account-restoration
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The Daily Grind: Do MMO studios owe us item restoration?
MMOs vary widely in their account and item restoration policies. In some games, like some of NCsoft's offerings, if you're hacked or you lose access to your account because your memory is toast, it's game over unless you happen to have your original account key. In games like Lord of the Rings Online, you're not guaranteed full reimbursement of your money or gear if a hacker strips you naked and leaves you dancing on a mailbox. BioWare won't refund guild bank items stolen by rogue guildies, either. In World of Warcraft, you'll almost always get your account back if you're hacked or you accidentally delete your favorite hat, but it might take an agonizingly long time. This week, Blizzard launched a new item restoration service that attempts to solve the second problem by simplifying the process of reclaiming lost trinkets (though not items stolen by hackers). I was surprised that Blizzard considers this a problem worthy of automation, but maybe it's more common than I thought. So now I'm wondering whether companies are actually obligated to restore items we've lost through our own goof-ups. Do you consider this a vital service of a support team, and would you quit a game if your items were truly gone for good? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Blizzard announces automated account recovery form for hacked accounts
World of Warcraft accounts have been under siege for years, with hackers and gold-selling outlets stealing passwords, items and more to fill their coffers, selling that gold to unwitting buyers. Blizzard has fought back incessantly over the years to stem the tide of gold farming and account hacking, and as you can imagine, the scale at which this happens is very tasking on its customer support department. Blizzard has just announced a new, speedier way to get help and answered about your hacked account, stolen items, authenticator issues and more! Now, under the new system, you will not have to email or call Blizzard to get these matters into its queue -- simply use the Account Recovery Form.
Account Administration encouraged not to restore hacked characters
Please see the update to this original post. In a stunning revelation from a veteran account administrator at Blizzard, WoW.com has learned that account administrators are being encouraged by Blizzard managers not to restore people's characters and items after their account has been ransacked by gold sellers and keyloggers. Instead, account administrators are being told to give people a "care package" and get them to accept the package in lieu of total account restoration. If the player does not accept this care package, they are then forced to go into a character restoration queue that is consistently several days to weeks long. According to sources familiar with the situation, this "care package policy" has been implemented in order to lighten the work load of those Blizzard employees who perform account restorations. Similar policies have existed at other times account compromises have been high, such as during the transition from Vanilla WoW to The Burning Crusade. This care package being offered consists of the following:
