Status: Pre-Study
Study Period: TBD Friday evening (Account A) + Saturday evening (Account B) + 24h observation
Scope: Fresh Steam accounts only (zero prior play history)
Community reports describe permanent bans on Hunt: Showdown 1896 accounts with unusually high KDA, with no cheat violation cited. This study tests whether that's real — specifically whether a freshly created account reaching KDA ≥ 7.0 through clean, legitimate play gets automatically banned within 24 hours.
Results apply only to fresh accounts with no prior play history. Whether the same thresholds affect established accounts is a separate question not addressed here.
| ID | Statement |
|---|---|
| H₁ | A fresh account with KDA ≥ 7.0 will be permanently banned within 24h of the last session |
| H₀ | KDA alone doesn't predict banning; neither account gets banned |
| H₂ | KDA ≥ 7.0 is achievable on a fresh account through entirely legitimate play |
Two fresh Steam accounts, played on the same machine on consecutive evenings:
- Account A (Friday) — target KDA ≥ 7.0 at highest MMR, no cheats, no macros
- Account B (Saturday) — target KDA 4.0–5.0 as control
24h observation window after Account B's session, closing Sunday night before Monday support hours.
├── docs/
│ ├── 01-HYPOTHESIS.md ← Hypotheses and definitions
│ ├── 02-EXPERIMENTAL_DESIGN.md ← Variables, controls, confounds
│ ├── 03-PROTOCOL.md ← Step-by-step execution protocol
│ ├── 04-DATA_COLLECTION.md ← Data schema and log templates
│ ├── 05-LEGAL_ANALYSIS.md ← EULA / TOS clause-level analysis
│ ├── 06-OBSERVATIONS.md ← Match log and observation log (filled during study)
│ └── 07-RESULTS.md ← Analysis and interpretation (filled post-study)
├── data/
│ ├── account_a_high_kda.csv
│ └── account_b_control_kda.csv
└── screenshots/
├── setup/
└── match_log/
Pre-registered on AsPredicted before any data was collected: AsPredicted #275,089 (anonymous).
This repository serves as the full supplementary documentation record.
No cheats, bots, macros, or exploits used at any point. Both accounts are fresh with no prior play history. Full clause-level EULA and TOS analysis in docs/05-LEGAL_ANALYSIS.md. German law governs (§14g EULA, Crytek GmbH domiciled in Frankfurt); EU consumer protections apply (§15 EU/EEA provisions; §24–25 Crytek TOS).