multiple-accounts
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Breakfast Topic: Sorting out multiple-account and -character finances
Let's face it, the way we pay for WoW affects the way we play the game. So for us WoW-playing families, altaholics, and multiboxers, how about brainstorming some ways to nudge Blizzard into offering solid multiple-account discounts? Every single member of my family has played WoW at some point, and we might reactivate some of those accounts if there were a discount designed to keep family groups on the active rosters together. Of course, any discount system would need a way to prevent farmers and groups of players from trying to co-op their way to cheaper subscriptions. I believe there's currently a limit on how many accounts can be paid by a single credit card. What other checks and balances could you put on a discount system to keep it fair? Can we think of ways to set reasonable limits without requiring onerous levels of identification and verification? And what about the economics of server transfers? It seems logical that there be a financially reasonable alternative for moving an entire realm's worth of characters from one realm to another -- or at least some discount for multiple characters. I know so many players who categorically rule out transfers that would improve their quality of life (scheduling, realm population, raiding groups, friendships...) because they can't afford to move all the characters they've grown to love. Give us your ideas! Because when it comes to our characters in WoW, it unfortunately takes more than love to keep us together.
Warhammer Online is cross-promoting with Wrath of Heroes
Are you the sort of player who just can't get enough of Warhammer Online, whether in classic form or the new Wrath of Heroes bite-sized version? Or are you a fan of the latter game and not sure if you want to keep up a subscription to the former? The latest cross-promotional deal for the games is aimed directly at players like that -- starting now, any players with active Warhammer Online subscriptions will receive a 50% bonus to gold and experience in Wrath of Heroes. There's no complicated process to getting the bonus; if you have both accounts on the same EA/Origin account, your characters will reap the benefits, although it may take up to 24 hours for the system to line up if you've just started a subscription. The bonus also stacks with items from the Wrath of Heroes store, letting veterans of Warhammer Online get ahead in the new game.
The Daily Grind: Do you play the system in games to get more freebies?
I was chatting with a friend recently about the referral system in League of Legends, debating the wisdom (or lack thereof) of a player creating multiple accounts and playing them to level five in order to get referral rewards. The ease of getting free email addresses makes this a snap -- as long as you don't mind playing levels 1-5 over and over. The argument we've both heard is that this is just how it works -- the developers know that this goes on and they don't mind. It set me to thinking. Whether it's creating multiple characters on every server in Dungeons and Dragons Online and Lord of the Rings Online to rack up Turbine Points, creating multiple email addresses to take advantage of referral programs, or any of the many other ways out there to get more freebies or save some cash, is there a line to what's acceptable? Does it vary with each person's personal comfort zone and the devs' willingness to look the other way or is there a definite list of things that no player should do? Hit the comment button and let us know what you think!
Gmail's web app adds multiple accounts, mobile signature
I do have my Gmail account connected to my iPhone's Mail app through IMAP, but occasionally there are still times (mostly when searching my archived mail) that I need to use the mobile Safari web app version of the popular mail service. So it's good to hear that Google is still updating that feature. Just recently, Google has added the option to use multiple accounts through the web app. You can even set up URLs for each account to use and set up a special mobile signature to use specifically when you send mail from the mobile web app. There's also the ability to set up vacation messages for the account, so even while you're out on vacation, you can turn on an "away-from-keyboard" notice. That way Janice from accounting doesn't wonder why you're not responding to her emails about that unpaid invoice. The additions aren't huge; they're mostly standard features that are just new to this version of the service. There are still quite a few reasons to pull up the web version of Gmail, and an update like this makes things easier for those times. Despite all of its issues, I would still recommend hooking up your Gmail to the iPhone's mail app, but having the web service to use when you want is very helpful. [via App Advice]
Behind the Curtain: Multiple MMOs pt. 2
When I started thinking about this subject, I remembered reading something on the subject a while back on the Daedalus Project. Going by the figures Nick Yee collected back in 2006, less than a quarter of the players he spoke with had more than one account. I can't help but wonder if that number will have increased or decreased with time. Without getting too much in the state of the world-economy, as we all have to tighten our belts that little bit more, we'll end up looking for cheaper ways of relaxing and blowing of some steam. I wouldn't be the first person to point out that the average cost of a monthly MMO subscription is less than you'll spend on one night at the cinema. While it's absolutely not my place to fault Dr. Yee's work, and I certainly don't intend to, I would have liked to see him also ask about how many players had more than one account active for the same game, and the reasons why. The reasons given for having subscriptions to more than one game aren't surprising. Players maintain several subscriptions due to having friends and family still active in the game; or they feel that the time spent so far with the game will be wasted if they cancelled the account; or for financial reasons like waiting for the subscription plan to expire, or simply forgetting the subscription was there. If people were asked why they play more than one game, I'd expect to see similar answers, but I'd hope to see some others, too. Game mechanics, for one. When I went back and looked at Star Wars Galaxies a while back, I didn't feel like it was a game I'd really want to play on a regular basis. That said, the crafting in the game was still as interesting as I remembered. A crafting system that isn't a simple pass/fail mechanic, rewarding time spent hunting for high-quality raw materials, and classes whose sole purpose is to craft rather than quest ticked a lot of boxes for me. And while the ground game left a lot to be desired, there was still a lot of fun to be had in space, hunting Rebels or Imperials, depending on which side your bread was buttered on. My point is that it's a rare game that provides you with everything you want. Maybe you play one game because the combat system is second to none, but another one because the RP tools in it haven't been bettered yet. Graphics are a big thing for a lot of people, and the cartoonish graphics of WoW have put off more than one person in the past, without a doubt. Realistic graphics and presentation, on the other hand, won't stop your game from being slated if it deserves it – see Age of Conan for proof. Your turn now. Do you run more than one MMO at a time? Which ones are they, and why? Hit the comments, and let the world know.
Behind the Curtain: Multiple MMOs
Is one MMO ever enough? Lots of people play more than one MMO. Among the staff here at Massively, you would be hard pressed to find a writer with only one active subscription. Ever the exception however, I am a one-game kind of guy. "Is that through choice, or necessity though, Craig?" I hear you cry. The answer is that it's a little of both. It's easy to say that I don't have enough time to play a couple of MMOs, but if I was really honest with myself, I'd admit to that being a lie. If I'm able to free up a couple of hours every couple of nights to play World of Warcraft, then why can't I alternate those nights, for example, between WoW and another game?
MMOGology: There's no place like Azeroth
I was running my daily quests for the Shattered Sun Offensive this week when one of the officers from our guild popped online. He said he was back from a session with Age of Conan and was having a blast with it. I asked him if he liked the combat mechanics – he did. I asked if he liked the quest system – he did. And he was, of course, impressed with the shiny new graphics and level of detail in the game. So naturally, my next question was whether he planned to give up World of Warcraft permanently to make Conan his new home. His answer? "Nope." I guess his response shouldn't have surprised me, even given his enthusiastic praise of Age of Conan. It seems like World of Warcraft operates as many gamers' home base. They might leave for a while to try out a new MMOG when they inevitably burn out on WoW; but most eventually gravitate back. The return might be in anticipation of an expansion, it might be that the gamer misses his guildies, or maybe it's the old, comfortable game mechanics. Whatever the reason, many of us can't seem to escape the black hole that is WoW; and maybe that's partly because we don't want to escape.I know that there are definite exceptions to this trend; those gamers who cancel their WoW accounts and never look back. But for many of the gamers I know personally, something always pulls them back to WoW and hooks them again, usually for several months at a time. Even when they're playing another MMOG they often keep their WoW accounts active to check in on friends, run a random instance, or do a little PvP. Which makes me wonder, are multiple MMOG subscriptions becoming more common?
Blue poster Belfaire explains Blizzard's stance on multiboxing
Multiboxing, the process of one person playing multiple characters on multiple accounts at one time, usually by the use of multiple computers (thus the term) and macros that can be activated on all accounts by the push of a single button, has most recently seen coverage here on WoW with our 2-man Karazhan report. The act of multiboxing is one that has been the subject of some debates, mostly centered around whether or not it violates the EULA. Those in favor of multiboxing can breathe easier today, as Blizzard poster Belfaire has stated in no uncertain terms that Blizzard has no problem with the practice in a post on the customer service forums. In short, he says that the advantages of multiboxing are no different than the advantages offered by normal grouping. Since multiboxers can be damaged, feared and CC'd as easily as separate people playing separate accounts, and since they can't do anything the same amount of characters couldn't do when played by different people, there is no reason to consider it an unfair advantage in PvP or PvE. He also answers quite a few specific questions posed by thread starter and multiboxer Velath that clarify why Blizzard accepts Multiboxing and does not consider it an exploit or an unfair advantage.
