Cheating in Elite Dangerous

[Feros-da-Grundig]

as I have implemented a much broader system with tighter server and client side checks on account users with many more files checked than Frontier would require, for both government and corporate clients on existing networks without any downtime. The client noticed no changes and security was improved by an order of magnitude. I think you overestimate the changes needed and underestimate Frontier's capabilities.

I too have re-implemented many many things. Considering the stability of the initial 3.4 release (frequently invoked a kernel bug that hard froze PS4s requiring power cycle and often corrupting the local database settings file, with similar critical errors on other platforms) and errors in subsequent patches (e.g. PvP mass lock removed) I doubt they'd be rolling out fundamental major changes to the networking code as smoothly as you have in your endeavours. Here's hoping they hire you.

Meanwhile let's agree to disagree on the degree of risk and difficulty here, and see if Frontier ever actually changes anything, since this is what matters.

I feel they take this matter very seriously and any changes they may make

I feel they don't take this seriously and won't make major changes, since they've taken zero action on this and it's been a problem since day 1 (not this particular cheat tool, but clogging and various other things which all share the same root cause and solution).

 

[Red Anders]

We take this activity very seriously...

Don't take this personally Will because I'm not trying to ride you about it. You don't set policy. I have to ask though, what part of players getting at least three strikes and even then only getting shadowbanned (and let's not be coy here - that's been shown to be the action taken against people for at least three years that I can recall, referenced by e-mails that have been shared publicly and so on) qualifies as 'taking this activity very seriously'?

Very few people that I know would consider that to be 'taking it seriously'. Sorry but that's the truth.

It's not about how much effort is made to find them - I know most developers don't want people hacking their games. It's about what happens to them when they are found.

 

[Tikanderoga]

even then only getting shadowbanned

Getting banned to Solo isn't really a punishment if you only play Solo to begin with.

I played a little with with my mate for maybe an hour, the other 1949 hours are solid Solo play!

 

[Riverside]

Getting banned to Solo isn't really a punishment if you only play Solo to begin with.

I played a little with with my mate for maybe an hour, the other 1949 hours are solid Solo play!

To clarify, Solo & shadowbanning are not the same. The idea of the shadowban is that the user is still able to play the game but their missions & stuff have no effect on the BGS.

For plenty of players they may not notice this or consider it a particularly bad thing but presumably it ticks the box of satisfying all those not shadowbanned that their work is not undermined by cheats.

 

[Feros-da-Grundig]

Hello everyone,

We take this activity very seriously and [boilerplate PR]

4+ years in and combat logging is still running rampant. Bots unchecked in powerplay. Cheats on the rise. C'mon folks let's not kid ourselves.

The game implementation is the exploitable thing that is it and there will be no significant improvement. Just the occasional baddie caught once in a while as status quo has been since the start.

The longer code sits around accumulating usage and tweaks the harder that code is to improve. Plus there's no real profit to be had in it anyway so I can't blame FD.

The forum folks who complain about this (myself included) are atypical of users. 9/10 pilots would have no idea if they were killed by a cheater and I bet more than half don't even know what the term combat logging means.

 

[Tikanderoga]

To clarify, Solo & shadowbanning are not the same. The idea of the shadowban is that the user is still able to play the game but their missions & stuff have no effect on the BGS.

For plenty of players they may not notice this or consider it a particularly bad thing but presumably it ticks the box of satisfying all those not shadowbanned that their work is not undermined by cheats.

So people only playing solo and not caring about the BGS should be able to fast travel to Colonia and Beagle point without any repercussions?
Can we have this implemented into the game please?

 

[Riverside]

So people only playing solo and not caring about the BGS should be able to fast travel to Colonia and Beagle point without any repercussions?
Can we have this implemented into the game please?

That's quite a leap you made there. Presumably The cheat programme will continue to work during the shadowban, not something I've tested.

What point are you trying to prove with your 'request'?

 

[Tikanderoga]

What point are you trying to prove with your 'request'?

That people are cheating because the game gets boring and repetitive and some don't have the time to wait 90 minutes to go to Hutton orbital, or spend 3 evenings jumping just to get to Colonia.
Before you jump to conclusions, no, I don't cheat, but I have never been to Hutton either. I do however understand the frustration the game brings by its lack of variety and unnecessary game loops to keep people playing, and some people don't have the time to sink into the game to gather 50 G5 mats so they can have something nice too.

I don't agree with overpowering cheats like infinite shields or ammo or damage - that's just game breaking and if you are on the receiving end, frustrating.

My point is: Cut the senseless grind and waiting simulation. Make it reasonable.
like: Guardian Blueprints: Bring me 1 - I can copy it as needed. But make obtaining that ONE count. Not repeat the same task 10 times by logging off/in to reset the instance.
I've done the grind 24 g times, before they nerfed the recipes to unlock 3 modules. I would have given my left nut to cut that senseless grind.

I am not asking for instant gratification or a single Press A to Win-button/solution either - I am happy to work for it, but not mindlessly grind away. Getting Combat Elite was bad enough as it is.

 

[yminale]

What I want to understand is why aren't people outraged at Fdev for LYING to us for YEARS. The shadow ban system proves that they can create an offline mode. The cheat clearly shows that the HUD is moddable. Forget the cheaters. We should DEMAND an offline mode NOW with the ability to mod the game. I'm not giving Fdev another dime until they give us an offline mode or at least a mode that allows mods and cheats.

 

[Jaggid Edje]

What I want to understand is why aren't people outraged

I can't speak for any one else, but I'm not inclined to be outraged at anything related to video games. I save my outrage for issues of actual importance; a source of entertainment that is minimal cost doesn't qualify. I've kickstarted games that never even launched (2 or 3 of the 79 or so that I have backed) and don't even get me started on the whole Star Citizen as nothing-but-a-money grab thing. I'm not outraged at any of that either. Disappointed, sure, but outraged....no.

Besides, it's obvious that any claim that a solo mode "couldn't be done" was a lie from the outset. It was obviously a shortened version of the conditional statement, "can't be done while still keeping the systems in the game which rely on online functionality." (such as BGS).

Also, the shadow ban isn't giving people a completely offline version any more than the current solo mode does. It just puts them in a state where they have no impact on anything, not even the BGS. They still need to login to Frontier etc. to launch the game. They just have a galaxy bgs server that is in a persistent state that never ticks.

 

[Jenner]

This thread is about cheating and hacks in the current game - let's not go down the offline mode rabbit hole. That discussion doesn't belong here as it will derail the topic.

 

[[VR] M4st0d0n]

So does anyone here really knows if ban send players in solo or in a proper shadow mode?

 

[Agony_Aunt]

It’s not hard at all. The sad truth is that FD simply do not care if you play the game or not, and if you play it, how. The only things they do care are sales.

But they make sales by people playing it. Cosmetics for one. People playing and talking about the game encourages more sales. People playing and streaming can bring in new players as well.

So i would say your post is self contradictory. If people didn't play, they wouldn't get more sales.

 

[Marcus Tullius]

But they make sales by people playing it. Cosmetics for one. People playing and talking about the game encourages more sales. People playing and streaming can bring in new players as well.

So i would say your post is self contradictory. If people didn't play, they wouldn't get more sales.

They make pennies from paintjobs compared to income from copies sold and they have to pay for AWS if you play actively.

BTW, any news how your squadron member has made 1.4 billion PF combat bonds in 24 hours few months ago?

 

[Tikanderoga]

But they make sales by people playing it. Cosmetics for one. People playing and talking about the game encourages more sales. People playing and streaming can bring in new players as well.

So i would say your post is self contradictory. If people didn't play, they wouldn't get more sales.

There are 2 kinds of sales:
1. The game itself
2. Cosmetics

For those who just bought the game, played it for 5 minutes and stop playing, they fall into the Revenue category 1. Even players who play 2000 hours are not buy a single paint job are still part of category 1. There is no more money to be made of those players.
The real money makers are the category 2 players, repeatedly buying skins and other stuff.

 

[darkseer]

one thing that should be remember with this topic is that the solution should not have the possibility for innocent players to be punished. as bad and harmful as cheating is you will kill the game far faster by punishing innocent players for something they have not done.

 

[Jack Schitt]

The shadow ban system proves that they can create an offline mode. The cheat clearly shows that the HUD is moddable.

You may be right about the HUD to some degree; I've not seen images or video of the mod so I can't judge its performance, but at the end of the day any process or sequence of processes that results in pixels glowing on a screen can be altered to change those pixels. Whether the method used has the potential to result in unacceptable performance issues, as some players have speculated, is where the problem may lie. And that's for Frontier to decide, whether we as players agree with it or not, because it's their code. The existence of the mod is definitely a new lever with which to attempt to move FD's position, but it's far from being the ultimate gotcha.

As for the shadow ban, that is as far removed from offline mode as it's possible to get. It's literally online. As I understand it all FD have done is to remove an individual player's effect on the dynamic variables. Other players will still affect the banned player's galaxy, just not the other way around.

 

[Midian Cabal]

There are 2 kinds of sales:
1. The game itself
2. Cosmetics

For those who just bought the game, played it for 5 minutes and stop playing, they fall into the Revenue category 1. Even players who play 2000 hours are not buy a single paint job are still part of category 1. There is no more money to be made of those players.
The real money makers are the category 2 players, repeatedly buying skins and other stuff.

Here we go again... In FY 2018 FD's total revenue from ED was £22M and only £4M were from game extras.
The biggest source of revenue are game copies.

 

[Judder Man©]

Here we go again... In FY 2018 FD's total revenue from ED was £22M and only £4M were from game extras.
The biggest source of revenue are game copies.

Just out of interest, where do you get these figures from?

 

[Midian Cabal]

Just out of interest, where do you get these figures from?

The CFO's presentation.