Dear @Brigby and developers,
During this second run of Inventor’s Fair, a number of players have noticed that 2 well-known cheaters are in the gold tier bracket in which I happen to be competing. I provide a screenshot* below which shows the two cheaters in question occupying positions 1 and 4 (henceforth referred to as “number 1” and “number 4” respectively) on the ranking at that particular moment in time:
Pic removed. The names have been noted and been sent to Brigby.
Regarding number 1, I have personal experience in Quick Battle where I have seen this player make impossible gains in very short amounts of time, and I know that many in the community have sent evidence of this to the support team a multiple number of times. Regarding number 4, I do not have personal experience but others in my coalition have corroborated this player’s cheating and also sent in support tickets with evidence. The fact that number 4 does not have a perfect score is possibly because he has realised he is being monitored and has therefore lost one point to look “real.”
The reason I bring this issue to you is twofold.
Firstly, cheating is becoming increasingly rampant in the game. As many of my fellow players have expressed at length, this is ruining the game for everyone. Already we are at the stage where it is nigh on impossible to get first place in QB anymore, and now it’s becoming more difficult to even get top 10 because there are more and more cheaters showing up. Cheating has now also begun to poison events and everyone is starting to take notice.
Secondly, these two cheaters will most likely mean that at least two people will have their chance at getting the exclusive card Aetherworks Marvel stolen from them (and this is not even discussing cheaters in other bronze, silver, gold and platinum brackets). Please note that behind most of the high scores in the screenshot above were made by honest players. We have spent hours and hours discussing the best deck building strategies to meet the objectives, we have shared our experiences with our coalition mates and wider community and we have helped and supported new players (and received help in turn) to have a develop our capabilities in playing this game and having a chance at winning this amazing prize: we have dedicated significant time, money and emotion to this game which we love. In short, we have helped nurture this game to flourish, thrive and expand. So to be facing a situation where all of that will most likely be destroyed by a bunch of players who think nothing of hacking the game and hitting an autowin button, is just absolutely disheartening and heartbreaking. Some of you might be thinking, “Get over it, it’s just a game.” For some of us, this game has become a passion and the intricacies and the mental challenges it provides us, the amazing opportunities it has given for us to meet new people from all over the world, to make friends and to form a beautiful community is something that I believe is worth being vocal about and fighting for. Even if I personally lose the last three matches I have coming up, I will continue to fight in any way I can for all honest players to have the opportunity to get the prize that they have worked so painstakingly hard for and which they so justly deserve.
Magic the Gathering Puzzle Quest is on the verge of entering the door to its impeding demise. Unfortunately, it is clear that one foot has already made the stride. @Brigby and developers, I ask, no, implore you to please consider the honest folks who sustain this game and who breath life into it every single time they play. I know that you are currently aware of this problem and are working on solving it, and for that you have my deepest gratitude. However, I ask that you act now where you can to minimise the damage that this state of affairs is having, by awarding the due prize for at least this Inventor’s Fair to those genuine players whose true placing in 1-5 in bronze, silver and gold, and 1-25 in platinum will be ripped from them by these incorrigible cheaters. I say at least because Aetherworks Marvel seems to be a one-off exclusive, highly coveted card; there will not be another chance to attain it (until the next set, and then with a very low chance), unlike there is for other events affects like Terrors in the Shadows or Nodes of Power. I am no expert but one avenue to achieve this might be to look at which players have had multiple support tickets filed against them for cheating and then awarding the correct top prizes to however many players missed out based on how many cheaters are in their bracket. Obviously, shutting down the cheaters accounts and implementing a way to stop cheating instantly is the ideal solution, but for now, I beg you to please at least set right this grievance suffered by those of your community who are being wrongfully affected.
I thank you for your time in reading this and I sincerely hope that you will consider my plea worthy of action. If there is anything further that I or we as a community may do to aid in this cause, you will always find us ready and most willing.
Yours faithfully,
jetnoctis