Yeah, I don't think Nike "got played like a fiddle" at all. This was an absolute win-win for all involved. That art collective got tons of press, and now their limited edition shoes are worth even more as "those illegal shoes!"

Nike got to save face in court and pretend like they really cared about not being associated with "satanists". Their "edgier" customers probably think it's cool that Nike's shoes were the base for this, and their conservative customers saw them as fighting against cultural decadence.

This was marketing genius all the way around.