“Just buy the game on Steam”: Indie publisher behind a recent banger that sold 300k copies in its first week warns against key resellers after canceling hundreds of scalped keys
tinyBuild cancelled hundreds of Steam keys for ReStory: Chill Electronics Repairs after finding keys being resold through unauthorised marketplaces, and urged customers to buy directly through Steam. The incident highlights the risks of grey-market key sales, which can leave buyers without access to a game while providing little or no revenue to its developer and publisher.
The publisher later acknowledged that the cancellation had also affected legitimate purchases through Green Man Gaming, an authorised retailer, and said it was working to reinstate or replace those keys. ReStory, a cosy electronics-repair simulation game, had sold 300,000 copies in its first week, making the disruption particularly visible among its new players.
- tinyBuild revoked hundreds of ReStory keys linked to unauthorised reselling.
- Some legitimate Green Man Gaming customers were affected.
- The publisher said replacement keys would be issued.