assuming if it was not possible to pirate you were going to pay for the game
That’s not a reasonable assumption at all.
Sometimes people can’t afford the extortionate game prices and thus wouldn’t be bying them no matter what.
Other times, such as with the Denuvo DRM monstrosity or draconian anticheat systems on single player modes, pirated copies are better than bought ones.
And, as you say yourself, sometimes you just don’t want to support the capitalists ruining games in order to squeeze every possible cent of profit out of them regardless of what that means for the quality of games and treatment of gamers.
That’s not a reasonable assumption at all.
Sometimes people can’t afford the extortionate game prices and thus wouldn’t be bying them no matter what.
Other times, such as with the Denuvo DRM monstrosity or draconian anticheat systems on single player modes, pirated copies are better than bought ones.
And, as you say yourself, sometimes you just don’t want to support the capitalists ruining games in order to squeeze every possible cent of profit out of them regardless of what that means for the quality of games and treatment of gamers.