Conversely, has emerged. Some legit tycoons build "scripter traps"—mazes designed to crash auto-farming pathfinding scripts. Watching a scripter’s avatar walk endlessly into a wall has become a spectator sport.

"It takes the fun out of it for everyone else," says one veteran player in the game’s official community group. "You join a server, and there’s a guy with a fully maxed ship just standing there, not even playing. It kills the vibe."