They have this. Apparently all parts of it. The XP limitation is obvious, they cranked the drop times down so hard once it fully just broke manual regen farming for resources. So they backed it off again.
well i can assure you that they dont
Edit: at least not around january last year
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Fair enough it was an easy find.
It wasn’t a drop delay that got out of hand it was another bot protection:
Apologies.
EDIT: Meh, I kept reading and you know what:
They appear to have had both systems running then. Or an attempt at it.
These issues really have cost a lot of dev time.
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Whilst I completely agree that we are in need of a very very clear response on this from the Devs, I also think we need to delve into the more explorative side of why a player might use one or all of these methods?
I will give an honest account of my personal use of any of these “software/hardware” solutions.
I had never used any before and so it was all new to me to try and use these things, which in the end I found to be too much of headache to set up and always had issues with getting it right in the first place.
CRAFTING
Reducing 30 clicks to 1 was enough to drive me to use an auto-clicker - this was and still is something I use, isit cheating? ancient oortian theorists say no. the advantage is clear less finger strain.
Implementable Solution - the coveted “craft all” button that we desire, bye bye clicker.
General machine interaction compared to other games where crafting is a huge gameplay element is actually pretty nice, but again loading a specific amount of resources into a machine/furnace etc especially when you are doing a big batch becomes a chore.
Unloading the finished items particularly when you need to do this to ensure the queued crafts keep going becomes a chore.
Combined with the multiple crafting clicks the interaction clicks became a chore.
This was enough to drive to me try and learn how to effectively use macros with some element of scripting to be able to place things in a machine/furnace and hit craft/smelt, and then another to be able to empty them. I don’t use this anymore since this was the around the time when this topic took off and since we didnt have a clear answer I stopped. Full disclosure I wasn’t very good at it in the first place and the results were never consistent.
Implementable solution - there are probably a few ways, having an empty to inventory and an empty inventory button is likely needed along with some smart storage. MC has it, scrap mechanic has it even craftopia has it, let us link or shove a storage to a machine and then Bob’s your uncle…bye bye macro for this purpose.
Moving on, crafting typically requires the use of more than one machine, so the above ties in where you have to move stuff from one to the other and hit click again…
This time I was totally unable to make something that worked flawlessly and so gave up pretty quick.
Now tying in this and the above point James did mention something along the lines of being able to set each machine to craft a specific thing so far as it had the resources inside to do it, so I’d assume he would not have said that unless it was possible.
Not a end all solution but definitely an improvement, especially if we have smart storage.
this is where I go meta and say hey why bother with machines at all right?
we have a form of mass storage already with the reclaim system, I know I use reclaims as smart storage the only downside to them is the way you take things out otherwise indexable colour organised its perfect.
So better storage using systems that already exist and that can be linked in someway to your account. now you have the best of both worlds, storage boxes with an interface that organises what you put in, and still being able to have separate boxes for things if you wish.
The ability to send things to storage directly from inventory would be nice too but would probably get cumbersome in execution.
In creative, hit the knowledge tab find a thing and hit give right? so in normal mode hit the knowledge tab and hit craft. if the stuff is in your global ledger of items boom it crafts and then you select if you want it in your inventory or sent straight to storage.
Bye bye machines…bye bye lag…bye bye complex object limit reached…
XP
We all need it, some of us want it more than others. The issue here as far as i can see is when you want it in huge numbers and really quick. Can’t control everyones desire and appetite for it, already have measures in place to avoid some exploits.
What do get it from it, well levels and then cubits. Coin not so appealing, hitting achievements can be decent, but lets be real here other than the update that never came where we thought we need to make as much XP now before the system changes it really comes down to cubits and plots.
That desire was real, I farmed gleam and refined it like there was no tomorrow to max level atleast one character. I also did it to get a number of plots that I just couldnt justify parting with that much cash for (personal choice).
Gaining resources kind of also ties into this, I have seen with my own eyes people using bots to farm sap on one occasion, a conversation with someone who got annoyed at a friend who admitted to having made a bot to farm at this person’s sap farm and numerous encounters at gleam ■■■■■ and low level soil/sand farms. I cant say I’ve seen it since the last time this was a big subject.
Anyway at the time I wasnt hungry for xp, but what did hurt my butt, was that these people were getting resources on auto pilot regardless of how much input they might have had to put it to place themselves correctly or eat food or empty inventory they were forgoing the motions.
In my eyes that was and still is unfair.
Holding down action button while you move around? I take no issue.
But having your character do all the things and then regen bomb at the end and start over? no thanks.
Should i care? probably not because its a game and i have no idea what they were using the mats for not that it matters but it did and would still bug me purely because once set up its probably quite effortless.
Solution? we have a dev answer on this I believe which is a resounding no, but being able to stop it? I dont know enough at a technical level to know what could be done.
My opinion is just that, its mine so my comments above are not aimed at anyone they are tied to my emotion and thought process.
Being able to gain XP using the rather creative method that has just come about? I see no issue, it can be done on both platforms.
Being able to gain XP or resources using an actual bot or whatever you want to call it? I dont think its fair.
Whats the difference between the two anyway right?
IMO the intention,
Programming a bot to effectively play the game for you for personal gain, there is clear intention there and frankly puts the PS users at a huge loss if its condoned.
Using the games mechanics to do something is a non issue and if its a game breaking issue “exploit” then it should be addressed by the Devs.
Again its no easy feat to repair a million coils (unless you write a bot to go with it :D) or use my spanners, on sale now at the TNT Megahub.
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I did not vote.
But I will add a bit …
Even if there are bots as part of the base game, I would not be one to use them.
-unless- it was a few mouseclicks to use.
I am not tech savvy at ALL.
As for exploits …
The google search definition of exploit is as follows 
“a software tool designed to take advantage of a flaw in a computer system, typically for malicious purposes such as installing malware.”
So … if botting is happening in a game, the question could be … are they allowed, encouraged, ignored or cause a game ban?
As stated above, most games that can -will- have bots.
For me it’s not whether or not there are bots present … it’s how that games owners deal with bots.
Are there players removing so much game content that other players can not enjoy the game as intended? If so, what is the game owner doing about it?
Typically if something is part of a game you will have that certain set of people that will flock to that thing. Others don’t care about it so much.
I’d be interested to see what Monumental’s stance on the subject is.
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It’s apparently just as hard to nail down a “commonly accepted” definition for some of these terms as it was to get a straightforward answer from James, I guess.
At this point this is what we’re mostly all waiting for.
With regards to people feeling the need to say stuff like “I’m not embarrassed” or “I don’t feel guilty” and the fact that we’ve been left hanging on very basic QoL issues for years now - I doubt if there’s going to be any trouble about using an autoclick setup (software or hardware) during your game play.
James used the word “disability” :
The truth is trying to play without some assistance would give us all disabilities. And I’ve only seen one person straight up use the word “cheating” today. 
Nonetheless I feel like everyone is on the same page about that.
These guys did crazy amazing technical stuff to get this game going. They built the engine twice (at least) and in the face of people asking since before the game was even officially released - never added a “craft all” or “move all” feature?
As for the more complex stuff:
Me too. One thing I’ve gathered with this thread is that if it’s OK with the devs, it’s going to be OK with most of the players, and we’ll get things balanced out.
I don’t want to argue any more about whether or not a weight on a keyboard is a “known and acceptable game mechanic”. I also sort of assume that most people commenting by now will have not read most of the thread.
Absolutely please still take a moment to share your thoughts, even if it’s already been said.
I’m not looking for affirmation here, I’m trying to gauge a majority opinion, and hopefully - if Monty’s feelings on this are not crystal clear - then community input can help steer some new guidelines.
Best case of course, who knows if he will even take time to skim over this monstrosity 
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Its been long time debate is botting allowed Or not… Devs always said its a Gray area… So they havent said anything is right Or something is wrong.
See below
While they said this… Theres still People using exploits that heavily increase the value of time.
I Feel the botting is stupid and i dont like it. Just play the game as its intented… Without some botting Or macroing.
There are 2 major issues as I see it:
- The user interface needs work
- The game design encourages afk play
For issue one, there are multiple areas where the user interface is just clunky. Why on earth is there no craft all button? Any decent user interface designer worth their salt would have foreseen the need to be able to load up a machine when designing the user interface in the first place. A network engineer should have pointed out at some point that sending one message instead of 30 was better for the network. It is just bizarre to me that this is not already implemented.
There are a lot of other basic UI features that I think ought to be added: auto-sprint toggle, auto-run key, mouse running. Is there some advantage to forcing people to hold down keys for hours at a stretch? All I see it enhancing is repetitive strain injuries.
There are also basic QOL features like chisel change machines that really ought to be added.
Coming to the second issue, the game design needs to take into consideration that games are about fun and entertainment. If something isn’t fun, people are going to want to avoid it. If the not-fun thing is necessary to basic functions of the game, then people are going to try and automate it away. That is just how things are, and no amount of punishing people for trying to get around doing not-fun things is going to stop the behavior. If people are trying to get around doing something, then that design element needs to be looked at and adjusted.
A lot of what people seem to be trying to get around doing is gaining xp and collecting certain materials. Why are people doing that. Because they want XP and materials, the design for obtaining those goals is through simple, repetitive, boring tasks that are easily automated, and the boring repetitive game play element is boring and repetitive so people don’t want to do it. The problem isn’t the botters, the problem is the game design.
Some of the game is designed this way because players asked for it. People asked for things to take higher quantities of items so they would be more expensive. This is silly. Forcing someone to harvest millions of dirt to make things like bricks is just asking for people to set up bots. It is a naïve game design decision. If you want things to be more expensive, you need to add more complex gameplay mechanics for people to complete, not request additional quantities of simple, repetitive tasks. I think part of the problem is that the playerbase has gotten so used to never getting any updates that they have quit asking for (or even actively discourage) additional content.
Humans are humans, and ignoring human nature never got anyone anywhere useful. Complaining about it isn’t going to rewire the human brain to be less prone to finding shortcuts to doing things they don’t want to do. Add more interesting stuff to the game, reduce the repetitive boringness of some activities, and the problem will take care of itself. Just my opinion.
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I must be very confused. I’ve seen many posts that state such. “for years”.
Is James even involved with the game now that it’s sold? If not , why keep bringing up things that were said by a previous owner?
Monumental owns Boundless now. They bought it ‘as is’. Which means that once they have a team built to deal with the game, all past, present and future ‘issues’ are theirs to decide what to do with. Unless there are specific contractual obligation stated at the purchase of the game, Monumental can do what they want with … everything. And peons like me have NO clue what or if any of those were stipulated in the sale of the game.
As for the google search on the word ‘exploit’ … I did not search ‘game exploit’. I was just going for the meaning of the word.
Back to topic …
Ask a different question … since no question is ‘wrong’.
Is botting mentioned by the game creator?
What is their stance on it.
Those are things I do consider when looking to purchase a game. Typically you’ll find more info in the game’s forums or steam discussion than you will directly from the developer.
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James was the “game creator” or at least, the owner of that company. Monumental has just gotten the rights to the game they are not developing or controlling it yet.
It doesn’t matter who owned the game when or for how long regarding the fact that you have to click the mouse thousands of times just to process the output of a normal T6 mining trip into 2nd stage materials.
QoL is a common abbreviation for “quality of life” and it’s not about “fair gameplay” or any of that. It’s just about making so that the game is not physically (or mentally) hard on the players.
There’s a big difference between “a challenge” like trying to fight a mob, and a “quality of life issue” like having to click 30 times on a machine to queue a batch of materials.
There’s not any reason that it should be hard to put your materials into your crafting machine. That’s not “a challenge” it’s a problem.
So on, with several other aspects of the game. For years.
Again that’s James, he was the CEO and representative of wonderstruck who created the game. People asked about macros and such for a long time. The first time I asked was April of 2019 I think.
Roughly a year later, he finally stated an answer. Sort of. It wasn’t entirely clear and as you can see, some people still feel it’s “arguable”. I see that if you’re not familiar with who the people are, you wouldn’t understand why people keep quoting this statement:
Botting + Scripting to avoid actually playing the game is against the rules.
(Scripting as a means to play with a disability is acceptable IMO.)
It’s the only time that the creator/owner ever spoke about macros or bots, clearly and in public.
Now we have a new owner, and people want a new answer. Or at least a clear answer.
EDIT More for others who don’t know the history or why it seems like a big deal here is part of it:
He didn’t make an answer to a thread like this
He didn’t make an answer to a thread like this:
And then he just randomly goes into a thread where somebody is selling coils one day, and makes a solid statement about botting
I think honestly most of the older players are so happy for new management.
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Still there was literally like handful of People doing just that without ever getting any penalty.
I know People have even send videos of People regen mining gleam from exos… Its looks Pretty stupid. And you Wonder how People here say they got 200stacks of x gleam… I Wonder how.
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I sent some evidence myself, not from exos from serpensarindi, and AFTER he made that statement.
I agree you are correct - there was never any enforcement. Several people I spoke to said they had discussed it in discord chats he was in as well. I’m not sure if he cared by then. To be honest I don’t care to list some of the nastiness that happened here. I mean, directed at him or other staff and business partners.
I don’t blame james for giving up. I’m surprised he didn’t just turn off the servers. Of course, there were contracts, so yeah.
Monumental has put their name on the game now, it means they are taking control. If they would give clear guidance on a topic that has been troublesome for a long time then there’s a lot of us that would just happily follow it.
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While Im happy about it… Im still not really sold To idea that they can do rly anything about it.
I hope monumental is going To lay some ground rules here. Cause i Feel if you allow macros Or such… You should list wich are allowed and what is not.
Only thing that could fix things would be just the infamous subject “Wipe”… But that not gonna happen.
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My attitude in gaming is the same as my attitude in life. Keep your nose out of my business I’ll keep mine out of yours. People want to bot, I don’t care. Do I want to? No. That’s not the reason I play games for. Am I disadvantaged? If so it’s my fault for not using the same tactics. I don’t agree with said tactics? Too bad it’s still my problem, no one else’s. I’ll just keep grinding away. I won’t ask to the developers to change the game, because it’s not my game. I’m a visitor, I payed an entry fee but that doesn’t make me the owner. I can leave at any time. Plenty of other games out there to play if this one isn’t giving me what I want.
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Yet here is another one lol
It wasn’t supposed to be a rehash of the same thread. A bit disappointing but also - not really too surprising. For the same reason I edited some of my earlier comments, I won’t go on about it nevermind I did, didn’t I.
I mean apparently there’s a significant number of players more worried about whether a bot is a macro or not than what we’re actually supposed to be doing with the stuff. And also using some things outside of the game to play the game is obviously cheating but a weight on your keyboard is a … how does it go…
Oh yeah a “known and acceptable game mechanic”. Apparently I really needed that lesson 
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Well played
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gib link pls
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