Ubisoft’s MouseTrap works, and console players are dancing on cheat hardware’s grave
Input spoofers beware: Cheating sucks.
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Ubisoft’s wild attempt to create a software that can detect and defeat people using a mouse and keyboard onRainbow Six Siege’s console version seems to have paid off. Makers of the hardware “spoofing” device XIM, which lets you use whatever input you want on your console, are saying that—despite their best efforts otherwise—you’re not using it in Siege any time soon.
XIM isn’t inherently a cheating device, as it’s really just intended to let you use a mouse and keyboard with macros on your console, but in practice it allows console cheaters to pretend they’re using a controller while gaining the benefits of a mouse and keyboard.
That can be a big deal for some in competitive games, especially so in console games like Siege that don’t have any form of aim assist in multiplayer matches. Whatever your stance on the mouse vs. keyboard skirmishes of the console wars, it’s clear that this was cheating.
Ubisoft’s war on those who would bring a mouse and keyboard to a controller fight started earlier this year, when it began testing the software by giving some XIM usersdeliberate input lag. It intensified earlier this month, with the full rollout of theMouseTrapanti-cheating initiative, which saw spoofersscrambling to their forums for support.
Of course, many expected that Ubisoft’s efforts would be stymied as the spoofer-makers found counter-effects and software workarounds to re-disguise their work—that’s often the story with cheating, hacking, and the like. Close one hole and they find another. But that’s not what happened here, withquotesfrom XIM forum users saying if you plug in a keyboard, well, there’s a “high chance” it ain’t gonna work. Other XIM forum posters havesuggestedthat XIM users should just “move on” from Siege.
Whatever your position on this, we should all be able to agree that cheating sucks. While other shooters have made crossplay possible with various tweaks and tech choices, the Siege developers have decided that it doesn’t work with their game: Use a controller or equivalent on console or get out.
Oh, and a quick PSA if you get caught by this anti-cheat because you use an accessibility device: Ubisoft wants to fix that.
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“We’ve worked closely with our accessibility group to make sure that we take the needs of disabled players into account. The feature has been designed to reduce the chances of disabled players who use adaptive technology to access the game from being penalized. If you are a disabled player and feel unfairly penalized, there will be an in-game QR code that you can use to contact us so that we can investigate so that we can use your feedback to fine-tune the system,” it said in astatement.
Jon Bolding is a games writer and critic with an extensive background in strategy games. When he’s not on his PC, he can be found playing every tabletop game under the sun.
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