Delta Force developer dishes out decade-long bans in mass cheating crackdown

I don't see the point in cheating in a PvP game. Sure, you might unlock some rewards quicker or see yourself on the leaderboard more often, but don't you know it's not really you? That medal next to your name is not yours. You didn't earn it. What's more, you've stripped any joy out of actually playing the game. And it must be so embarrassing when you lose a match, despite having an unfair advantage over your opponents. Thankfully, the developer of hit free-to-play FPS Delta Force is taking a no-nonsense approach to cheaters, and has today banned over 2,000 accounts.

For the record, I don't mind cheating in single-player games. Time travel in Animal Crossing all you want. Hit the motherlode in The Sims. Spawn a helicopter into Grand Theft Auto. But in a competitive multiplayer game like Call of Duty or Delta Force? You deserve to be sent to the gulag just for having cheats installed, whether they're enabled or not.

When faced with a cheater in a game like this, it doesn't matter if you've got your tactics down and the best Delta Force loadout equipped. You're toast. There's no worse way to be killed in a game, and that's why players are celebrating Team Jade's recent crackdown on cheaters.

The developer has banned 1,786 PC players for as long as ten years, including 72 DMA bans, 535 devices blocked, 12,443 cheating attempts stopped in real time, and 2,185 players forced offline for cheating. More players were sent warnings for teaming with cheaters, and 552 mobile players were banned for a decade.

The reasons for the bans weren't all for cheating, so you'd better be on your best behavior in all senses of the word. Some players were banned for the use of plug-ins, illegal software, inappropriate behavior, and malicious use of exploits or bugs.

Team Jade isn't stopping there. Delta Force hit its all-time peak yesterday, with nearly a quarter of a million players logging into the firefight, and it wants to create the best experience for everyone. "We hereby confirm that we will continue to take action against all violation accounts in real time," the developer says.

If you were contemplating downloading a disgusting wallhack or terrible aimbot, hopefully this will make you think again.

If you like Delta Force, it's worth checking out some of our picks for the best FPS games, which will tick those same boxes. We've also got a list of the best free Steam games for you to consider.

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