Both Blizzard Entertainment and Grinding Gear Games have remained tight-lipped about whether they will ban the accounts of Elon Musk following his reported admission of cheating in their games, Diablo 4 and Path of Exile 2. Screenshots of a private conversation between Musk and a YouTuber revealed that the billionaire had paid for account boosting in these action RPGs, sparking outrage among fans who feel that the integrity of the games is being compromised.
Account boosting, where a player pays someone else to log into their account and elevate their rank, is explicitly prohibited by the terms of service of most live service video games. Blizzard's end user license agreement specifically bans account boosting or power-leveling in exchange for payment.
Following Musk's admission, players have taken to forums to express their disappointment and question the enforcement of the games' terms of service. A Path of Exile player posted on the game's official forum, "So now billionaires can buy their way to the top of the HC ladder as a vanity project like owning a football club. Are the TOS not being enforced even when openly broken?" Another player expressed concern over the credibility of real money trading enforcement, saying, "I'm not trying to shitpost or troll with this, I'm just extremely disappointed that GGG isn't getting out the ban hammer. Anyone else feel this is undermining the integrity of the game?"
Similar sentiments were echoed on Battle.net, with one player questioning, "Is boosting against the rules? If it is, then shouldn’t Elon Musk’s account get banned since he flat out admitted that he boosts his account? I assume he doesn’t get to break the rules just because…"
When approached by IGN, both Grinding Gear Games and Blizzard declined to comment on the matter, with Blizzard stating that it does not discuss individual player account behaviors or enforcements.
Musk has previously boasted about his gaming skills, claiming to be among the top 20 players in the world for Diablo 4 during an interview with Joe Rogan. He also mentioned having a hardcore level 97 character in Path of Exile 2, which has since perished. Musk has stated that he plays video games to "quiet my mind," adding, "Some days are real tough, so playing video games is my strange solace."
However, doubts about Musk's gaming prowess surfaced as players scrutinized his performance and game knowledge. Given his numerous commitments as the head of Tesla, SpaceX, X/Twitter, and his role as Donald Trump's efficiency tsar, many questioned whether he could dedicate the time needed to achieve such high levels. An early January livestream of Musk playing Path of Exile 2 drew criticism for his apparent lack of understanding of the game's mechanics.
Suspicions that Musk was paying for account boosting were confirmed when a video posted by the Diablo player NikoWrex showed a direct message conversation with Musk on X. In the conversation, Musk admitted to account boosting, stating it was the only way to compete with players in Asia. When asked if he had level boosted or purchased gear/resources for Path of Exile 2 and Diablo 4, Musk responded with a 100% emoji and added, "It’s impossible to beat the players in Asia if you don’t, as they do!" He clarified that when he posts videos or streams, it is genuinely him playing, but he does not take credit for the high-level achievements of his accounts.
Following these revelations, musician Grimes, who shares three children with Musk, defended him on X, stating, "Just for my personal pride, I would like to state that the father of my children was the first American druid in Diablo to clear abattoir of zir and ended that season as best in the USA. He was also ranking in Polytopia, and beat Felix himself at the game. I did observe these things with my own eyes. There are other witnesses who can verify this. That is all."
Further allegations of cheating emerged when Musk's Path of Exile 2 character was seen active in the game while he was attending Trump's inauguration in Washington.
