ESports are growing by the day and it doesn’t look like its popularity is going to die down any time soon. Evidence of this can be found most prominently in South Korea, where professional eSports players are treated like celebrities. South Korea is known and feared for having some of the best eSports teams and players around the globe, and with such a competitive environment in South Korea, it’s no wonder that hacking and cheating is such a major problem.
Although cheating has plagued video games since their inception, develop
ers are still having a tough time figuring out ways to stop it. (And although some publishers, such as Blizzard Entertainment, are dealing with cheaters the right way banning anyone found guilty of cheating in Overwatch for life, meaning you just can’t buy a new account) And although cheating is problem in every single country you go to, South Korea may have it the worst.
South Korea seeks to aid video game publishers in fighting off hackers. Recently
, a law was passed in South Korea making the creation and distribution of any hacking program or scripts that the developer has not authorized in their terms of service, illegal. And we’re not talking a small punishment, such as a $100 dollar fine, we’re talking five years injail and up to $43,000 USD fines.
This may make it a lot easier for video games publishers to take these cheatmakers and distributors to court. It’s safe to assume gamers around the world are rejoicing because everyone hates being matched with or against cheaters in games about skill and precision. Getting a sick headshot, as McCree in Overwatch, is a lot more satisfying than getting 40 because you’re using an aimbot.
There are some people worried that this law might make it illegal to create mods in single player games such as Elder Scrolls or Fallout. In many of Bethesda’s games, creative people like to add on to the game, either creating beautiful textures or adding in content making the dragons from Skyrim into Thomas the Tank engine. Would innovations like these be affected by this new law? Only time will tell.
Photo Courtosy of Azubu Content
