Temtem caught 900 accounts in its first batch of bans
Don't say your dog did it
Early access Pokemon-like MMO Temtem is battling through the rough waters that come with an online game release. The indie creature catching game overcame long login queues during its launch week. The next problem stepping onto the battlefield is a standard one for MMOs: cheaters and exploits. Crema said today that they've identified and banned 900 accounts that are "either a cheater or has abused exploits intentionally."
Over a week ago, Temtem tweeted a friendly reminder that "using exploits, using bots or macros or using any kind of cheats/hacks," can get you banned from the game. Naturally, some folks do it anyway. One such exploit seems to involve getting infinite Pansuns (Temtem's in game currency) as reported by a user on Reddit. Crema say they've identified a chunk of cheaters, nearly 900 accounts, and have dished out permanent bans. Initially, Crema said that all bans would be final.
In a followup, they say they checked over 100 of the banned accounts to be certain that the offenses were legitimate and found each of them banned for intentionally cheating. Crema say they will continue looking for accounts using cheats and exploits and banning accordingly.
Despite the double-checking, plenty of Twitter users responded taking issue with the no tolerance policy, asking for Crema to consider appeals. Based on that feedback, the developers have relented. They later tweeted saying that banned players may send an email to support@cremagames.com with the subject "Ban appeal" and including the account's in game ID or username.
In an online game, the worry with exploits or cheats is that they can ruin the experience of other players or damage the game's trading economy between Temtem tamers. Crema's swift justice may seem heavy-handed, but it's good to see them setting the tone early on. For those who genuinely believe they used an exploit unintentionally to a degree that appeared intentional, there's now an outlet to beg a pardon.
If you've been happily taming Tems without issue thus far, Dave's got you sorted for handy Temtem guides.
If you haven't started playing Temtem yet, Cian Maher says it's the best Pokemon game in years.
Disclosure: I'm acquainted with one of Temtem's writers, lucky me!