What's the motivation behind botting TF2?

[rat]

From when I remember, bots were used to farm items for profit. The bad actor would program the bots to play kind of normally, so as not to be conspicuous, and it would get random drops, then they would trade them back to the bad actor.

However, that's clearly not what's going on here. This seems wholly malicious, and there's a lot of people doing it, it seems like. What is the motivation behind this? I've seen one group of bots advertising "bot immunity" on their discord server for $5, but I can't imagine that it would work across all bots. So therefore it seems to mostly be aimed at killing the game. And it was snuffing the life out of it pretty good for a little bit there.

So, of course, the question is: who gains from TF2 dying out?
I don't really know. Maybe they want playercount to drop to nothing so that the whole "economy" dies out. Maybe they think that TF2 as a whole needs to die.

Or maybe, just maybe, someone out there is trying to force Valve's hand in updating the game. Some of the bots make me wonder... the "m4gic" bots especially, immediately loading into the game and spamming text chat and VC, it makes it very obvious they are bots, and so even new players will have an easy time just kicking them. Makes me think that they're maybe some kind of "training bots" to get people to understand vote kicks and false votes a bit better.

I don't know. Very odd stuff. What are your thoughts?

[♥Peachboy♥]

Mostly attention.

[rat]

Originally posted by The WEBP Slayer:

Mostly attention.

so you think that they might be trying to force Valve to pay attention to the game? or just to draw attention to cheat clients?

[ward]

Originally posted by Don Snaek:

Originally posted by The WEBP Slayer:

Mostly attention.

so you think that they might be trying to force Valve to pay attention to the game? or just to draw attention to cheat clients?

lmao

[skooma]

Because they can.

[♥Peachboy♥]

Originally posted by Don Snaek:

Originally posted by The WEBP Slayer:

Mostly attention.

so you think that they might be trying to force Valve to pay attention to the game? or just to draw attention to cheat clients?

nope, I mean attention to them

they love seeing those "valve fix the bots" "I hate bots" "what's up with all these bots" posts, and that's why they continue to do it. For the same reason someone would continue to be an ass to someone: to get a reaction.

[seansatake]

they want attention to themselfs mainly and to ruin everyones fun

[meatbawlz (6'3 king btw)]

-attention
-killing the game
-ruining peoples fun
-money (make people pay for them to stop hosting bots)
-their own amusement
-troll
-see how valve would react to what theyre doing or
-clout, they usually put some type of link into their name so you can go to it
-they have nothing to better to do

[Hunter_M♤cer]

- Either they want to improve or learn more Programming/Coding

- Just for fun

- They hate and the game and want it do die

- Attention

Etc

[Spartykins]

to read complaints left on fourms about their handiwork

[Lochlann]

It's fun to piss people off

[TRethehedgehog]

VAC: weak anticheat + people playing= vulnerabilities

[GrizzGolf]

Why cant someone make bot medics that just heal us?

[☠MommyMrs👁☠]

people being people simple as that

[spice]

the lulz

most bot hosters legit straight up say that's why they do it, it's just funny for them

[PurpleBeast]

Attention