"The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt" recently received its first major expansion DLC, "Hearts of Stone," and while the DLC added hours of new quests, items and monsters, it also added a means of punishing players who use exploits to get all the in-game money they need to buy better equipment.
As reported by Cinema Blend, "Hearts of Stone" adds an in-game tax collector who will visit the player and audit their wealth. If the tax collector discovers that the player earned his or her wealth through dubious methods like cheats and exploits then the collector will ask them to pay a hefty fine.
However, this is still all in good-taste and in line with CD Projekt Red's renowned sense of humor. The tax collector simply tells the player that the game is aware they cheated but there is still the option to say no and tell the collector that they acquired their money properly. The collector will take the player's word for it and pry no further.
The report cites a video by YouTube user WhatsMyGame that showcases the tax man approaching the player.
As pointed out in a report by Silicon Angle, this is not the first time that CD Projekt Red found ingenius ways to address players who cheat or use game-breaking exploits in the "The Witcher 3."
There was previously an exploit that allowed players to kill off a herd of cattle, collect the hide, and then sell the hide for a high price. They could then meditate until the herd would re-spawn and then simply repeat the process until they amassed enough money to buy better gear.
CD Projekt Red addressed this with the addition of the "Bovine Defense Force Initiative" patch. Players could still try to do the exploit but once they do, they will be attacked by a high-level monster that can instantly kill low-level players.
