Sea Of Thieves Players Say the ‘Infinite Gold’ Exploit That Ruined Season 18

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The latest update to Sea of Thieves, season 18 called “Return to The Devil’s Roar,” was intended as a major comeback for a previously unpopular area of the game. It promised fresh treasures, a deeper story, and challenging new enemies called the Eternal Guard. However, since the release of the second part of the update on January 22nd, many players are finding the game is less about fun exploration and more about taking advantage of loopholes.

A recent issue with the new Orb of the Banished is causing a major problem in the game: players are getting huge amounts of gold, which has led to extreme inflation and frustrated the player community. Considering the game is almost eight years old, this feels like a particularly worrying sign, and may reflect difficulties the development team has faced recently.

The Economics of the Orb

The source of all the trouble is the Orb of the Banished. This special item was first found in Act 2, and it was meant to be a fantastic reward for completing the challenging Molten Sands Fortress raid. Usually, finishing that raid requires teamwork, skill, and a whole lot of effort.

But players aren’t doing it normally.

Right after the recent update, players figured out how to collect and stack valuable Orbs by taking advantage of how items reappear in the game. These Orbs are worth a base amount of 50,000 gold, but with bonuses from a high-level flag and current events, that value can jump to over 156,000 gold. As a result, players are earning millions of gold in a single play session.

According to one Reddit user, collecting Orbs of Secrets is the most effective and reliable way to earn gold in the game. They believe it’s far better than any other method if your only goal is to maximize your profits.

Gold has lost its value in the game. When players spend hours earning money to buy something, while others can get the same amount almost instantly by exploiting a glitch, it breaks the sense of accomplishment. One long-time player put it simply: gold isn’t worth much anymore – 100,000 gold doesn’t even feel like a significant amount.

A Studio on the “Back Foot”

To figure out how such a significant bug made it into the game, you need to consider the difficulties Rare Ltd. faced in 2025. Last July, the studio experienced widespread layoffs as part of restructuring within Xbox Game Studios. Afterwards, reports revealed that Rare’s new game, which had been in development for ten years, was stuck in a difficult and prolonged development process.

When the game Everwild was cancelled, all attention—and expectation—immediately shifted back to Sea of Thieves. However, the development team was already facing difficulties. Shortly after layoffs occurred, Production Director Drew Stevens openly acknowledged the team was struggling to manage their workload.

Stevens admitted they hadn’t responded quickly enough to the growing problems with technical debt and cheating, leaving them constantly playing catch-up.

That statement feels especially relevant now. The “Banished Vault” isn’t simply giving out too much gold – it’s seriously flawed. Players are encountering major issues, like getting stuck inside walls, losing important keys, and experiencing a generally unstable game where even basic actions are difficult to perform.

A Mutiny Is Brewing

Players aren’t just upset about technical issues; they feel like the game has lost what made it special. Many fondly remember when Executive Producer Joe Neate was in charge, describing that time as more enjoyable and carefree. They contrast this with the current situation, where it feels like the developers are constantly trying to fix problems and apologizing for the game’s condition.

Creators who usually promote new updates are now expressing concern. PhuzzyBond, known for his positive guides, recently shared his disappointment with the game’s rewards system, saying he felt like there was no real sense of accomplishment or progress.

To make things worse, Rare announced they’re resetting everyone’s Doubloons (a special in-game currency) at the start of Season 19. While they say this is to improve the game’s economy, many players feel it unfairly penalizes those who earned Doubloons through normal gameplay.

A key complaint points out that Rare’s recent change unfairly affects players who were actually using items, not just collecting them. Many see it as a reactive attempt by the developers to fix an economy that got out of hand.

What’s Next?

Rare is hoping Custom Servers, planned for early 2026, will address some key issues in Sea of Thieves. These servers aim to create a more secure and enjoyable experience, free from cheaters and overly competitive players. However, if the core game still has economic problems and isn’t rewarding enough, it’s uncertain whether players will be willing to pay a subscription fee for access to these private servers.

Season 18 was intended to showcase how well Sea of Thieves has lasted, but it’s unfortunately highlighting a critical point: even great games that constantly update are only as good as their most recent changes. Until the developers, Rare, can address and fix the serious Orb exploit, Sea of Thieves is feeling less like an adventure and more like a game where progress is easily inflated.

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2026-02-04 16:05