Or he could have some clause in the contract that prevents him from bypassing the publisher for profit, or maybe he just doesn’t want the game to disappear and has a clause that lets him give away copies so he’s free and clear. It isn’t necessarily piracy. You asked how he could do this, I’m just spitballing possible answers.
I have, the weird cult he’s built upn is creepy, and Methods of Rationality is terrible.