In the case of software (a creative product that many, here, have a vested interest in), pirating can actually lead to future sales.
I think one of the most pirated programs out there, used to be Adobe Photoshop.
This resulted in a huge number of folks that became expert Photoshop users, and that drove sales of the app, in their careers.
The same probably cannot be said for games. I suspect a pirated game, is a lost sale.
AutoCAD, in particular, used to be[1] super smart about this and went out of their way to get their toolchain in front of high-schoolers (even back when that involved pricy copy-protection solutions like physical dongles).
[1] Not to imply they are no longer super-smart about it; I just no longer have clear signal.
I pirated every single game I have ever bought first, with the exception of games that had Demos. If it's a Denuvo game, I refuse to ever buy it (especially since the pirated version is guaranteed to be a better experience).
What leads to lost sales in the video game world (at least if we look at people like myself) is making bad games, whether it be horrible optimization issues, bloated spyware like Denuvo, broken/buggy games etc.
Like Gaben said, people have no problems with paying for stuff, it just has to be high quality and reliable, and most modern games are neither for the most part.
A lot can change in 19 years, but I've gone back and bought most every game I pirated on steam now that the income isn't as scarce.
It's a bit dispiriting, to be sneered at, for it.
Lemmings was a great game, but that isn't informative as to Grand Theft Auto, which isn't.