The developer of the popular Steam game Burgie's Cozy Kitchen has revealed that an astonishing 99% of its player base appears to be pirating the game. Despite this high rate of piracy, developer HeyNau stated that the game is "still doing well," challenging conventional wisdom about the necessity of digital rights management (DRM) for commercial success.
Burgie's Cozy Kitchen, an early-access incremental idler where players manage a fast-food establishment for animal customers, gained viral attention earlier in 2026. This was partly due to a unique "piracy mode" implemented by HeyNau. When the game detects it has not been legitimately purchased, progress on upgrades becomes significantly slower, and in-game customers, depicted with pirate hats, troll the player by refusing to pay full price, accompanied by sea shanty music.
While examining the game's backend, HeyNau noticed a consistent pattern of usernames referencing a Chinese piracy website across numerous Steam accounts. "Every time I hit refresh, at any hour of the day, exactly 22 of the last 25 entries had that name, despite being different Steam accounts," the developer explained on Reddit. "Today I had to widen the filter to the last 100 entries to confirm that 99% were pirates."
The developer has previously attempted to mitigate piracy, particularly on mobile platforms, by partnering with a Chinese publisher to market a mobile version with region-specific features and translations. While this approach saw some success in reducing mobile piracy, the PC version continued to face significant challenges.
Remarkably, HeyNau indicated that the attention drawn by the piracy mode actually boosted the game's sales. In June 2026, a year after its early access launch, Burgie's Cozy Kitchen broke sales records. Following this milestone, the game's peak concurrent player count nearly doubled.
HeyNau cautioned against interpreting these numbers as a universal endorsement for releasing games without DRM. The developer noted that their situation as a small indie studio allows for sustainability with lower sales figures than a blockbuster title would require. Nevertheless, the developer admitted that managing the situation has been "stressful."
Initially, HeyNau held a neutral stance on piracy, stating, "I never condemned it or looked down on anyone for pirating. I just live alongside its existence and try to do so in the best way I can as a developer." However, with piracy reaching 99% and reported sales drops of 40%, the developer has begun to question the long-term viability of "piracy exists in parallel with healthy growth."
Despite the challenges, the developer concluded by noting that the high player numbers, even among pirates, have ultimately worked in the game's favor. "Nobody here needs to buy it," HeyNau remarked, underscoring the peculiar success of Burgie's Cozy Kitchen in a landscape dominated by piracy.