gold-sellers
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Elder Scrolls Online disables forum PMs, encourages outing gold sellers
The Elder Scrolls Online has disabled PMs... on it's official forums, at least. ZeniMax is attempting to combat gold-spammers, and it's going a step further by setting aside a portion of its Code of Conduct and encouraging players to publicly identify suspected spammers. We request that anyone who has received a private message they believe to be from a gold spammer to post the sender's username as a comment in this thread. As we have disabled PMs, you will not be able to access your inbox on the forums, but if you received an e-mail notification to alert you to the PM you received, the sender's username should be in that e-mail. Please note that our Community Code of Conduct does prohibit naming and shaming. However, in an effort to expedite the process of identifying and banning the spammers' accounts, we are making an exception for this situation. We will investigate each alleged spammer account individually to avoid false reports. [Thanks alleomurand!]
Elder Scrolls Online lowers the banhammer
Elder Scrolls Online cheaters beware! ZeniMax is taking aim at your head with its mighty banhammer. Community Manager Jessica Fulsom posted an announcement today of the studio's opening shots against evil-doers: "Today, we made our first major strike against those who choose to cheat in ESO, permanently banning thousands. This is only the beginning of our ongoing efforts to keep the game free from botters, speed hackers, and gold spammers. We want to thank everyone who has sent in-game reports about these individuals in ESO -- your reports helped us identify many of the accounts we banned today."
The Soapbox: Tokens suck!
A few weeks ago we reported on a somewhat silly article in which the author advocated that studios could and should charge players real money transaction fees to trade items. I didn't see a lot of people in favor of this idea, but I definitely agreed with one thing that he pointed out: MMOs have become increasingly anti-trade in practice. It's not something that I've thought a lot about recently, but once this article triggered some introspection, I realized that the issue of trade (particularly relating to restrictions) has become a growing frustration of mine. My veteran characters in several MMOs are absolutely loaded -- with basic currency, that is (usually gold). And yet I am sitting on this Scrooge McDuck pile of wealth with no useful things to buy because (a) everything seems to take tokens these days and (b) so much of the good stuff in games is bind-to-character (or bind-to-account). I started feeling fidgety and then I let out a grunt of frustration. Tokens, in a word, suck.
Camelot Unchained aims to be unattractive to gold sellers and farmers [Update]
Mark Jacobs has never been a fan of gold farmers and gold sellers, famously going on a warpath against them in his previous titles. He renewed his vows against such practices today, saying that he will do everything he can to make sure that such behavior doesn't prosper in Camelot Unchained. "While it certainly would be nice to have those extra subs the gold sellers/farmers bring to the table," Jacobs wrote, "I will not compromise the integrity of the game or the enjoyment for the vast majority of the players by making it easy for them in Camelot Unchained even if it leaves some money on the table." The team is planning on countering gold selling and farming by creating tools to battle it and making the game more difficult to generate a profit. "As an RvR-focused game, CU will be less attractive to them from the onset since earning currency in CU not be as easy as earning currency in a PvE game," he said. [Update: Jacobs is a busy little bee today. He's just posted a second dev blog discussing how leveling will work in a PvP-centric game.]
Choose My Adventure: A male Dark Elf Fighter in Aden
Last week in Choose My Adventure, you voted for what kind of character I should make. I dutifully rolled him up and set off for fantastical adventures in Lineage II. Today, I bring you a dungeon video, many screenshots, first impressions, and even a livestream. It's a multi-media extravaganza! And we're also on to the next round of voting for what direction my character takes. Let's not get ahead of ourselves, though. I had to start out at the bottom of the barrel. For the first 20 levels, I called Talking Island Village home, until I was transported to the mainland and a little town called Gludio. I discovered, among other things, that there are many tantalizing spots to see in the game -- if you are willing to travel off the beaten path. These spots are well worth the layover, especially if you have a powerful-enough machine. As old as Lineage II is, it's strikingly gorgeous. I didn't dawdle for too long, as I had some leveling to do, and I made a few discoveries along the way.%Gallery-141708%
The Lawbringer: Guardian Cub pros and cons
Pop law abounds in The Lawbringer, your weekly dose of WoW, the law, video games and the MMO genre. Mathew McCurley takes you through the world running parallel to the games we love and enjoy, full of rules, regulations, pitfalls and traps. How about you hang out with us as we discuss some of the more esoteric aspects of the games we love to play? Blizzard recently treated WoW fans to a preview of the Guardian Cub tradable pet, going on sale soon at the Blizzard pet store. Immediately upon hearing that the pet was tradable, readers began inundating me with email and Twitter messages to talk about said cub on The Lawbringer, as this is sort of the thing I fancy myself a connoisseur of. So here we go -- let's talk about the ramifications of these adorable little pets on our server economies. The Guardian Cub represents a sea change in the nature of the gold selling war from Blizzard's perspective, one that has been coming for a long, long time. With a Blizzard-sanctioned way for players to dip their toes into the waters of pay-for gold, gold buying looks a little less attractive to players who would otherwise have to risk their computer's integrity and credit card security. Players have sharp opinions one way or the other on player-bought gold, so I'm going to do my best to hit the right points to discuss my opinion on the whole premise. I mean, it's right there in the FAQ. This pet has the added incentive of being a safe and secure way to potentially, maybe, make some gold off your purchase.
The Lawbringer: Q&A on Diablo's real-money auction house
Pop law abounds in The Lawbringer, your weekly dose of WoW, the law, video games and the MMO genre. Mathew McCurley takes you through the world running parallel to the games we love and enjoy, full of rules, regulations, pitfalls and traps. How about you hang out with us as we discuss some of the more esoteric aspects of the games we love to play? Since Blizzard dropped the Diablo 3 bombshell on us early Monday, I will post the second article in my series on micro-transaction models next week. For those of you who have been living under the proverbial internet rock (you are missing some awesome memes right now), Blizzard announced that Diablo 3 would feature two auction houses, one using in-game gold as currency and the other using real currency that would be deposited into a Battle.net account wallet and used from there. The whole system gets more intriguing when you take into account that sales made on the real-money auction house can make their way to your own very real wallet through an unannounced third party or deposited back into your Battle.net wallet for use on anything digital in the Blizzard store, including WoW game time. If you're a regular reader of The Lawbringer, you already know how excited I get over virtual currency. This is my wheelhouse. I feel like a master carpenter at Wood Con 2011, cosplaying as my favorite oak tree, quercus alnifolia. Pair that with real currency, and excitement levels hit the stratosphere. I may break through the atmosphere at some point. That faint sonic boom you hear will be me hurtling through the air in excitement and wonderment. Sure, the Diablo real-money transaction (RMT) auction house is not related to World of Warcraft -- or is it? Oh, it very much is. Faithful readers and not faithful alike (how could you, Debbie?) have been writing in questions via Twitter and email asking me to explain the auction house and talk about some of the potential legal and tax issues that could come around because of it. Also, many people want to know how the RMT auction house could benefit World of Warcraft, despite Rob Pardo's saying there are no plans to bring it over to WoW. Let's take a look at your questions.
Global Chat: Broke and richer for it edition
Welcome to this week's Global Chat! We love hearing what you have to say at Massively, and we love it even more when we can share the best comments with all of our readers. Massively staffers will be contributing some of their favorite comments every week, so keep an eye out every Sunday for more Global Chat! This week we're looking at all things money: Who has it, who doesn't, and why it makes the world go 'round. Naturally, Massively writers are richer than seven kings of Arabia combined and aren't concerned with such petty matters, but it seems to weigh heavily upon some of your heads. Hit the jump and let's see what the buzz was like in the comments section this past week!
The Lawbringer: China, forced labor, and why we must stop buying gold
Pop law abounds in The Lawbringer, your weekly dose of WoW, the law, video games and the MMO genre. Running parallel to the games we love and enjoy is a world full of rules, regulations, pitfalls and traps. How about you hang out with us as we discuss some of the more esoteric aspects of the games we love to play? Gold selling is a multi-billion dollar industry that spans the globe, with a healthy portion of in-game currency sales originating from China. It's a cheap operation to start up -- all you need is cheap labor, some computers, a PayPal account, and a copy of World of Warcraft. The overhead is low and the payoff is big because the demand is present for the supply. People have a perceived need to buy gold, so more people sell gold, which allows the market to grow. It won't stop, either, as tradable virtual currency from all types of games hit the gray market. What happens when an industry with low overheads becomes too profitable? What happens when a relatively simple setup like gold farming goes from the quaintness of cottage industry to a virtual currency-fueled industrial revolution? People start getting ideas when money is sitting there on the table, ready and waiting to be snatched up by the stalwart businessman. Combine that sentiment with the corruption and profit motives of institutions and a labor force that is for all intents and purposes free, and you get the sad tale of prisoners in China and the people in charge.
Global Chat: Dollars and cents edition
Welcome to this week's Global Chat! We love hearing what you have to say at Massively, and we love it even more when we can share the best comments with all of our readers. Massively staffers will be contributing some of their favorite comments every week, so keep an eye out every Sunday for more Global Chat! Global Chat this week is all about money. Be it real-world cash or piles of virtual gold, money is the foundation of much of our MMO experience. Ready to see what some of our best commenters had to say about all sorts of transactions this week? Follow along after the jump!
The Daily Grind: Are you in favor of alternative currency?
It seems to me that more and more MMO developers are utilizing alternative types of currency in our games. Whether they're tokens, barter scraps, or golden leaves, we're now having to chase down all manner of currencies to get the goodies we want. Our subject for discussion today: Is this a good thing or not? On one hand, I can understand that alternative currency helps to limit the amount of damage that gold sellers and farmers can do, and it provides incentives for players to participate in certain zones or activities. On the other hand, it feels as though these alternative currencies are cluttering up our bags, confusing our minds, and devaluing the standard currency in the game. So looking at your favorite games, are you in favor of barter systems and tokens as an alternative to gold, silver and copper? Should every game have a barter wallet if so? Or do you wish that devs would cut it out and stick with one type of money as the standard? 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!
The Lawbringer: Fighting the gold fight -- how the strategy must change
Pop law abounds in The Lawbringer, your weekly dose of WoW, the law, video games and the MMO genre. Running parallel to the games we love and enjoy is a world full of rules, regulations, pitfalls and traps. How about you hang out with us as we discuss some of the more esoteric aspects of the games we love to play? Last week on The Lawbringer, I introduced you to the world as it is, a battlefield littered with the corpses of stolen accounts, inconvenienced players, and a priceless reputation on the line. This week, we look at concrete solutions to actually helping the gold selling system wind down and remove many of the hurdles that instant gratification with purchasing gold sets up for Blizzard. You might have mixed and angry reactions to what I'm going to talk about, but do give me the benefit of the doubt. I think being open-minded might win this fight. So what can Blizzard do besides selling its own currency? Here are my suggestions for the first steps that Blizzard needs to take in the new war against gold selling.
The Lawbringer: Fighting the gold fight -- the world as it is
Pop law abounds in The Lawbringer, your weekly dose of WoW, the law, video games and the MMO genre. Running parallel to the games we love and enjoy is a world full of rules, regulations, pitfalls and traps. How about you hang out with us as we discuss some of the more esoteric aspects of the games we love to play? The Lawbringer has in the past been used as a personal launching pad for some of the more out-there or esoteric ideas that I have in regards to the World of Warcraft and virtual currency in general. You guys seem to love it, and there's always plenty of great discussion about these ideas. For the next two weeks, I want to introduce you to my thoughts on how Blizzard should be attacking gold sellers and, at the same time, working to remove some of the content gates that gold has erected in the MMO we all love. This week, we will set up the story and the history of it all, and next week, we will talk about hard conclusions. Gold selling isn't going away as long as fungible and liquid currency exists in MMOs. Gold is "fungible" because it can be exchanged for something exactly like it, at a 1:1 ratio -- gold is gold. Gold is also liquid, as it can be used and exchanged for other goods or services. Short of Blizzard's getting rid of this type of currency altogether or selling its own currency for a cheaper price than gold sellers can furnish it, people will sell gold and items that can be traded. Blizzard has shown that it has the guts to go after gold selling as an industry but has so far failed in scope to bring down the snake that slowly poisons everything it has worked to build. As sellers become hackers, and as hacking chips away at the good will, reputation, and stability of the game we love to play and the company we love to patronize, there has never been a more urgent time to fight the gold fight. The strategy needs to change from focusing on the people who sell gold to a combination of those that sell and the gold itself.
Blizzard strikes gold sellers with Paypal notices
Last week, Blizzard sent out strongly worded complaints to Paypal, accusing many gold-selling companies and resellers of "intellectual properties violations" for selling World of Warcraft goods. After receiving these complaints, Paypal sent notices off to the gold sellers Blizzard had complaints against, stating that if these activities continued through their websites and the Paypal service, Paypal would revoke their ability to use the popular payment site as a payment option. Here is Paypal's letter to the gold sellers: You were reported to PayPal as an Intellectual Properties violation by Blizzard Entertainment Inc. for the sale of World of Warcraft Merchandise. If you feel your sales do not infringe upon the intellectual property rights of the Reporting Party, please complette the attached Objection to Infringement Report by January 21, 2011. The completed form should be faxed to the attention of the Acceptable Use Policy Department at [number removed] or emailed to [email removed]. Should you choose not to object to the report, you will be required to remove all World of Warcraft Merchandise from the website [url removed] in order to comply with the Acceptable Use Policy. What's very interesting is that Blizzard is claiming intellectual property violations in the face of the most recent decision in the Glider case. Where Blizzard lost on intellectual property concerns under the EULA, they could have a better shot over their game assets being sold, if somehow it ever went to court. Still, Paypal is the easiest route to go for Blizzard's plan of attack against gold sellers, since most of them are run outside of the country. Suffice to say, it's nice to see some action being taken against gold selling.
The Perfect Ten: The 10 people you meet in MMO hell
"Hell is other people," the jaunty Jean-Paul Sartre wrote in No Exit. In this play, three characters are locked together in a small room, where they gradually realize that they are there to torment each other for all of eternity. Plus, there are no toilets, and that's going to get unpleasant fast. It's fun for the whole family -- get your tickets today! We've all met folks in game who leave an unpleasant taste in our mouths for a long time after. With the all of the good of social games comes the seedy underbelly (henceforth referred to as "Camden, New Jersey"), and for every stellar soul you connect with, there is another lying in wait to destroy your day. If MMO heaven is full of supportive guildies and grammatically correct chat channels, then think of MMO hell as a pick-up group gone horribly awry as you run a dungeon that never ends, a dungeon you can never quit. While we'd never voluntarily go to MMO hell, it was inevitable that some of its denizens have escaped to walk amongst us in our games even today. Who are these nefarious devils? Hit the jump to find out!
Runes of Magic team implements account security improvements
Account security has been a concern for Runes of Magic players lately, and Frogster has been paying attention. Community Manager Mike "Silberfuchs" Kiefer posted a fairly impressive list of improved security methods on the Runes of Magic forums, detailing some important changes. Players now have different options and methods for changing all usernames and passwords, and there are some new password requirements. Account and IP blocks will come into effect under certain circumstances as well. Gold sellers also took a hit as a part of this new effort. Frogster has managed to obtain "an injunction against a number of goldsellers as well as companies and individuals offering leveling services," and those undesirables are being removed permanently. Check out the forum post for all the details on how this will affect your account.
The Lawbringer: Interfering with gold farmers
Welcome to the Lawbringer, your weekly tour of the intersection between law and Warcraft. I am a third year law student specializing in intellectual property law acting as your crossing guard, trying desperately not to get run over myself. So last week we engaged in some speculation about how WoW might change if Blizzard permitted gold sales. Personally, I think that the damage to the game economy and culture would be far more damaging than any legal issues that might develop, but it's worth noting that legal issues could easily develop. As for the here and now, certain facts about gold selling remain: Gold selling is against the terms of both the North American and European EULA and TOU. Gold selling is performed by a number of companies, many of them located outside the Unites States. Gold sellers acquire their gold through obnoxious farming behaviors and account hacking. Gold sellers exist because of gold buyers. Given all this, what can we as players do to stop these locusts? The biggest thing is obviously to NOT buy gold. I really don't think this point can be emphasized enough. Beyond that though, we may be able to take advantage of a legal theory known as tortious interference in contract.
The Lawbringer: Legal gold sales? Not a Blizzard's chance in Hell
Welcome to The Lawbringer, wow.com's weekly feature on the intersection between World of Warcraft and the Law. I am a third year law student acting as your crossing guard and trying not to get run over myself. As an introduction to our promised discussion on gold farming, I wanted to address an idea that's been circulating in the WoW blogosphere. There has been some talk that Blizzard could solve the problem of gold farming and hacked accounts in one fell swoop by simply selling the gold themselves. It's an attractive idea on its face, as some feel as though Blizzard's current ban on Real Money Transaction for gold ("RMT") is nothing but an ill advised Prohibition. Permit people to buy gold through Blizzard, the argument goes, and the keyloggers, site spoofers, hackers, and spammers will go back to the rock from under which they came, just like the Mafia disappeared after alcohol sales were permitted in 1933. Oh wait... The obvious problems have been pointed out before, including: rich brats will have more advantages over folks with jobs and bills; inflation will cause Azeroth to resemble Zimbabwe, the Weimar Republic, or -- God forbid -- Norrath; players will be forced to pay up to stay competitive; WoW-clone MMOs will follow Blizzard's lead, leaving players with few refuges from RMT markets; Blizzard devs will be "encouraged" to design the game around acquiring and spending more gold; players who can't remember website names will still think "www.l3g!t-w0rlduvw0wcr@ft-g0ld.c0m" is Blizzard's website and download keyloggers, etc. Some don't believe this parade of horribles is enough to discourage Blizzard from creating this quixotic market. To the doubters, let me add some legal issues that would affect Blizzard and players, namely: property rights, taxation, and investment advice. Any of that sound like improvements to you?
Trial account restrictions and the 30 percent problem
A few days ago, we posted on a very interesting statistic: Only 30% of all WoW trial accounts make it past level 10. On some level, it's been assumed that this number explains why Blizzard's taking such care to smooth out the beginning game a bit, to make it easier and more fun to stick with the game past level 10 or so. In a large way, this makes sense. But there may be other reasons beyond game play in play as well. If you're picking up a trial account, chances are that you heard about it from a friend or a blog or a news report. But chances are, you were shown or described a massively armored warrior engaged in fierce hand to hand combat on the back of a dragon flying through the air, or a finely robed mage flinging a fireball at the face of the lord of all magic, or something similarly epic. With that in mind, it might justifably get discouraging to show up in game to find yourself dressed in rags, wielding a toothpick, and being sent to collect wolf pelts that inexplicably only drop off about half the wolves you kill. With that in mind, it's easy to see how a trial account user could get bored pretty fast. But for me, there's one other angle that very few people seem to be bringing up: The social angle.
[1.Local]: The legendary Frostingmourne
Reader comments -- ahh, yes, the juicy goodness following a meaty post. [1.Local] ducks past the swinging doors to see what readers have been chatting about in the back room over the past week. Looking for sweet, sweet sarcasm? [1.Local] is full of smart alecs. You'll get a good taste of sarcasm in this week's sampling of comments, as well as pointers to WoW's hottest topics ... Oh, and a virtual wave of reader approval. But before we dig in, how about seconds of this week's WoW-themed dessert? MusedMoose: Dude! It's the legendary sword Frostingmourne, weapon of the Lick King! ... I'll go now. Us, too. Let's wipe off the frosting and head past the jump for more of the week's comments.
