Can it be morally defensible to release a program which games an MMORPG? [closed]

Question

I have written presumably some of the first code to modify the memory of a popular new MMORPG in such a way as to create a macro framework, allowing for advanced automated reactions, skill/level gain, large scale data retrieval, and botting.

It's my supreme pleasure to automate tasks in this way, I can't help but think of any manual approach as "broken". In fact I find myself rather unable to complete even single player games before dissecting their mechanics and gaming them, in a specifically read-only (not cheats, per se) mouse and keyboard input only fashion. Supplementing my advancement toward a game related goal with my own programming knowledge seems natural, it's really not fun otherwise, like ignoring your firearm in an FPS.

Since I love this form of reverse engineering I assume others do as well, they'd appreciate the end result at least. I tend to feel a project should somehow "ship": be sold, open sourced, or freely distributed. "Happiness only real when shared." Otherwise it's just me and my timesink.

The problem is that there are several moral stances involved with a project of this nature:

1. An evil is released upon the virtual world. Those with the program have an advantage, the game is unbalanced, you've got to use, simply to be on equal footing. It's no longer about the game, but the tools, an arms race. It's like every other MMORPG. Therefore, keep the code private.

2. The above is inevitable, so release a peremptory free distribution to give players equal access to the advantage and potentially deny someone else a more evil™ (e.g. elitist, commercial, etc.) release. Between evils the least is selected, though its necessity is disagreeable.

3. Sell the program, reap the benefit of your proclivity, it's work for which you deserve recompensation, fair trade (and regardless of ToS violations). Follow the likes of WoWGlider. Is it better in fewer hands?

4. Keep the code private. Respect at least this much of the company's Terms of Service you agreed to.

What is a morally defensible approach? What haven't I considered? In my experience ToS agreements are a largely ineffective form of dissuasion, and the gaming of MMORPGs (and subsequently results described in #1) is indeed inevitable, but there's something to be said in not pulling the trigger yourself - or is it not so bad?

---

I did a poor job on the original phrasing/titling of this question, I was really looking to see if there were special circumstances when it could be morally defensible, not whether or not it would normally be, in hope my code could have constructive purposes.

As a new user I didn't realize 99% of the responses would be immediate, before my update. That said, I still received some very helpful answers regarding commercialization and the original question merited the answers provided, so: well done on that front.

I do have my answer: despite the inevitability of bots, don't pull the trigger yourself! Be the change, etc. (#3 was never on the table for me personally, but elicited some brilliant answers.)

Answer 1

You need to tread very lightly.

MMOGlider was a popular WoW bot up until recently. I wrote an addon for it in C# called GliderTools (GliderTools.net) which made a decent bit of money.

Blizzard recently sued MMOGlider for $6 million dollars and won. There is legal precedent now against the writing of bots and commercially selling them. The monetary damages associated with doing this are staggering. It worth noting that the crime Blizzard was able to get MMOGlider on wasn't "botting" but instead, copyright infringement. They claimed that because the bot client had to access and copy certain parts of the running games memory that this constituted copyright infringement.

Considering MDY (creators of MMOGlider) made less than $2 million dollars, they have a heavy price tag on their heads. Michael Donnelly the original creator and founder of MDY was not protected under his LLC license and he is personally liable for those $6 million dollars. This kind of debt does NOT go away with bankruptcy. He has it for life. Once you add on legal fees, appeal, etc this is a dangerous game.

I personally love writing bots. To me a game isn't fun unless I've dissembled it, wrote a patcher for it or automated it in some way. This what makes the game fun for me, not the game itself. Seeing your bot run autonmously for the first time is a real high. However, if you make a commercial product and sell it to others it becomes a different matter.

So, if you decide to make a bot I strongly suggest you either release it from outside the United States or keep it private among friends.