So you want to create public GAs, but you don't want bots and auto-join scripts to enter? Good. Just post a comment in this thread with a link to an invite-only giveaway. The idea is very simple and is really not different from many (most?) of the other threads in the forum, except that you don't need to invest much time or thought into it. Just post the link in a comment, and you're done :-)

A few additional guidelines:

  • Feel free to obfuscate the link to make it more difficult for bots/scripts to enter. This is completely optional and may not make much of a difference, because the forums are probably not as infested with bots and auto-join scripts as public giveaways (see example).
  • You may use itstoohard.com, sgtools.info or other sites as filters to the link, but do try to keep things easy (for humans) to enter.
  • Don't feel obligated to write anything to accompany the giveaway link. If you have stuff to share beyond just the link, you probably should create a dedicated thread for it. Needless to say, you can also write it here, but it's not required.
  • Cross-posting giveaways your posted in other threads is fine, as long as they are your giveaways.
  • If you want to add a dynamic signature showing the game name, giveaway end date and current number of entries, but without revealing the URL to bots, you can use this tool created by Reforced. It takes the signature created by SG and provides you with a new URL that hides the original giveaway address. Just add it to your comment using the regular format for posting images: ![](URL)
  • Just like public GAs typically have a lot of entries, there's no need to maintain a low number of entries in GAs posted here. If you want to give especially good odds to people who enter and still get CV, you may want to instead consider posting the link here (and then remove it when you have your 5 entries). This is not needed here in this thread. The more (humans) the merrier :-)
  • The best way to bump this thread is by posting a link to your own invite-only giveaway. With that said, if the thread drops from the first page a regular "Bump" would also be appreciated.

I'm trying to find how serious the issue with bots really is. So far the results don't really prove things one way or another. Here are some stats from my latest experiment:

Game: Space Trader: Merchant Marine
Number of giveaways: 5
Period: 3 days

Giveaway # Level Type Number of entries Winner's Sent:Won Reroll needed?
1 Level 0+ Public 891 0:82 No
2 Level 0+ Invite only, direct link 55 4:47 No
3 Level 0+ Invite only, SGTools (no restrictions) 48 6:71 No
4 Level 0+ Invite only, shortened URL, captcha-free 50 1:205 No
5 Level 0+ Invite only, shortened URL with "I'm not a robot" captcha 54 162:86 No

Yet some more stats:

Giveaway game Period Level Type Number of entries Winner's Sent:Won Reroll needed?
Tales from the Void 5 days Level 0+ Public 755 0:37 No
Tales from the Void 5 days Level 0+ Invite only, obfuscated link 183 42:514 No
Hyper Box 4 days Level 0+ Public 554 0:32 No
Hyper Box 4 days Level 0+ Invite only, obfuscated link 193 178:188 No
Ace Combat Assault Horizon 3 days Level 0+ Public 1596 0:28 Yes
Ace Combat Assault Horizon 3 days Level 0+ Invite only, obfuscated link 234 88:107 No
7 years ago*

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1 year ago
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7 b f d (3+3) c02-7bf6-11ed-b46b-fa163e0a8583

Bomber Crew - Deluxe Edition
L0+

1 year ago
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1 year ago
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I can't believe I missed this one..
Oh well, congrats to the winner :)
and thanks for the GA! :D

1 year ago
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Cook, Serve, Delicious! 3?!
L0+
Ends 24.12.
b 0a17f9 3-7e35-11e d-b46b-fa163e0a858 (1+2)

1 year ago
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1 year ago
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From what i've read, proper bot protection would be to obscure the 5-digit code, not anything else, because bots are only looking for the code

1 year ago
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ca25289a -7fc9-11ed - b4(3+ 3)b-fa163e0a8583

Time Lock VR 1
L0+

1 year ago
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https://www.sgtools.info/giveaways/95a36be7-8124-11ed-b46b-fa163e0a8583

Mech Mechanic Simulator

Minimum ratio using Real Value of gifts Sent/Won on Steamgifts: 0.5

1 year ago
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STAR WARS™ Battlefront™ II
Region restricted (Steam gift): Steam EU region minus Switzerland (Can't gift due to price difference.)
Level 4
real sent/won >= 1
https://sgtools.info/giveaways/b4eb3cb1-823b-11ed-b46b-fa163e0a8583

1 year ago*
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bump ;)

1 year ago
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STAR WARS™ - The Force Unleashed™ Ultimate Sith Edition
https://www.sgtools.info/giveaways/c4664b90-824b-11ed-b46b-fa163e0a8583 (expired)
the rule is harsh if you have more than 750 games, good luck

1 year ago*
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Many thanks!

1 year ago
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Deleted

This comment was deleted 1 year ago.

1 year ago
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Late weekly gib:
https://www.steamgifts.com/giveaway/SmAsV/backbone

Invert the case of the five-character code. Uppercase becomes lowercase; and lowercase becomes uppercase.

1 year ago
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Never too late for a great giveaway. Happy Holidays and thanks for all the games throughout the year.

1 year ago
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1 2 3

1 year ago
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Last year's gib:
https://www.steamgifts.com/giveaway/JqGUe/embr

Swap the first and middle characters of the code.
A toast to a great 2023 for everyone!

1 year ago
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1 year ago
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1 year ago
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1 year ago
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Some food for the thread:
https://www.steamgifts.com/giveaway/CdCw/the-lego-movie-videogame

The last letter of the code is lowercase N.

1 year ago
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1 year ago
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1 year ago
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I'm dumb and made it invite only by accident, and don't feel like deleting it.
https://www.steamgifts.com/giveaway/cMtLCATr/spiritfarer-farewell-edition

Remove the uppercase cat. Bad kitty😼 .
Lvl 2. (Ends in around 12 hours from this post)

1 year ago
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2+ lvl The Serpent Rogue - Humble Key https://www.steamgifts.com/giveaway/E1??5/the-serpent-rogue

?? = yk

1 year ago*
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The link you've posted goes straight to the GA. To obfuscate it, you would have to make a change in the 5-digit code.

1 year ago
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fixed! ty

1 year ago
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No problem, I'm glad to help

1 year ago
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f0bf6b3b-ee9e-4b20-(9*9+10)5d-c2a71d59e2d5

Deadly 30
L0+
ends on 01/22

1 year ago
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