When I was poor, I pirated a lot of games, played them and then spread the word.
I can say and do believe I helped sales and increasing popularity.

It’s not just a pat on the back. My recommendations had others play games they’d never even heard of and in turn recommended them to others.

Of course, now that I can afford some games and no longer play them at launch, I just stick to “Grab them on a sale! It’s worth it at a smaller price!”