“Buy the game, you piece of s**t,” indie dev applauded for dissing Steam Key beggars - AUTOMATON WEST
A Japanese indie studio's blunt official stance towards people begging for free Steam Keys has gone viral in the community.
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Giving away Steam Keys to influential YouTubers and streamers is a common form of marketing that indie developers employ to help get their games noticed. However, this practice has brought upon the curse of indie creators getting hounded for Steam Keys every time they release a game, often by people who can’t even offer exposure in exchange. In a recent Q&A post, Japanese indie developer Housenka bluntly rebuffed Steam Key beggars, to the satisfaction of the community.
In a now viral Q&A post (seen above), Housenka answers various questions from users in a sarcastic but light-hearted manner, such as “Will there be sex? – No, please make your way to DLsite.” and “Can you make the character’s butt and thighs thicker? – Just accept her for who she is.” But the last frequently asked question, “I’ll promote you, give me a Steam Key,” earned only a relentless “Buy it, you piece of sh*t.” from the developer. In a reply to a commenter, Housenka adds, “I think every person who has released a game on Steam wants to say the same thing.”
Even among indie developers, taking a “harsh” tone with customers is not such a common sight in Japanese spaces, so the studio’s official diss earned a lot shocked yet impressed reactions.
