy of the game. No one can take that from you. However, you have not paid to use the steam system, and as all multi-player steam servers authenticate you with steam, you are using a free service. Wich they can ban you from.

 

[Varsity]

Phone Vivendi, who organise CD Keys as you of course know, and they will give you a new key after a few questions.

 

[staddydaddy]

there aren't cd key gen's for hl.

you probably got it stolen via a trojan or one of your friends came over and stole it. before you start over reacting. You cd key is stored in your registry. So if someone has access to your computer (Even for a moment) they can get your cd key.

The smart thing to do would have been to register your steam when it first came out.

 

[Epsi]

Another possibility is that Vivendi printed your key again on another box.

The whole CD-Key problem is a thorny one. You can't just hand out CD-Keys for free, because that'd make selling the game a bit pointless and make the whole thing a cheater's paradise, and you have to be sure that whoever is getting the key reset actually owns the key, or the rightful owner could get screwed out of it.

 

[DiSTuRbEd]

there aren't cd key gen's for hl.

Bullshit.

 

[Varsity]

Bullshit.

I thought that too, but in fact HL keys are randomly generated so it's not possible to keygen them. The closest you will get is a simple list of keys that work, but with Steam that's out the window too.

 

[FoB_Ed]

Keygen's don't work anymore with steam, I'm not saying how I know this.


What's more likely is someone already bought that Copy, used the Cdkey, and returned it

 

[ktimekiller]

dont falme me for anything, but cdkey gen for hl works over steam,

 

[Element Alpha]

When I buy my copy of HL2, I'll register my account right there, in the shop. That's how it needs to be done. If it doesn't work then, I won't pay, or I'll hit the clerk in the face with the drawing of the crawbar on the cover of the box facing his nose. Twice.

 

[DiSTuRbEd]

When I buy my copy of HL2, I'll register my account right there, in the shop. That's how it needs to be done. If it doesn't work then, I won't pay, or I'll hit the clerk in the face with the drawing of the crawbar on the cover of the box facing his nose. Twice.

They probably changed how they go about issueing cdkeys now, different algorithms and what not. :thumbs:

 

[Hungry_Gamer]

This may a little of topic but I bought my HL a couple of months after release and I only recently (June) registered it with Steam expecting to find it in use but to my amazment it was accepted. Now I have every Steam game available so kudos for Valve for still accepting my key. Heres One person willing to buy things from Valve