The folks at Tibia have taken a hard line on cheaters within the game, recently banning almost 5000 accounts for using unofficial software.

Regensburg, February 3, 2009 — CipSoft has taken action against cheaters within their MMORPG Tibia. Almost 5000 player accounts have been blocked for the use of unofficial software.

“Tibia is online for more than 12 years.” says Florian Eckert, responsible Product Manager at CipSoft. “During that time, our community developed a sophisticated and balanced society. Protecting this equilibrium is one of the key tasks for us.”

The use of unofficial software, generally referred to as ‘cheating’, gives players an unfair advantage over others by automating tricky tasks or even controlling the whole character in game. Identifying players who use such programs is sometimes very hard, as the used software is designed to imitate natural behaviour.

“Cheaters endanger the sensitive balance within our grown community.” Eckert continues. “We do not tolerate this. We've tried a few things but ended up developing our own tool which now automatically detects cheaters with complete accuracy. The current measures are just the first act in the play and we will intensify our efforts even further.”

For some of the affected accounts, this block is a final warning, for others it constitutes the ultimate deletion of their account. Asked about the financial consequences for CipSoft, caused by blocking or deleting thousands of customers’ accounts, Eckert explains “We are convinced that our game will be even more attractive, once we are done with the cheaters. Therefore, we are very optimistic.”

Read more here.

That's nice and all but I have never even heard of this game before.

Originally posted by AlienShirt

That's nice and all but I have never even heard of this game before.

Clearly you are the only person the article was directed at, not the readers of the site as a whole, right?

/facepalm

 Tibia is another of those f2p games with an item shop.  

It basically looks a lot like the old UO prior to the graphics update, but it runs just about on any system.  But it is non anime and seems to have a fairly large following.  

Always like to see developers who take the time to deal with the cheaters.

When a developer cheats the virtual world concept by selling in game advantages, does it matter?

Its f2p and it hasnt got item shop, there is just option to p2p. Its fairly hardcore, ffa pvp, player looting, player housing, VERY harsh death penalties with a lot of drama and politics involved. The downside is unmature player base. Played it for few years back in the days. :)

    Sad thing is there is way too much cheating in almost any online game.........

Wow, didn't even think 5000 people even played that game.  That's a damn lot of cheating!

Originally posted by Ludwix

Its f2p and it hasnt got item shop, there is just option to p2p. Its fairly hardcore, ffa pvp, player looting, player housing, VERY harsh death penalties with a lot of drama and politics involved. The downside is unmature player base. Played it for few years back in the days. :)

It most certainly DOES have an item shop, it is on the menu of their home page.

Originally posted by Samuraisword

When a developer cheats the virtual world concept by selling in game advantages, does it matter?

Valid argument. 

In fact, why don't these "item shop" mmogs just go ahead and sell bot programs in the shops. 

Just like some mmogs did with gold farming - make bot sales part of the game.

Originally posted by Ozmodan

 

Originally posted by Ludwix

Its f2p and it hasnt got item shop, there is just option to p2p. Its fairly hardcore, ffa pvp, player looting, player housing, VERY harsh death penalties with a lot of drama and politics involved. The downside is unmature player base. Played it for few years back in the days. :)

It most certainly DOES have an item shop, it is on the menu of their home page.

You meen THIS shop?

www.cafepress.com/cipsoft/3104995

This is where the Shop link on the main website takes you.

Lets see, what do they sell here? They sell real life T- shirts, Posters, caps and they sell mugs too! wow, thats some epic inbalance! next they are going to sell mousepads too......wait, they actually do sell mousepads! heartless bastards!

Tibia is free to play but it also offers a monthly subscribtion option called premium, which gives you the full game experience.

Why Buy Premium Time?
Tibia is free, and players are welcome to play free of charge for as long as they like. However, if you enjoy Tibia, you may consider buying premium time to take Tibia even further. As a premium player you will have additional abilities and advantages inside and outside the game. Buy premium time to make Tibia even more fun!

The following benefits are available to premium players:

Access to Premium Areas
As a premium player you can travel to the mysterious islands of Edron and Darama that are looming large to the east of the main continent. Also the legendary Shattered Isles in the South are definitely worth a visit. Explore huge new areas and dungeons you have never seen before. Visit new cities! Do new quests! Battle new monsters! And on top of it all, a further premium area is available on Rookgaard. You will find that as a premium player there is simply more to see and more to do.
Transportation
All premium player can use the Tibian transport system. There are ships and magic carpets available for a comfortable journey. For a small fee our captains will bring you to all cities and even to some remote islands. Premium time will surely save you some long and tiresome marches.
Improved Login
Of course, when the rush is on premium players have an advantage when it comes to logging in. As a premium player you will be able to log in on all game worlds even if the regular player limit has already been reached. Play Tibia whenever you like!
Cool New Spells
The mighty wizards from the magic guild of Edron have developed new spells. Cast haste on your character and run away from your enemies! Fry your opponents with the mighty Hell's Core! From useful everyday spells to powerful offensive magic, premium players simply have more spells to cast!
Character Promotions
Premium characters of level 20 or higher can be promoted to a veteran rank which results in several important advantages over regular characters. To name but a few, promoted characters regenerate mana, soul points and hit points faster than regular players, and they lose fewer experience points and skills upon death. Bring out the best in your characters and promote them today!
Renting Houses
Premium players are allowed to rent houses or flats in which your characters can recover from the hardships of an adventurer's life. Furnish your new home with all kinds of furniture and impress your fellow Tibians with your stately home! Invite your friends and have parties! You will find that having a home of your own is a rewarding experience you would not want to miss once you have had it!
Guild Leadership
Why serve in heaven when you can rule in hell? As a premium player you can found a guild of your own. Choose your own cool name and logo, recruit followers and rent a nice guildhall! As a premium player you will be able to build up the guild of your dreams. Make a name for yourself as the leader of a powerful Tibia guild!
Access to a Premium-Only Game World
Dreaming of a world with a manageable community? The world of Premia might be just what you are looking for! A world that is exclusively reserved to premium players, Premia has fewer inhabitants than other worlds. If it is stress-free hunting and relaxed adventuring you want, you should come over to Premia today!
Improved Chat Options
Premium players are allowed to open up private chat channels to which they can invite their friends. Also, if you are a premium player, your VIP list will be greatly enlarged in size. With up to 100 players on your list you will always know when your friends and foes are online!
Larger Depots
As a premium player you can store even more items in your depots. The extended limit is 2000 items per depot.

Premium service is a velvet rope, a form of microtransaction for advantages. In a real virtual world there should not exist a velvet rope separating one class of player from another based on real world money spent. If a developer wants to have a premium player server and a non premium player server, that would be ok since all players in the same virtual world would have a fair level playing field. The premium service in Tibia though is marketed as gaining advantages over other players simply by paying more. That is an unfair concept in a virtual world.

Originally posted by Samuraisword

Premium service is a velvet rope, a form of microtransaction for advantages. In a real virtual world there should not exist a velvet rope separating one class of player from another based on real world money spent. If a developer wants to have a premium player server and a non premium player server, that would be ok since all players in the same virtual world would have a fair level playing field. The premium service in Tibia though is marketed as gaining advantages over other players simply by paying more. That is an unfair concept in a virtual world.

 

You're just nitpicking, You're dying to look for excuses to bash the game. The game simply offers a free service and a premium service. If you pay the standard monthly fee you'll get access to the full game. People who are playing for free have no right to complain as they are not paying for the game.

It's a standard monthly fee game with the only exception being that there is also a possibility to play for free.

Premium player A is on the same ground as premium player B.

I agree with gameloading. I also find it ridiculous to say it is unfair to offer a f2p and a p2p(which offers more options) and that all players should be on even ground. F2p players are on equal ground with free players and the P2p is equal with other P2p.  The owners of the game can set up whatever pricing structure they desire...and players can opt to play or not to play, whether it is free or p2p. When one person goes to macdonalds and orders the #3 meal and upgrades to large fries and drink for $1.00 more...does that mean the next person who orders the #3...but doesn't have the extra dollar for the large meal...is getting screwed over?