According to recent reports, Russia has legalized pirating video games and movies amongst the ongoing wave of sanctions on the country, following the current geopolitical tension.Piracy and illegal distribution of media, including video games, have become a lot less widespread across the world (including Russia) in recent times. Governments are imposing strict cybercrime laws. And with the accessibility of content through mediums such as cloud gaming or subscription-based services like Game Pass has reduced the amount of people pirating content to a negligible amount.However, the reported legalization of piracy has left gamers discussing the possible implications of the situation.How does the legalization of video game piracy in Russia affect the future of the industry?Gangster Enieb@GangsterEnieb@IGN Russia pulled out the uno reverse card4:03 AM · Mar 12, 20228216@IGN Russia pulled out the uno reverse cardThe ongoing Russia-Ukraine crisis has left the world divided and has created widespread geopolitical tensions across the globe. From international banking services like Swift to fast-food giant McDonald's, many brands have imposed sanctions on Russia and stopped their services in the country, and the video game industry is no exception.Aside from developers such as Electronic Arts and CD Projekt Red, the ”big three” of the gaming industry (Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo), have all stopped the distribution of their products in the country. To counter these sanctions, Russia seems to have legalized piracy across the country.While discussing the matter, several Twitter users pointed out how these sanctions are affecting common men who have nothing to do with the geopolitical tensions caused by the government.Dave the punk guy@anarchydave55@IGN Its unfortunate for everyone involved. I pity the people in Russia who are under a regime that makes America look good. I mourn for all the dead, and the proud Ukrainians I wish the best of luck.5:03 AM · Mar 12, 2022542@IGN Its unfortunate for everyone involved. I pity the people in Russia who are under a regime that makes America look good. I mourn for all the dead, and the proud Ukrainians I wish the best of luck.Will🇺🇸🇮🇹@GixxersShadow@IGN Good for Russia, attacking the people of Russia is ridiculous. It’s the government, not the people.4:06 AM · Mar 12, 2022842@IGN Good for Russia, attacking the people of Russia is ridiculous. It’s the government, not the people.Another Twitter user pointed out how this opens up the flood gate for potential malware infections, which has always been a high risk when pirating content. He also mentions how this could potentially leave the backdoor open for several hacking-related risks.Travis🇺🇸🇺🇦☮️@TravisSlusser@IGN I mean…that’s just giving @YourAnonOne the opportunity to flood the sites with spyware correct? I mean all it would take is one sad gov employee to REALLY wanna watch the new Batman film. If growing up with torrents taught me one thing, is how easy it is to download a virus.4:41 AM · Mar 12, 20221@IGN I mean…that’s just giving @YourAnonOne the opportunity to flood the sites with spyware correct? I mean all it would take is one sad gov employee to REALLY wanna watch the new Batman film. If growing up with torrents taught me one thing, is how easy it is to download a virus.blawren443@blawren443@IGN Is there a faster way to introduce Russian malware into the world? If we cared, we would not partake.10:42 AM · Mar 12, 2022@IGN Is there a faster way to introduce Russian malware into the world? If we cared, we would not partake.Several Twitter users also pointed out how the country is already notorious for pirating software, and this legalization does not actually change that.Void@BlessedByNothin@IGN Most pirated stuff already comes from there anyway. They just made it official lolAlso good luck playing pirated stuff on current gen consoles4:04 AM · Mar 12, 202255@IGN Most pirated stuff already comes from there anyway. They just made it official lolAlso good luck playing pirated stuff on current gen consolesMorpheus@theprophet_neo@IGN As if there was no piracy in Russia earlier. Now it's gonna become even more common. The only ones losing money would be those media companies.1:26 AM · Mar 12, 2022@IGN As if there was no piracy in Russia earlier. Now it's gonna become even more common. The only ones losing money would be those media companies.Several users also pointed out that this could tarnish any possible future of Nintendo returning to the country.minzy42@minzy422002@IGN Lets see Nintendo take Russia to court over piracy lol4:02 AM · Mar 12, 2022126520@IGN Lets see Nintendo take Russia to court over piracy lolMys. Henriksen 🏳️‍⚧️@nftphobic@IGN Nintendo not returning to Russia then it seems i doubt they'd be happy with this.12:43 PM · Mar 12, 2022@IGN Nintendo not returning to Russia then it seems i doubt they'd be happy with this.Tyler Milgate @MilgateTyler@IGN4:21 AM · Mar 12, 202223213@IGN https://t.co/t42NpzGZOVWhatever may be the course of the gaming industry in the future, one thing is for certain, this legalization of piracy has certainly created turmoil.