Purchasing RF9 Secondhand off eBay

[MIK33EY]

Hi everyon,
i apologise if there is a post about this already but I searched as many variables as I could to check and came up with nothing, hence this post.
someone on eBay has a listing for RF9 with the Interlink controller. I asked and they inform me that they have used the enclosed Steam Key to download the software. They are trying to convince me that if they remove RF9 from their Steam account they are able to install it again on another Steam account using the same Steam Code. I find this very hard to believe.
if I were to win the auction would I basically be buying the box with the controller (in pristine condition looking at the picture) along with a useless Steam key? Or can you indeed remove it from one Steam account to then add it to a different one?
I pretty sure I already know the answer, but thought I’d ask on the off chance RF9 works differently to all other software that uses a live internet connection to authenticate.
With thanks, Michael.

 

[Ryan Douglas]

Do not buy! Either that person is ignorant or they are intentionally trying to deceive you. Either way, what they are saying is false.

Once a Steam key is redeemed, it can never be used again. That software is permanently associated with that account. (There are ways to remove it from your account if you don't want it to appear in your library any longer, but that would not make the original key valid again.)

As you may know, Steam makes it very easy to install on different PCs as long as you log in with the same account that owns the software. But that is not what this person said.

 

[MIK33EY]

Thank you for the clarification Ryan. i knew I was right. As I said to the Seller, if this was possible (deregistering software from a Steam account) everyone would be sharing codes left right and centre for anything and everything on Steam. I asked because I thought there might have been an infinitesimally slim chance that somehow RF9 code that’s came in the Horizon Hobby box version of RF9 worked in a different way. So basically the only things of use would be the box and the controller, with an included useless piece of paper with a string of characters printed on it.
Correct me if I am wrong… If one were to purchase a second hand copy of RF and have any hope of making use out of the included copy of RF software would be purchasing the original version 9, that hasn’t been exchanged for a 9.5 Steam code, or an earlier version and then paying for an upgrade from that lower version to version 9.5.
Regards Michael

 

[obladah]

I posted my RF9 for sale on e-bay having no knowledge of the de-activation process and a good chap contacted me to ask if this had been carried out - obviously not. I took the RF9 off temporarily to do the right thing but seem to be up against a brick wall, the other side of which is a procedure for me to follow. Can anyone guide me in the right direction please?
Many thanks, Nick.

 

[Ryan Douglas]

Correct me if I am wrong… If one were to purchase a second hand copy of RF and have any hope of making use out of the included copy of RF software would be purchasing the original version 9, that hasn’t been exchanged for a 9.5 Steam code, or an earlier version and then paying for an upgrade from that lower version to version 9.5.

That's essentially correct. At this point, I would advise against purchasing RF9 used because there's no way of knowing whether the seller has exchanged their serial number for a 9.5S Steam key. If they have, you will not be able to activate and run the software, and will have flushed that money right down the toilet.

There are no separate upgrades to buy from earlier versions of RealFlight to RF9. Basically, the available options for quite a few years were to either purchase the full edition with controller included or to purchase the software only edition if you already owned a controller from an earlier version. The latter represented the upgrade path.

 

[Ryan Douglas]

The only way to do that is through RealFlight Support.

Go here, then click the speech bubble icon with three dots that appears in the lower right corner to start a chat. Type "agent" to connect with a live person (during business hours). Only a RealFlight specialist will be able to help with this.