Axie Infinity, a non-fungible token-based online video game developed by Vietnamese studio Sky Mavis, is known for its in-game economy which uses Ethereum-based cryptocurrencies. Players of Axie Infinity collect and mint NFTs which represent creatures known as Axies.
Developers of the NFT Esports game recently tweeted out saying that they had banned 210 axies across 7 accounts as these accounts were actively involved in match-fixing and win trading during Season 20. In the Tweet, the company said :
“Protecting Competitive Integrity In Axie
During a multi-day investigation, the Community Protection team reviewed 3000 replays from highly ranked players and unveiled irrefutable evidence that match-fixing had occurred. This is strictly prohibited by Section 4 of our Terms of Service. When these players match against each other, they would purposely end the battle in a tie, resulting in a slight loss of MMR for each player.”
After reports of match-fixing surfaced, an internal multi-day investigation was launched which found out that 7 accounts were indeed involved in match-fixing and manipulated the outcomes of games.
Since these accounts clearly violated Section 4 of the TOS, the flagged accounts will receive a 999-day ban on the platform, while its players will receive an indefinite ban from ever competing in any Axie Infinity Esports events. The players will also lose all the Axie Infinity Shards (AXS) rewards received during Season 20 which will reset their cheating efforts back to zero.
While discussing the penalties and justification for the ban, Sky Mavis also said:
“Our goal is to make the penalties of cheating outweigh the benefits.”
Sky Mavis believe that handing out harsh penalties to maintain the integrity of the game will be welcomed by the community and deter any future cheating attempts.