Gearbox Threatens G2A To Be Less Shady

So here’s an interesting little situation we’ve found ourselves in.

As you may know, Gearbox is planning to remaster Bulletstorm, a cult classic from 2011, as Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition for PC, Xbox One, and PS4. Now, Bulletstorm isn’t exactly the most beloved series Gearbox has under its heels, but there were still lots of people genuinely excited about its launch and were excited to re-visit a game that tried to mix classic FPS stylings with today’s more modern take on the genre.

Small problem, though: it was soon discovered that in order to distribute keys for the collector's edition of the remastered game, Gearbox had partnered up with a company called G2A. G2A is not well-loved by the gaming community. They’ve been accused of being a money-grubbing, thieving, abusive company that enables theft and reselling so long as they get their cut of the cash, and are generally seen as underhanded even among people who tolerate the kind of stuff that… well, Gearbox pulls. Tempers flared, and even high-profile names in the industry, such as Totalbiscuit, spoke up, saying that if Gearbox went through this they would never review another Gearbox title again.

And that’s no laughing matter.

To respond to this massive wave of criticism, Gearbox has now issued threats against G2A, saying that if they wanted to keep Gearbox as a partner, they would have to change their devilish ways. The list, as disclosed to Kotaku, (which can be found in full here), were quite simple: G2A Shield, their paid customer fraud protection, should go free. They should also open up their web service to be certified, and developers should be able to flag fake keys immediately. They should implement throttling for non-certified developers, and they should restructure their payment system so its easier to understand.

It’s a strong message, unlike any I’ve seen before. Unfortunately, it’s also largely meaningless. G2A has been confronted with their shady business deals in the past, and nothing came from it. On top of that, while Gearbox is an enticing partner, I doubt G2A will change for the right to re-sell a remaster of an okay game. And finally, this is still Gearbox we’re talking about: do you think they’d really follow through with something like this?

I don’t. I think it’s just posing. But I’m interested to see what the reaction is... and what the consequences will be for the parties involved.