The issue with cracking games is that developers of accessible games will not sell many of them anyway. Developement tools such as bgt cost money, apart from sound libraries etc, and apart from the fact of the time, trouble and effort the developer puts into their work.
That is really the issue. Look at Entombed, which was very costly to make both in time and in financial resources, future developement there actually depended upon jason making his targit of five hundred copies. he did make this, ---- but only just, and people cracking the game very much wouldn't have helped at all.
This is why the position on game cracks is so profoundly serious.
As Tom ward said, he's spent a couple of thousand dollars already buying developer tools for mota, and is likely to only sell two or three hundred copies at most, thus to avoid throwing cash down the drain he actually needs to recoop the costs, ---- and this is aside from games like railracer or blind adrenalin cardroom which run on a server basis and have thus continual monthly costs just to keep going.
As to your point about making free games yourself, remember that your games use other peoples' sfx and music from copywrited material, as well as require the free version of bgt.
Should there come a point that you want to expand into using the paid version, get in actors oor musicians, buy your own sound libraries etc, at that point you will have to pay.
This is personally why i also try myself to support independent projects financially if I can, and why I also try to give my time and help with voice acting etc on my own time.
With our dreaming and singing, Ceaseless and sorrowless we! The glory about us clinging Of the glorious futures we see,
Our souls with high music ringing; O men! It must ever be
That we dwell in our dreaming and singing, A little apart from ye. (Arthur O'Shaughnessy 1873.)