Agreed with the first part but the second is a total blue pilled version of what actually happens.
The sneaky plan of scammer / milker dev's:
1. Start a good project with great quality & solid story,
2. Grow a fanbase.
3. Stay in touch with your supporters.
4. Make constant updates.
5. Slowly but surely bring up some cheap excuses you know mental illness, family matters or any accidents etc.
6. Most consumers are sheep so this plays into your hands, use it wisely.
7. Many people will feel sorry for you and will put your behavior into perspective & protect you at all costs.
8. Don't overdo it at first, provide still a few updates here and there and act like a hero in the postings say something like: "hey. i was completely sick but i still gave my best to get the newest build ready.
9. The frogs have been in the pot for a long time now, but still play it safe, try to increase constantly the temperature over the months/years so that most of them don't notice the heat and don't hop out.
10. Create a few fake accounts on large platforms that will speak well of your actions so that it catches legitimate criticism like a sieve.
11. If you haven't exaggerated too much, you've created a self-starter where you hardly do anything anymore, sure you don't get as much as if you worked on the game full time but the cost-benefit ratio is now (after a few years of back and forth) the highest ever.
12. Congratulations you are a certified scammer be proud of you and laugh at the idiots that are working for you as inofficial employees and sending YOU the money (not the other way around) plus they protect your misbehavior.
13. Now live your dream and travel the whole world, bang bitches that look similar to the ones in the game & burn your money who cares you always get it for lying anyway.
ps: Big weg devs have already shown that lies and deceit work, whether it's an Icstor, GumDrop or BeggarOfNet, this tactic is 100% functional.