Guild Wars 2

Scrambles.2604:

it’s not semantics. This is why everyone that tried to sell their WoW account had to put a disclaimer saying that “i am only selling the time played on this account.”

I’m not selling anything. I have the right to give away any items I procure in game. If I choose to give those items to my friends in the event of account termination, that is my right to do so.

Any argument beyond that has no relevance here. Who actually “owns” the pixels is irrelevant. For all intents and purposes, they are considered “mine” within the context of the game.

Contiguous.1345:

I’m sorry to tell you this. But this isn’t real you know. It’s no more substantial than a dream.
The ‘assets’ you are so worried about are imaginary, pointless nothings.

The actual value of the game is the fun you get out of starting with nothing and building a fairytale castle out of moonbeams. One day when you’ve had all the fun you can get out of it, you switch off for the last time and walk away, never to return.

If you hand these assets to someone else, you’re not giving them something of value, you are just spoiling the game for them. Same as if you told someone the ending of a really good film.

That is your value. I personally would find a lot of value if one of my friends left me items in game.

What is true for you, is not true for everyone, and while I respect your view, stating it as fact does not make it so.

Scrambles.2604:

As long as everything is hosted on Anets servers, it’s their assets, not yours. The only thing you own is the time played on characters.

Semantics. They are “mine” in the sense that as long as I am an active member of the game, I own those items. In the context of the game.

Those who try and argue semantics are really not adding anything. I’m well aware that my Quaggan is not real.

Rouven.7409:

Protecting his assets from what?

Unexpected deletion.

Rouven.7409:

I deleted a longer text here – in short it’s akin to asking for loop holes.

Most humans spend a great deal of time working to accumulate various assets (money, things, etc). Because these assets have value to us, and often value to the people we care about, we want to make sure that they aren’t taken away, or lost in the event of an unforeseen, or unexpected circumstance.

This is not a loophole, this is a desire to retain and distribute what we feel are valuable assets. This is why we right wills, set up retirement funds, have marriage laws, etc.

I simply don’t want all my hard work lost, if, for whatever reason I am unable to continue playing this game. Based on the evidence available, the second most likely reason this would be the case (first being that I’m running out of patience), is that my account is terminated based on the decision of ANet.

I don’t think it is unreasonable to plan for this.

Lonesamurai.4852:

yes, it’s a game, but its an MMO, NOT a normal, single player RPG

It’s about community (or at least should be, no matter what we all may think) and in this community, EVERY single person is affected by medical issues like Cancer

No matter what the media may think, these are games played by ADULTS (average North American gamer is mid 30’s, is married with a child and earns $34,000 a year according to a recent study) and it is adults that need awareness of medical issues such as this

Hell, if Comics can raise awareness of things like this, why not an MMO like GW2?

If ANet and the players are open to supporting all medical awareness topics that affect large populations of people, then I’m all for it. Singling out one medical issue over another, and especially a medical issue typically associated with one gender, doesn’t sit right with me.

Had this been a general cancer awareness month, I might not take so much of an issue.

To put it another way. If ANet supports breast cancer awareness month, but not prostate cancer awareness month, what is that saying?

LanfearShadowflame.3189:

Crazylegsmurphy.6430:

Please consider everyone.

It is not uncommon for a business to have 1 or 2 charities that it donates to. Most businesses are like that. Breast Cancer is one Anet has chosen to support, and created an in game awareness for. As such, people are going to continue this trend, and there is nothing wrong with that.

Oh. I was mistaken. I wasn’t aware this was an ANet sanctioned/promoted event. I actually find that a tad more disturbing. :/

Tamaki Revolution.3548:

No clue why you’d ever think you’d be banned. We all know what this is :P

I’m not in on the joke I guess. It is what I am claiming it is. See the post above yours for further explanation.

jheryn.8390:

This isn’t a mandatory thing. It is a private event held in game for those who wish to partake. No one is required to participate or donate or support. I honestly don’t care who holds private events for anything. That is their prerogative.

However this is a medical issue, not a religious or military one. It is something that affects all races, creeds, religions, cultures, and countries. I really don’t understand how you can make comparisons of cancer issues to religious or military ones.

If they kept it to private chat, then I suppose that wouldn’t bother me.

The comparison is to illustrate how easy it is to justify something. I could make the argument that because most people are on American servers, that the war affects them all. I could say that because a very high percentage of Americans identify with a certain religion, that there is enough evidence to support a “rally.”

Again, I just want people to be aware and conscious of what affect these things may have in the context of a game.

Red Falcon.8257:

Your account is 100% safe from termination if you stick to mature and polite behaviors.

Also, note that you don’t own anything; there is no such things as “your in-game assets”, everything on the Arena Net servers belong to them.
With the 60 bucks you just buy the client.
Your in-game and forum accounts are lent to you by Anet on the basis that you respect the Code of Conduct, but those accounts can be terminated at any time and for any reason – this includes your items, because all items in GW2 belong to Anet, including currencies.

You’re talking semantics here, which aren’t really relevant to what I’m saying, sorry.

Red Falcon.8257:

The whole change to moderation was because the level of posts lately has gone downhill; people started to take habit to toss snide remarks to Anet and post their opinions in an overly-emotional way through “politically correct” type of trolling.
For instance if you say “after playing GW2 I went to play Super Mario and I was astonished at how Nintendo doesn’t suck at making video games and their devs actually know what they’re doing” you are not directly insulting Anet, but you are indeed implying a lot of insults.

Sorry, I stated a few times that I am not interested in discussing moderation policy as per the rules.

Astralporing.1957:

In that case, the guild bank seems a good idea, but (depending on why you might get banned) may not be enough. In case of suspected goldseller farm accounts, Anet from what we hear attempts to freeze everything that came out of that account as well (assuming a complicity) – doing a massive wealth transfer might just get another account banned.

Ya, I was kind of afraid of this. I remember reading how transferring large amounts of anything in game would result in a “flagging” of both accounts. I wouldn’t be happy if in my attempt to save my assets, I got everyone else banned.

I wonder if there is a way to do this without causing issues?

Would you last two posters please explain?

That is an interpretation.

Astralporing.1957:

Not sure what you want to say here, unless you expect yourself to get banned and plan to come here protesting it with guns blazing.

I thought my first post was clear.

Honestly, my biggest tip is have patience.

Don’t be tempted to buy gems for gold. It can seem hard at first, but you’ll hit a point where things start coming quite easy. After a while, you’ll have more “Stuff” than you can deal with.

Inculpatus cedo.9234:

It would take some amount of gold, or some amount of time to establish a new personal Guild bank and upgrade it. It’s taken me over a year to almost be at the point where I can start researching Deep Cave. Maybe you have enough money to just buy the influence. Since you played since release, I’m sure you are aware of these facts, and that a Guild bank is the only way for you and others to have access to the same items.

I can’t imagine worrying about being banned from the game, unless I was planning on doing something unacceptable. Cheating, being inappropriate, buying/selling gold….

Unless you are implying someone could be removed from the game for their actions on the forum by a Moderator. No, I’m sure you wouldn’t disguise your intentions for this thread, so it must be something else. In that case, just following the rules of the ToS should keep you from worrying about any bans.

That is a good point. I may end up having to use the current guild my girlfriend and I are using. We JUST spent 50,000 influence to research the thing we need for the next 10,000 for the super bank.

I could just use that one. I just wanted to make sure it was safe from termination as well. Come to think of it, I actually think she was the one who made it in the first place.

BlueZone.4236:

Crazylegsmurphy, stop responding to the “cleverly disguised” troll posts. They’re trying to get you banned for lulz.
You’ve gotten your answer (ie. the guild bank).
Just be aware the guild bank is only accessible on the server the guild was created from, so make sure you don’t transfer to another server otherwise you’ll lose access to it. I believe it applies to guesting, as well.

I’m well aware that I’m being baited. :p

That is a good point. Thanks for bringing that up. I am pretty sure all but a few friends on my list are on my server. I’ll bring it up with those few and see if there is anything specific they want, just in case.

Thanks for bringing that to my attention.

LanfearShadowflame.3189:

Common sense….not so common…

Then think of posting on the forums as requiring similar communication techniques as communicating at work, especially work emails. Clear, concise, polite langauge, to reduce as much potential miscommunication as possible.

The issue with language is that so much can be inferred from not only just your word choice, but how you string those words together. While text (such as with a post or email) lacks the physical cues of body language, tone can still be picked up based on the aforementioned. As such, to reduce the likeliness of being misunderstood, or to have your textual tone misunderstood, you need to think carefully about how you word/phrase your communication. The same way you (should) do at work.

I agree. But, because the world is a complex place, we must also be aware that even despite our best efforts, we can’t always control what others will do, or what will happen. This is why we take out insurance, to protect ourselves in the event something happens beyond our control.

Without going into policy, I have been infracted (and many have been reversed) on quite a few occasions. There have been documented evidence of players losing their accounts due to factors beyond their control (hacks, unknown exploits, bugs, etc).

Based on those facts, I feel it is in my (and my friends/girlfriends) best interest to protect my in-game assets so if, by chance my actions/words are interpreted by someone who takes them the wrong way, and takes action, they won’t be permanently lost.

AntiGw.9367:

I’m in a position to judge your intentions, and they do look like a veiled accusation that moderators are capable of banning your account on a whim or something to that end.

That’s why the wording is “cleverly disguised”, it’s subtle and indirect, and along the lines of “not sure if trolling”.

What may appear to you to be the case, is not supported by evidence in this thread. If you want to make that judgement you are free to do so. I can’t force you to accept my explanation.

I never claimed any reason why mods would ban me. I explicitly stated I did not want, and still don’t want to discuss moderation policy in this (or any other) thread, as that IS a bannable action.

What you interpret as “cleverly disguised” is up to you. I can’t control your interpretations. The best I can do is tell you that what you’re claiming is inaccurate, and that I’m glad you’re not a moderator.

Astral Projections.7320:

A guild bank won’t really be that much help. You can’t place account abound or soul bound items in it. That pretty much leaves mats. Unless you have stacks of mats filling up your regular bank, you aren’t going to have much else to put in there as long term storage.

I do actually have a lot of mats I’ve been slowly accumulating for a legendary. I also have some armour that isn’t soul/account bound, some rare drops, a bunch of gold, and a lot of food/potions.

I feel a lot of it has value to my girlfriend and friends. I would be very upset if it were simply lost. Getting my account terminated after the amount of money and time spent would be bad enough without also losing “tangible” objects that could be of use to those who feel they would want to continue playing.

LanfearShadowflame.3189:

Some common sense should help you avoid any issues.

I suppose we define the term “common” differently.

I am responsible for my own actions, and do my best to do the “right thing,” but I am not in control of how others interpret my actions/words. As such, I need to protect myself from misinterpretation.

Wolfheart.1938:

This. Really fun (or sad?) to see how far people go just to keep the atmosphere toxic. Hint: don’t attack people, cheat or exploit. You won’t get banned. You are welcome.

By people, are you referring to me? Are you insinuating that I am purposefully trying to make this thread/forum toxic, opposed to simply asking a question I’m unclear about?

Would you consider that a personal attack?

eisberg.2379:

Ok, you accepted the consequences, but the problem is you are talking about a consequence that does in fact not exist. It is a fact that you cannot lose your game account for something you did on the forums, you can only lose forum posting privileges if you do something on the forums. You would have to do something in game to lose your game account.

I never claimed that getting banned from the forums resulted in an automatic ban from the game. At least I’m pretty sure I didn’t. I alluded to my choices were this the case.

eisberg.2379:

You account will not be terminated based on what you do in the forums. If end up being permanently banned from the forums, you are only banned from the forums, not the game. You literally do not have to worry about losing the game because of something you did in the forums.

I know.

I said above that I can’t expand on what getting banned would result in (although I’m sure it’s pretty clear). I’m not intending to make any threats, these are just my personal choices.

But, it’s good to know.

Wethospu.6437:

Send me your assets. I give them protection and shelter.

You’re the proud owner of a 250 stack of chocolate chip cookies! Congrats!

Jack of Tears.9458:

Seems pretty obvious actually; what with your follow up posts about not sharing anyone’s certainty you won’t be game banned for doing nothing. It’s fun watching you try to tiptoe around it, though, saying it without saying it. I’m wondering how long you’ll manage before they just lock the thread.

I was clear when I said I wasn’t interested in discussing it. What I feel I would and wouldn’t get banned for are not up for discussion here. I simply stated, without going into detail, that I don’t share that level of confidence.

Jack of Tears.9458:

I’d say, if yer incapable of knowing when you’re committing a bannable offense in game and you come to a spot where you can’t tell – err on the side of caution and then ask a mod. Alotta people manage to play the game every day without getting kicked out, so the rules can’t be that obscure.

I’ve had this conversation before, and I’m not really interested in rehashing it here. All I will say on the matter is that while that sounds nice in theory, I don’t feel reality reflects that. I realize a lot of people play this game every day without being terminated, I’ve personally been playing over a year, but as time goes on, and attitudes change, I need to know that my time in game and on here are going to be a waste.

I can’t say much more than that.

I think I’ve gotten the answers I need here.

I will get my girlfriend to create an “insurance guild” that can hold any valuables.

Thanks everyone for your advice and help.

Ellisande.5218:

Crazylegsmurphy.6430:

This may seem like an odd post, but please stick with me a second.

Without going into any details. For a while now, I have felt increasingly nervous about putting time and effort into this game. The reason is that due to company policy, I don’t feel confident that I am protected from account termination.

In light of recent events, I am looking for ways to protect myself and my in-game assets. Meaning, I would like to hear your advice regarding how to make sure that if my account is terminated, my girlfriend and/or friends who choose to continue playing, will have access to anything of value.

Is the guild bank the best option?

The best option is to take out insurance based on the expected real life value of having to purchase all the lost in game assets.

I’m sure you will be able to find a willing insurance company and just as sure it will be a long painful process trying to collect from them.

:)

I wish this existed in game. I would pay for account insurance. :P

AntiGw.9367:

You are making a cleverly disguised attack by trying to provoke a controversy around worrying about being “unreasonably” banned in-game by moderators.

I’m not sure you’re in a position to assume my intentions. The question I am asking is an honest one. I don’t feel confident my account is safe from termination, and want to know what I can do to not lose items that could be of value to others I care about in the game.

If you feel I have ulterior motives, that is your right, but please refrain from accusing me of malicious intent publicly. You’re free to PM me if you have something personal to say to me.

LHound.8964:

Dude,

- Guilds aren’t account bound! They are server bound. So if you create a guild, it stays there even if you are banned! All items in the guild bank stays there for the guild members who have permission to access the bank!

Ok cool. That seems to solve that. I’ll set one up and transfer what I can.

LHound.8964:

- You will not be banned unless you are cheating or somehow involved with RMT.

I don’t share your confidence. :/

LHound.8964:

- The released update with the forum rules will not get you a BAN ingame.

/cheers

I am aware of this. My actions if this happens however can’t be discussed as they will most likely be considered a “threat.”

SpyderArachnid.5619:

The policy is unclear exactly on what the moderators would find as insulting and a personal attack. It is vague, and can lead to a lot of misinterpretation.

But on to your concern, best bet is to get a personal guild for you and your friends. If you are okay with sharing those items and gold with them at all times, put it all in there. As long as you trust your friends, go for it. It’s the only way to safe guard “your” assets.

Yes, I trust my girlfriend.

I’ve never actually started a guild, so much of this is me learning. I have a guild with my girlfriend that we use for actual gameplay, but perhaps it might be best to have her create a second one (if that is allowed), and give her access. That way in the event of termination, she can access the guild and give access to anyone else (friends) that she sees fit.

I’m just trying to be clear on the logistics of doing this method.

AntiGw.9367:

This topic is precisely what they meant by “cleverly disguised” personal attacks.

I am by no means “cleverly attacking” anyone. Policy is policy and it has been made clear that it can not be discussed, which I have no interest in doing any longer.

I’ve accepted the policy and with that, I have accepted the consequences. I am looking for the best advice for keeping valuable items from being lost.

I’m still looking for an answer about creating a guild, will it be lost if my account is terminated? Would it be better for someone else to create the guild that I can place all my items into?

LHound.8964:

Crazylegsmurphy.6430:

LHound.8964:

lordkrall.7241:

Maybe the best way would simply be to not abuse people or post personal attacks?
That would protect you from “account-termination” (which, btw, is only for the forum as far as I am aware, not ingame).

This is correct:

So from this point forward, everybody who personally attacks a member of the studio will get an immediate 2 week forum suspension on the first violation. Any further attack on studio members will result in a permanent termination of your posting rights.

I have no interest in discussing forum policy that can not be discussed. Sorry.

What?
I was just quoting the actual rule, to back up lordkrall’s statement.

You won’t be banned from the game unless you cheat in the game! If you have doubts if you are doing is legit, stop doing it! According to the forum rule, you wont get a game ban, even you make a personal insult to the team!

No discussion of the rules made!
/cheers

I know, but I don’t want this thread mod-locked if one decides it is veering into moderation/policy discussion. As I’ve said, I don’t have control over what any specific mod feels is, or isn’t something, so it is best to simply avoid it.

FateOmega.9601:

Thats 1 way but some items are account bound.

Really the best way to avoid being ban is not to break the rules like insulting other players or use exploits etc.

I agree with you completely. However, as I’ve said, that is not in my hands to determine.

Yes, account bound items will be lost unfortunately. I’m mostly concerned with gold, mats, items, etc. Anything of value really.

a t s e.9614:

Arenanet is not banning people for nothing. Why would you get banned ?

Good question, but that is not in my hands to determine. I can’t say much beyond that.

lordkrall.7241:

How can you NOT know what is abuse and/or personal attacks?

“I find this release bad because of this, this and this” = Alright

“I find this release bad because ArenaNet’s devs are useless and don’t have a clue about what they are doing” = Personal attacks.

I have no interest in discussing forum policy that cannot be discussed. Sorry.

LHound.8964:

lordkrall.7241:

Maybe the best way would simply be to not abuse people or post personal attacks?
That would protect you from “account-termination” (which, btw, is only for the forum as far as I am aware, not ingame).

This is correct:

So from this point forward, everybody who personally attacks a member of the studio will get an immediate 2 week forum suspension on the first violation. Any further attack on studio members will result in a permanent termination of your posting rights.

I have no interest in discussing forum policy that can not be discussed. Sorry.

The Mexican Cookie.3690:

Make a guild bank and store all your valuables in it. Make sure that relevant parties have access to it, so that they can withdraw/deposit.

If I create a guild, and am then terminated, does the guild remain? If it does, do they retain the rights to take things out?

lordkrall.7241:

Maybe the best way would simply be to not abuse people or post personal attacks?
That would protect you from “account-termination” (which, btw, is only for the forum as far as I am aware, not ingame).

I do my best. However, based on experience it isn’t always in my hands to determine what is and isn’t considered abuse/personal attacks.

That said, I’m not here to discuss forum policy and I want that made clear. I just feel that based on said policy, I need to know the best way to protect my assets in-game.

It is clear that discussing policy will not work, so my only option is to find ways to make sure that in the event of account termination, all my time spent in-game isn’t completely wasted.

This may seem like an odd post, but please stick with me a second.

Without going into any details. For a while now, I have felt increasingly nervous about putting time and effort into this game. The reason is that due to company policy, I don’t feel confident that I am protected from account termination.

In light of recent events, I am looking for ways to protect myself and my in-game assets. Meaning, I would like to hear your advice regarding how to make sure that if my account is terminated, my girlfriend and/or friends who choose to continue playing, will have access to anything of value.

Is the guild bank the best option?

Lonesamurai.4852:

Nope, totally gotya

medical awareness is very different from a religious thing (which I wouldn’t support)

Now if a huge support event for something like a terrorist attack, or lets say to support natural disaster victims (something Blizzard do with WoW regularly), these I regularly support, especially if there is an ingame item I can show to show I have supported the event, as long as 100% of that money is indeed going to that support/awareness campaign

But there are always items like this that will be decisive with people, LGBT right, Supporting the troops, anything political or religious will divide people
But medical care, support or awareness is something every person who plays the game can get behind (not to mention the charity events are a great publicity drive for the game)

I suppose you and I have very different views of what a video game is meant for. While I’m not naive enough to think that the real world won’t bleed into an online game, I do feel that brining outside issues into a game is never the best idea.

As I stated before, there are many reasons why other players may not see these things as benign as you might. I personally get enough bombardment from causes, viewpoints, support requests, charities, and the like in my day-to-day life, the last thing I want is to be subjected to them in a game meant to take my mind off all that.

But, that is just me.

In the end, you’re welcome to do whatever you like, and justify it however you will. The reason I am posting here is because I would like others to consider things fully when it comes to bringing real world issues into a fictional game designed to be light hearted and fun.

I want everyone to consider everyone in the community, not just what makes them feel good. And while I don’t have anything personally against breast cancer awareness, I do question whether GW2 is the right place to be raising awareness, and I definitely question the idea of creating charities in game, or connected to this game in anyway.

Please consider everyone.

Lonesamurai.4852:

Crazylegsmurphy.6430:

Lonesamurai.4852:

Crazylegsmurphy.6430:

On one hand I think this is a cool idea, but on the other I’m not entirely convinced this is the best thing to be doing.

The reason is that there are many causes out there that people feel passionate about. The problem of course is that those passions aren’t always felt the same by everyone involved.

So, while most people might be perfectly ok with supporting breast cancer month, they may not be as ok with a “support the troops” or a religious cause.

I think everyones heart is in the right place, but I think we need to be very careful about bringing real world politics, causes, and such into a game with a varied community.

In addition, I don’t feel that we should entertain any charity or money exchanging. There is simply too much room for abuse.

Pink Day in LA is an old regular in game, in GW1 they eve added a proper Pink dye for the day aswell

Unlike the other two you mentioned, everyone’s life is affected by cancer in one way or another and both men and women can be affected by breast cancer

Hell, we should also do a Blue day too for Prostate cancer too

While I understand that it is somewhat of a tradition, that doesn’t mean it is a good thing (appeal to tradition fallacy).

As I said in my other post. It is all great when the majority agrees with the cause, but it can become a problem if one cause is accepted over another.

Again, having your heart in the right place is cool, but we need to remain self critical to make sure that we are not doing more damage than good.

---

side note —- I’m not sure how I feel about reenforcing gender roles using pink and blue. But, that is a topic for another thread.

It’s not about reinforcing gender stereotypes (unlike the new boys and girls versions of Kinder surprise), Pink is the colour for cancer awareness in general, however as prostate cancer is on the rise in men, it was decided that a Blue day was a good idea because us guys are horrendously useless at getting ourselves checked

And also not about tradition either, it’s about awareness and support

I understand what you’re saying. I do feel you are ignoring what I am saying though.

What would you say if a thread was started asking people to support 9/11, or a religious holiday? What about support the troops if you’re against wars? What about feminism day, or female / male genital mutilation awareness?

We need to be sensitive to the fact that not everyone sees our personal causes and such as we do. Sure, we all want people to be cured of cancer, but why is this cause more, or less important than any other?

It may be more important to you personally, but that doesn’t mean it is to everyone else. Is there a chance that a person, sitting in a hospital playing Guild Wars 2 to avoid thinking of the chemo pumping into their arms, might find people dressing in pink to be a sad thing? What about that person who is playing GW2 to take their mind of their dying mother?

I realize these are hypothetical examples, but my point is that we need to make sure that as a community we are being fair and considerate to everyone. We can either do that by being all inclusive (meaning we let everyone with a cause show their support without being attacked), or we keep those things out of the game, and reserve them to places where they might be more effective.

Lonesamurai.4852:

Crazylegsmurphy.6430:

On one hand I think this is a cool idea, but on the other I’m not entirely convinced this is the best thing to be doing.

The reason is that there are many causes out there that people feel passionate about. The problem of course is that those passions aren’t always felt the same by everyone involved.

So, while most people might be perfectly ok with supporting breast cancer month, they may not be as ok with a “support the troops” or a religious cause.

I think everyones heart is in the right place, but I think we need to be very careful about bringing real world politics, causes, and such into a game with a varied community.

In addition, I don’t feel that we should entertain any charity or money exchanging. There is simply too much room for abuse.

Pink Day in LA is an old regular in game, in GW1 they eve added a proper Pink dye for the day aswell

Unlike the other two you mentioned, everyone’s life is affected by cancer in one way or another and both men and women can be affected by breast cancer

Hell, we should also do a Blue day too for Prostate cancer too

While I understand that it is somewhat of a tradition, that doesn’t mean it is a good thing (appeal to tradition fallacy).

As I said in my other post. It is all great when the majority agrees with the cause, but it can become a problem if one cause is accepted over another.

Again, having your heart in the right place is cool, but we need to remain self critical to make sure that we are not doing more damage than good.

side note —- I’m not sure how I feel about reenforcing gender roles using pink and blue. But, that is a topic for another thread.

On one hand I think this is a cool idea, but on the other I’m not entirely convinced this is the best thing to be doing.

The reason is that there are many causes out there that people feel passionate about. The problem of course is that those passions aren’t always felt the same by everyone involved.

So, while most people might be perfectly ok with supporting breast cancer month, they may not be as ok with a “support the troops” or a religious cause.

I think everyones heart is in the right place, but I think we need to be very careful about bringing real world politics, causes, and such into a game with a varied community.

In addition, I don’t feel that we should entertain any charity or money exchanging. There is simply too much room for abuse.

Anyone who has been active on these forums a while will notice that as the game progresses, the level of dissatisfaction and criticism is steadily increasing. I won’t go into the reasons for this, but it’s basically because more updates, equals more opportunity to criticize.

This increase in criticism has meant that from the player perspective, and even more so the perspective of outsiders (Google, Game review sites, potential customers, etc.), the game can appear to be inundated with issues, and the company is not competent.

In response, it appears that ANet has decided to basically perform “damage control” by trying to control the information being presented. For example, if ANet starts posting and discussing thread topics, they can basically sway the community into talking about what they want, in a way they want.

However, it was fairly obvious that an increase of ANet employees discussing topics on this website, would inevitably create more of what they’ve been attempting to avoid (negative threads).

So, as a “preemptive strike” if you will, ANet has decided to modify the forum expectations in order to justify what will inevitably result in the suspension of many players.

The closing of the mentioned thread is, in my opinion, another attempt at control. If you go read the thread, you’ll notice that much of it is, “negative” towards ANet. Everyone was being respectful, and providing well thought out answers, which ANet has asked for, but because it didn’t paint things in a positive light, it was locked down.

Discussing this topic is going to be very difficult around here from now on. ANet has placed themselves in a position where they retain ultimate control. By using vague terminology and weasel words, they have allowed themselves the freedom to get rid of any posts, and or players who don’t contribute to what I feel is ANets new attempt at damage control.

Anyway, time will tell to what degree ANet takes this. This post alone (mine), has so many statements that an overzealous mod could determine to be “insulting” thus resulting in a suspension. This fear and hesitation of what will, and won’t be considered “insulting to an individual (Aka ANet)” will make posting here very difficult in the future.

So, from now on, whenever I press “Post Reply” the question will be, “Is this the post that will end my time here?”

This is very concerning to me.

In my opinion this is an attempt to gain power and control over these forums, not for the purpose of creating a positive and productive atmosphere, but for the purpose of controlling the content.

The sentence I just wrote, under the new policy could be interpreted as a personal insult under the new rules. Let me explain.

The Dev in this thread posted the following:

Insulting & non-constructive:
“Anet isn’t competent enough with this game”
“Anet lied to us”
“Fire whoever designed this dungeon/weapon/armor”
“whoever designes this dungeon/weapon/armor clearly has no clue”
You can discuss things we’ve said (manifesto, dev posts, blog posts, interviews) and disagree with them or even criticize. We’re okay with that. When it crosses over to insults is where we draw the line.

Its not hard to see what is going on here. ANet has essentially created an environment where any comment that they deem reflects badly on the company (not an individual), will be stricken from the record. They’ve created an environment where users must now very carefully, and very meticulously dance on eggshells to avoid what may or may not be considered a personal insult.

This kind of “force field” moderation will surely work in their favour, but will by no means improve the communication, nor productivity of these forums.

Wow…even writing this post is becoming increasingly difficult as I attempt to find a way to be clear in my criticism, but not “insulting” to an individual, which in ANet’s eyes is also all of ANet.

Perhaps I’ll approach this a different way. Here is what I believe will be the eventual outcome of this new approach to communication.

1. Some players, fully meaning to be fair and constructive will find themselves on the wrong side of interpretation, thus leading to a suspension.

2. As ANet systematically deletes posts and users that they deem “insulting”, players will start to become increasingly agitated and afraid to post.

3. The forums, while visually “positive” to any outside viewer (AKA Google, Game review sites, potential customers), the quality of communication will drop.

4. Eventually ANet will be stuck with a community of players where the majority are free from criticism, and the rest are very, very careful with what they post.

5. Players that have been suspended, are likely to personally feel insulted based on how they interpret the situation, and are less likely in the long run to contribute to the game, or the community.

6. Like other websites/companies that have tried this, what will eventually happen is that players will move to a more open forum where they can vent, communicate, and discuss freely.

I have seen this before on many software, and gaming forums. Whenever a company attempts to put themselves in a position where they can’t be touched, and additionally have the power to suspend, or ban anyone who they feel doesn’t paint them in a positive light, it almost always leads to disaster.

Anyway, based on the moderation practices I’ve personally experienced, I fully expect that my days are numbered here. Once I feel that I can no longer openly and honestly provide my feedback into this game, I will be moving on.

Communication is a two way street, and respect is earned. When an individual or company attempts to control either of those through the use of power, or control, then communication will inevitably break down.

Over the last year we’ve heard a lot of talk about how the new “Living World” was being designed in a way that would allow ANet to get more proficient at building new content. By using preexisting content, they could build more, in less time.

This Halloween, so far, seemed sorely lacking in ambition.

Sure, the new story idea isn’t too bad, and I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes, but the rest is the same content, with most of the same issues (and some new ones).

Take the Clock Tower for example. One of the most loved JPs in the entire game is back, and yes…I fully admit the decision to make other players “mists” is a welcome one for us smaller characters. However the same issues are there.

We’re still waiting for the reset every time, we still have a PvP point system that simply makes no sense to have. As well, we can’t even get the achievement for completing it, because ANet didn’t bother bringing back most of them.

Last year my girlfriend and I were on a road trip from Vancouver to Mesa. I remember we were trying desperately to get to a McDonalds to use the free WiFi so we could see the start of the Halloween festivities. It was the first major update to the game and we were really excited to see what was in store.

I remember the feeling of seeing Lions Arch all decorated, and the new events, and the cool new dungeon. This year, all those things are back, but they feel old. I’ve spent time running after doors, I’ve seen the plastic spiders, I’ve run the “labyrinth” ad nauseam, I’ve attempted the Clock Tower….what now?

Anyway, this got longer than expected. I just feel that if ANet is going to continue to plead with us to have patience, then I would expect that it would result in something fantastic.

Here are a few ideas I think would have been much more fun this year.

- Haunted House
- Actual Trick or Treating (dress up and go door to door in cities, towns, etc)
- Clock Tower 2.0 with a more (Arkham Asylum: Scarecrow feel)
- Graveyard events
- Costume Contests
- Zombie Walk (PvP style games using zombies)
- A darker, more scary Lions Arch
- Pumpkin weight guessing (like Moa Race)
- Scavenger hunt 2.0
- Bone Weapons / Armour

Josh Foreman is so amazing! How is he not running the forums?

Chris Whiteside.6102:

Asuka Shikinami.5462:

Good Morning Chris,

It may be worth creating a separate thread (for each game mode) for people simply to list (no discussion) what they think are the issues atm or the aspects of the game they would appreciate develper feedback on. This one is all over the place.

I think that’s a good idea. Should we close this thread? And then i will create a new one in each forum area asking for folks to list the area they would most like to discuss?

I can then open a new thread about Polls on Monday on the main forum?

Chris

Sure, I would post my mockups again if that’s fine. I know you’ve seen them, but it would like to hear more feedback from everyone to see if its viable.

This post is very much all over the place though, it might be worth packing it up and starting fresh with some clear and concise discussion topics.

Someone in another thread brought up the concern about players getting spammed. The following are my thoughts.

If it were I designing the survey questions, they would be only used in places that really made sense. For example, I don’t think we really need surveys every time we beat a champ with the same mechanics as say the ones in Queensdale.
However, the first time you fight say, Jormag, then it would make sense to have the icon change.

The nice thing about the idea (proposed a few pages back by Erick-Alastor), is that it is fairly unobtrusive. Like the the BLTC, or the skills icon, it doesn’t really get in your way while you play. While a bird could be used to draw attention to it, even that isn’t really needed, as long as the icon changes it should be enough to prompt the player.

Like the other icons however, the only issue is that if there is an active alert already, the player may miss a new one. For me personally, that’s a small price to pay to keep it out of the players face (aka, no popups).

You’re right though, getting spammed is a concern, but I think that if ANet were to confine the surveys to important events and major disussion topics, the “disruption” would be minimal. As well, as the players start completing surveys, the frequency would come less and less (you don’t need a survey every time you fight The Maw).

Marcus Greythorne.6843:

Crazylegsmurphy.6430:

Marcus Greythorne.6843:

haha this makes ingame polls actually immersive, nice idea Only problem I can think of: how do you make the connection between the things you want to ask about (a specific event etc.) and the dialogue?

What are your guys’ thoughts on the mockups I did on page 15?

I think the idea is great, I love the little icon on top, and even it’s not as immersive as the bar-idea I like it way better. It’s quite inconvenient to go to a bar every time you want to give feedback, even if it would feel great that we lore-fans get a bit of immersion.

The idea to make it part of an achievement to go to the bar sounds good on first sight to me, but on second thought it would be quite bland, like having to go to the laurel vendor. Not so interesting if you “have to” do it.

Your idea… I think it could also use some filters. Maybe I don’t want to get the pop up /change in color every time. I don’t want to get spammed. The player should be able to clarify on which topic he wants to give feedback, and maybe how frequently.

Cool, thanks.

If it were I designing the survey questions, they would be only used in places that really made sense. For example, I don’t think we really need surveys every time we beat a champ with the same mechanics as say the ones in Queensdale.

However, the first time you fight say, Jormag, then it would make sense to have the icon change.

The nice thing about the idea (proposed a few pages back by Erick-Alastor), is that it is fairly unobtrusive. Like the the BLTC, or the skills icon, it doesn’t really get in your way while you play. While a bird could be used to draw attention to it, even that isn’t really needed, as long as the icon changes it should be enough to prompt the player.

Like the other icons however, the only issue is that if there is an active alert already, the player may miss a new one. For me personally, that’s a small price to pay to keep it out of the players face (aka, no popups).

You’re right though, getting spammed is a concern, but I think that if ANet were to confine the surveys to important events and major disussion topics, the “disruption” would be minimal. As well, as the players start completing surveys, the frequency would come less and less (you don’t need a survey every time you fight The Maw).