Honestly that's my take on it: piracy is a matter of accessibility.
As a marketer, I can even see the benefits of "free distribution of content" to people that wouldn't buy it anyway, and you're still building your brand on those people - they will, eventually down the line, buy your IP if they had good experiences with it.
I became a GTA fan thanks to it, and to modding, when started to be able to afford games I bought into the series.
If I haven't developed the emotional relationship with the game, nowadays I wouldn't care less about it.
As a marketer, I can even see the benefits of "free distribution of content" to people that wouldn't buy it anyway, and you're still building your brand on those people - they will, eventually down the line, buy your IP if they had good experiences with it.
I became a GTA fan thanks to it, and to modding, when started to be able to afford games I bought into the series.
If I haven't developed the emotional relationship with the game, nowadays I wouldn't care less about it.