Bots became a popular method of buying sneakers around 2016, when Kanye West released the first models in Adidas’ Yeezy line. The shoes were so popular that they routinely sold out in seconds, leading tech-savvy sneakerheads to develop tools that would autonomously purchase the right pair and size of sneakers. Most bots require the user to pay a small fee, but many of the less scrupulous buyers purchase multiple pairs and sell them on the secondhand market at a huge mark-up, negating the cost of using the service.

Those who don’t use bots are often left to either miss out on the sneakers they were hoping to buy or to pay a big markup on eBay or GOAT. Some sneaker brands have responded by developing apps — like Nike’s SNKRS — that can’t be accessed by bots. And while this helps get sneakers onto the feet of those who don’t cut in line, not all brands can afford to develop and maintain such apps. Strangelove Skateboards is among them, saying in an Instagram post that “circumstances spun way, way out of control in the span of just two short minutes.” The store will still sell its stock — which was previously allotted to online sales — to loyal in-person customers, but those who don’t live near a Nike SB retailer will be out of luck.

Bots have been extremely frustrating for sneakerheads who don’t have the “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em” mentality. But in Strangelove’s case, this weekend’s swarm of bots not only affected customers, but the business itself. As bots cause more headaches for businesses, it would be helpful to see some form of federal regulation, similar to a bill introduced to fight bots that buy concert and sports tickets.

So how, exactly, can you get access to these gems? Well, for starters, there’s going to be Nike MyPlayer Nation, a new mode that lets you pick your favorite team and play online against others in a mirrored version of the NBA’s 2019-2020 season game schedule. In it, depending on how well you play, you can start unlocking the ability to buy Nike’s Gamer Exclusives by reaching specified milestones — which will change throughout the NBA season. Nine of these GE models will be unlocked and redeemed that way in NBA 2K20 and, after you link your Nike and 2K memberships in the SNKRS app, you can buy them from there.

Nike and NBA 2K20 are dropping the LeBron 17 “‘Bron 2K” on October 29th.

The remaining GE is a new color of LeBron James’ latest Nike signature shoes, dubbed the LeBron 17 ‘Bron 2K, which will drop in a different way than the others. For this particular design, Nike will be using its SNKRS Cam feature, one that will require you to have your smartphone ready, find a relevant graphic in the game and then scan it with the SNKRS app to unlock and buy a pair. But first, you’ll need to get your NBA 2K20 MyPlayer’s rating to 98 or 99 (higher than James’ 97), and then win a MyPlayer Nation game during the NBA season. From there, you’ll have to act fast: Even if you manage to access a GE, they will be only be available while supplies last.

If you recall, that SNKRS Cam experience is similar to when Nike launched an Air Jordan 1 in Fortnite, an idea that was created for both gamers and sneakerheads. This merging of digital and physical worlds to sell hyped sneakers is something that Nike has been experimenting with for the past couple of years, as it looks to technologies like augmented reality to offer something new for consumers. At the same time, these kind of drops can help the company fight bots, aka automated systems that resellers use to try to buy basically any product that’s launched in limited fashion.

Nike told Engadget the partnership with 2K Sports is only for this year’s game, NBA 2K20, although don’t be surprised to see its Gamer Exclusives come back in the future if they turn out to be popular. The MyPlayer Nation mode will be live on 2K20 starting October 22nd.