I quit WoW several years ago because of all the stupid decsisions Blizzard was making. This new change just means I wont play Starcraft 2 either.

People always like to say "Well then just quit" or "Speak with your wallet." The issue is that course of action doesn't work on its own. It is like voting, sure you could just go out and vote and hope that enough people vote your way but that isn't really going to accomplish anything, there is a reason why every candidate has a support team who's whole job is to get people to vote for them and not the other guy. In order to get something accomplished you have to campaign for your cause, because just like voting in real life, when it comes to voting with your wallet a lot of people either 1)Don't ever vote or 2)Don't have a clue of what they're actually voting on.

When it comes to a new bill for example, a huge portion of our country don't have a clue about anything (arguable a larger percentage of the population then does understand the issues). Those people still vote one way or the other, but since they don't understand the issue at hand, they have to be led to vote one way or another.

Nothing has ever been accomplished in life by people sitting back and choosing a side on an issue in peace and by themselves. Everything has been accomplished by campaigning for a side and getting people to realize why they should vote your way. So saying people should just quit if they don't like it is not enough, they need to try and convince those who will automatically side with blizzard no matter what they do, that what blizzard is doing is wrong and bad for the future of gaming.

Blizzard gets away with a lot of stuff, and it has nothing to do with that stuff being a good thing to do. It has everything to do with 90% of their player base being completely apathetic and just siding with Blizzard no matter what happens. That is a bad thing. It's not enough to speak with your own wallet, you have to convince  others to join you.

My sentiments as always, "put up or shut up".  Nothing more ridiculous than people ranting over an over on a board that shows they're still paying to play the game.

"You can spit in my eye only 16 more times, and THEN I'm leaving!"

Quit the game, and post in your exit survey why you're quitting.  Enough people quit, they'll learn.  Posting how much you hate the decision while still paying for the game makes your words empty and pointless, literally.  You might as well  be saying how much you hate a restaurant's food with a mouth full of it while ordering the second course and leaving a huge tip.

Credibility, it's not just for breakfast anymore.

Re: SnarlingWolf, nothing gets accomplish by ranting and paying, either.  If you don't like it, quit.  If enough people quit, it will change.  If you are the only one that quits, then it's just you that doesn't like it.  It's called capitalism, and it really is that simple.

What you want is to eat your cake and have it to, you want Blizz to value you as a person and your input, but to Blizz you are .00000000001% of their game population.  Keep in mind, they deliberately and with forethought of the consequences alienated 1% of their gaming population by making the upper tiers of the game easier and more available.  They intentionally decided "we have 30% of the  game being seen by 1% of the population, and if we change it, that top 1% will very likely leave the game, but the other 99% will enjoy it more....very well, sacrifice that 1%". 

As a consumer of a 12 million player game, your words could not be more empty, because they're not heard in the cacaphony.  If you quit, and you are alone, then it's just you, go play something else.  If enough people quit, Blizz will have to change to save the cash cow.  Not rocket science.

Good column.  Wish more people here had as level a head on their shoulders as Mr. Wood (myself included).

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

Totally agree that walking away is a very important step. But honestly, you generally shouldn't just up and quit everytime the devs propose a change that offends you. There needs to be the opportunity for the devs to hear feedback (they announced they are going to do something soon, they didn't just go and do it), then assess as to whether or not they're still making the best decision.

There needs to be the 'hey if you guys are serious about this change, I'm gonna quit' dialog.

If the devs stick to their guns, fine, it's time to make good on your promise to quit.

BUT...

It needs to be public. It doesn't need to be hate filled or ranting or whatever (agree childish ranting can seriously compomise your cause), but your decision to leave needs to not just be addressed to the devs, but to the current consumers and potential consumers as well.

Word of mouth is the most powerful decision making tool a consumer has going for them, and if you want to make your point heard by any dev, they need to know you're not just taking your account from them, you're taking an unknown number of potential accounts as well.  That DOES sting them where it counts. Which is good. Not because you can have a feeling of revenge, but because showing that the players can't be screwed over is a GOOD thing for everyone (even the devs) when it comes to the next product being an actual improvement in MMO's and not just a more efficient money making scheme.

This is the strongest way to protest this.  If a person truly feels that they are being slighted by Blizzard then your best course of action is to cancel your subscription.    Money is very powerful thing.    Screaming, rantng and raving has little to no effect if you're one of millions of little fish in a school at sea.

People have already started leaving over this. I wouldn't be surprised if it's more each day. I'm giving Bliz. a chance to come to their collective senses. If this is pushed live, the next step would be in game if this is successful. I never signed up for World of Facebook. If this does in fact go through, don't worry. I will be leaving. There's too many other mmorpgs out these days to have to put up with this.

I agree with the article. As for hurting the company by quitting, it should'nt matter to you if you get a thousand people to quit when you do. To thy own self be true, If you arent happy then leave and happy wishes to the people that don't mind the changes and stay.

One thing is for sure though, for those that stay they will probably be alot nicer to people knowing that some nut job with anger issues could hunt them down because they know thier real name.

This is a volitile board?  No.....  8P

Anyways right on target in terms of speaking with the pocket book.  Personally, I have never really gotten into WoW all that much and don't play it currently.  So I'm unaffected by their choice of putting someone's real name on a forum board.  I also don't tend to troll boards except here (must be the volitility).  So even if I did play the game I likely wouldn't be in their forums.  So either way this doesn't bother me too much but I certainly can understand why people would be hot under the collar on this one.

1.  They will loose their current forum identity, good or bad most people probably have been there for years under their current id.

2.  It's certainly not a common practice to use one's given name on a forum and hasn't been since the days of Prodigy Online.

3.  People worry about the nut job factor, will these crazy people on the forums hunt me down for my oppossing opinion?

I'm sure the list could expand but it's definitely a "bold' move.  I think from Blizzard's aspect they're doing this as a way to virally market their game.  Whats the old addage, "The only thing worse than being talked about... Is not being talked about."

Sage words. Put your money where your mouth is, or so. I don't have subscribed any Blizzard product and I am sure as hell never to buy any. But you can spread the word to friends and family, so they are aware.

Well said, well written.  Finally, some brevity on the situation.

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

 

This. Cya D3 and SC2!

Agree.. I am not going to use the new forums but it is not enough to put me out of the game. That is as simple as it is.

Originally posted by MacAllen

My sentiments as always, "put up or shut up".  Nothing more ridiculous than people ranting over an over on a board that shows they're still paying to play the game.

"You can spit in my eye only 16 more times, and THEN I'm leaving!"

Quit the game, and post in your exit survey why you're quitting.  Enough people quit, they'll learn.  Posting how much you hate the decision while still paying for the game makes your words empty and pointless, literally.  You might as well  be saying how much you hate a restaurant's food with a mouth full of it while ordering the second course and leaving a huge tip.

Credibility, it's not just for breakfast anymore.

Re: SnarlingWolf, nothing gets accomplish by ranting and paying, either.  If you don't like it, quit.  If enough people quit, it will change.  If you are the only one that quits, then it's just you that doesn't like it.  It's called capitalism, and it really is that simple.

What you want is to eat your cake and have it to, you want Blizz to value you as a person and your input, but to Blizz you are .00000000001% of their game population.  Keep in mind, they deliberately and with forethought of the consequences alienated 1% of their gaming population by making the upper tiers of the game easier and more available.  They intentionally decided "we have 30% of the  game being seen by 1% of the population, and if we change it, that top 1% will very likely leave the game, but the other 99% will enjoy it more....very well, sacrifice that 1%". 

As a consumer of a 12 million player game, your words could not be more empty, because they're not heard in the cacaphony.  If you quit, and you are alone, then it's just you, go play something else.  If enough people quit, Blizz will have to change to save the cash cow.  Not rocket science.

 Well you completely 100% missed what my post was saying, truly.

I want to have my cake and eat it to? I don't subscribe to WoW, and I no longer plan on buying SC2 which I had been looking forward to. So where is the cake again?

Might want to reread my post and see if you can figure out how you were able to completely misinterpret it to feed into your opinion of people who don't like the change. I don't give Blizzard one cent of my money.

Cancelled my SC2 pre-order today due to this stupidity and according the saleswoman there were a few others cancelling for the same reason.

Good article, Jon. Well-argumented and level-headed.

Only language Blizz understands is: Money ! Take it away from them and you'll find Kotick kneeled before your door.

I've left WoW  since a while by now and it's been one of my best decisions. However I fully support this campaign because Blizzard's initiatives tend to become market-standard. And that's not a thing I would like. I avoid FB and other social networks like Black Plague for my privacy's sake.

Sometimes, resistance is not futile...

"because it is so rarely backed up with action."

um wrong.  This comment alone basically obliterates any credibility the article had going for it.

People very often do quit games because of bad decisions by the devs.  However, you can strike a much harder blow by sticking around and complaining until other people are upset not only at bliz's decision, but also by all the complaining.  You can also convince others, which means even more complaining and more potential subscriber loss.

Just quitting and moving on is what bliz wishes the complainers would do. 

So, in the end, each and every WoW player out there needs to ask themselves on very simple but very important question:

Do I feel strongly enough about the changes being brought in by the REAL ID system to honestly pack up and walk away from WoW, potentially forever?

If you answered yes to that question, then you need to actually do it. If you didn't, you need to seriously ask yourself if getting all worked up is a good use of your time given that you're not willing to exercise the only real power you have in your relationship with Blizzard to make a difference.

this^^

for me I don't care really, I don't play WoW , and also it only affect they official forums, motive some games the fansite forums are far more usefull then the offcial one.

also jsut a link just for the fun of it XD

http://thenoobcomic.com/index.php?pos=378

Originally posted by Terikan3

"because it is so rarely backed up with action."

 

um wrong.  This comment alone basically obliterates any credibility the article had going for it.

 

People very often do quit games because of bad decisions by the devs.  However, you can strike a much harder blow by sticking around and complaining until other people are upset not only at bliz's decision, but also by all the complaining.  You can also convince others, which means even more complaining and more potential subscriber loss.

Just quitting and moving on is what bliz wishes the complainers would do. 

 I think you and Mr. Wood are both correct. I think a lot of people do quit over bad decisions, but many do complain over and over ...stay on official forums.....in game.....and keep complaining.

I haven't logged on to these forums for years, but I wanted to say something, even if it is just the same things you've been hearing since this news announced.

This move is just mind boggling.  It's clear to me now that this is no longer the Blizzard we remember from a long time ago.  The Blizzard that made 3 amazing franchises and the most sucessful MMO in the world?  No, that Blizzard is gone, and all that's left is a puppet of Activision.  I've been told the majority of Blizzard employees are just as distraught with this decision as many of us and WoW players are.

I won't be cancelling my subscription, but my view on the company has changed dramatically and I now feel weary about giving 15 dollars a month to them.  I'm also seriously questioning if I want to buy Starcraft 2.  Should Real ID ever be required in game, you can kiss my ass goodbye, along with half the playerbase.

Come on Blizzard, kick Robert Kotick out of your company, please don't be the next Star Wars Galaxies.

Jon, are you the Lord Humungus? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ttKJwvFIgw

Originally posted by Kyleran

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

I am in that boat too. If you type "Jon Wood" Facebook search, you probably have several to choose from. If you put my name in there, you get me. Just me.  If you google my name, everything that comes on the first several pages of hits is me and stuff I have posted under my own name. 

Re: People complaining and quitting:

I have noticed that some changes cause people to flee from a game-- I hate to bring it up anywhere, but there was that SWG NGE thing that seemed to cause a fairly large exodus. It doesn't even matter that the policy didn't change when those people left because it no longer applied to them. They go play other games and SOE doesn't get their money. 

On the other hand, back when EQ1 was still all the rage,  there were protests from time to time, in game and in the forums, and sometimes things got changed, but mostly they didn't. People would throw fits about problems with or changes to their classes, swearing they'd quit, but mostly they didn't-- they just switched to a different class. So, it does seem true that people will rant and froth all over the forums and in-game, but don't actually quit. 

I think all MMO players should care, because if Blizzard pulls this off, you can bet that every other company will be doing something like it in a year or two.

I'm thinking about what Kyleran said, maybe all those people voicing their protests, should send Activision a good old fashioned paper mail letter. It is too easy to delete e-mail. If nothing else they would have to hire a truck to take them away ... would draw some attention eh? ;)

Yes, the nuclear option of leaving needs to always be there, but if that is the only way of communicating with a company, you can't communicate much.  

The phase people are in now is sort of a floudering "I've been blindsided with something I never expected to be a variable in my decisions".   People aren't thinking like consumers yet, they're thinking like wounded community members.   Even the people who are claiming to be jumping to another game are doing it just because it's another game, not because they've actually compared privacy policies carefully.   Until I start seeing serious apples-to-apples discussions of which games offer a better commitment to not go down the same road as RealID, I'm willing to believe the firestorm of angst in the WoW community will eventually pass.

Hard to disagree on one point, as it is simple logic: If you really "hate" a game (I'm still trying in vain to imagine how such a thing can happen, but still), you should probably quit. Don't turn it into a dysfunctional relationship, as there's enough of that in the real world. :)

If it's making you angry all the time, you should probably quit. If it's making you miserable, you should probaby quit. Hell, you probably know when you should quit, and you probably know you have a bit of a problem if you still can't. 

On the other hand, the written word has power even the basest of trolls can enjoy - someone with a well-expressed opinion, more so. Jon should know this, as he is a writer - and after all he has written this, right? :)

Your disappointment nicely worded and explained matters. People complaining on forums for a record number of posts in a day matter...

But only if you put your money where your mouth is! No need to shut off either one. :)

Now I am going to go and buy a couple of boxes so that I can cancel *both* and send them a message! Oh wait -

I quit :D feels good to be playing something new for a change.

My opinion is that a lot of those who complain are just drama queens. First, I do not want anyone to convert me. I can't convince you that this change will not affect the quality of their games in any way, but neither can you convince me that this change is a game-breaker. You will just end up pissing off people who don't care about this change or don't see it as that much of a big deal.

You won't buy starcraft and diablo because of this??? Seriously?? I just find it amusing that anyone will pass on a great game just because of a forum change.

People will make a compromise with this. They might quit but they will eventually come back. Mark my words.

I already pre-purchase the SC2 Collector Edition, and will also purchase for Diablo3 Collector as well as Cata's expansion once announced! As long as me and my friends can continue to fund in anyway Blizzard we will continue to do so at all costs.

I agree 110% with any decision they make, including RealID!!!

Originally posted by ocbdare

My opinion is that a lot of those who complain are just drama queens. First, I do not want anyone to convert me. I can't convince you that this change will not affect the quality of their games in any way, but neither can you convince me that this change is a game-breaker. You will just end up pissing off people who don't care about this change or don't see it as that much of a big deal.

You won't buy starcraft and diablo because of this??? Seriously?? I just find it amusing that anyone will pass on a great game just because of a forum change.

People will make a compromise with this. They might quit but they will eventually come back. Mark my words.

Well, drama is what makes the world go round. Understand drama and you begin to understand human beings.

Otherwise you will keep saying "Seriously?" and "I just don't get..." and "I can't believe" till the end of days...

You'll even believe you cannot convince any other person - despite the fact that you had me there for a moment. :)

I wish there was a link to what excatly Real ID was because I initially though it would be some kind of facebook link to your ingame avatar. Time to go find out for myself.

holy crap. 2014 pages and counting..

news link

there are two good reasons why I’m not the one to start spouting off about it: 1) I don’t play World of Warcraft, so this move, at least for now, doesn’t affect me in the slightest. 2) As a condition of my job, I post on a volatile internet forum on a daily basis using my real name. 

Your article is pretty decent, even though I disagree with you, and I applaud your encouraging people to take what little action they can that will actually make an impact. I have already canceled my subscription and no longer plan to buy Cataclysm, SC2, and D3 (whenever that happens).

I do disagree with the part I quoted above though, and here's why:

1) I don't play World of Warcraft, so this move, at least for now, doesn't affect me in the slightest.

It's the same mentality that a large portion of the player base has taken on when they say "well I don't use the forums so it doesn't matter" -- it doesn't affect me right now, so why do I care?

Blizzard is a leading gaming company; others will follow suit. This may be shocking and new now, but if gamers, forums users, and people in general allow this, it will become the standard, not the exception. You should care because you post online. And giving out your name is a big deal, as evidenced by this article: 

http://seewhatyoudidthere.com/2010/07/07/realid-changes-the-very-real-ease-of-stalking-in-the-internet-age/

Check it out, in 20 minutes, the author of the article found a ton of information about the forum poster who said "what's the big deal? My name is ----- ------." and called the forum poster at work, who then realized the real potential for harm.

By the way, a lot of places use Social Security Numbers as a means of identification (even though I think technically they're not supposed to) such as colleges/universities. For example, a classmate at my university of mine told me he could get my social security number in less than a minute because he knows my first and last name. Your information is not safe anyway, but handing it out on a silver platter is not a good idea either.

My point in all of this is that not just WoW forum users, not just WoW players, not just gamers, not just forum users, not just internet users, but EVERYONE in the world, especially "free nations," should be concerned about and offended/angered by a company that has the audacity to force its customers to give out their personal information, regardless of whether that information is "just" their name or not.

and 2) As a condition of my job, I post on a volatile internet forum on a daily basis using my real name. 

What's your point? It's YOUR job. It's not my job. It's not the other 11 million WoW subscribers' job. It's YOURS. You chose to accept the position knowing that posting with your name was a condition of getting paid. Key word: chose. It was a choice that you made AND you're an employee. WoW subscribers are not employees. They're customers. Does your insurance agent plaster your name on the door of their office building? Does your doctor post your chart on a bulletin board? Does your bank put your name on its signs? No. They don't. Because you are the customer and they respect your privacy.

Of course I know that I can unsubscribe (I have), refrain from buying future products (I will), and turn on parental control settings for Real ID (which I will). But my boycotting doesn't make their actions any less wrong and I have a right as a free citizen of a free nation to voice my opinion. The fact that they can even do something like this seems like something that slipped through legislative cracks.

Furthermore, as a professional, the people who read your articles generally respect your privacy. They know it's your job, and short of a few crazies, I bet most people have left you alone. Call your local radio/TV stations and ask them the same question, I'll bet you get a similar answer--most people leave them alone. But then, they're not forcing every person who watches the 11 o'clock news to use their real name to submit phone/video/forum responses. Some people do, and that's their choice, but some don't, and that's their choice too.

The issue here is not necessarily posting with real names. The issue is being FORCED to post with real names without real choice. The only choice that exists under the new Real ID system is "post or don't" which, for people with any kind of security/safety issues, isn't a choice at all, and for people who need help, isn't much of a choice.

I opened by saying that your article was well-done, and I respect you as a writer/reporter, but I seriously think your opinion is flawed and highly recommend you reevaluate your perception of the situation. This does not just affect the couple hundred thousand people that actually use the WoW forums. It affects everyone who believes s/he has freedom of choice and the right to keep his/her personal information private.

Originally posted by Moodah

I think all MMO players should care, because if Blizzard pulls this off, you can bet that every other company will be doing something like it in a year or two.

I'm thinking about what Kyleran said, maybe all those people voicing their protests, should send Activision a good old fashioned paper mail letter. It is too easy to delete e-mail. If nothing else they would have to hire a truck to take them away ... would draw some attention eh? ;)

It is not likely other MMOs will follow Blizzard's example in this case.  Blizzard will lose subs and I'm sure they know it, but it will only be a drop in the bucket compared to its millions.  Other MMOs can't afford that drop.

This is exactly what I did. 

I was the person who stalked the kid and called him at work the other day (http://bit.ly/cWG59Q ), and after getting a huge response from that post, and thinking on it overnight, I've written this post as a reasoning to my cancelation ( http://bit.ly/aDYyFx ) and have gone ahead and done it. I don't want to leave, but if this remains in-game and goes live, I will not be coming back to WoW or *any* Activision Blizzard product so long as they so unabashedly disregard the safety and security of their customer base. 

I quit WoW just recently and was planning to go back until I read about the RealID news... I never used my real name in any social networking sites in the internet for security reasons. Having it posted in a popular mmo forums for the whole world to see is something that really ups my paranoia. I'm just glad I quit the game earlier.

people now have a chance to vote with their vallets. we'll see how strong their faith is.

imo, battlenet security is turning into a joke. email as login? email publicly available? real name publicly available? if that isn't forcing people to buy additional protection, by reducing quality of service, i don't know what is.

meh. i quit playing two years ago. i guess i won't start again anytime soon.

I quit  yesterday and I left them a note about their ridiculous decision.  I disagree with those who say "stay and complain"... on a situation such as this one.   It's better to leave and give   very concise, well written, reasons why you have taken your money and used it to better purpose.

Don't be fooled into thinking a business is more concerned with their paying customers than those who have left and had good reason for doing so.

I don't see what the big deal is. More than half of the people I know have fake names for online things.

I can't wait to see how Blizzard's forums will be like in a few months when more than half of the people are "John Smith".

If you guys are so aggravated, go find another MMORPG. Leave a complaint before you go. Eventually they'll get the idea. I'd say roughly 40% or more people don't support this move, including people who don't support it but don't really care either. That's a big chunk of players (and money).

For me, I'm not playing Starcraft on Battle.net anymore for sure. I'll find some other RTS like the Command and Conquer series. Just leave quietly. Blizzard will still feel the pain.

As for you RPGers, go play something like Guild Wars (Guild Wars 2 coming out soon, gonna be awesome) or, if you really like WoW's design, play Runes of Magic (which pretty much requires money). If you're willing to pay $15 a month to play a game, you probably won't  mind paying $20 a few times a year (for making your gear better).

In my opinion those that stay and complain, on the official forums thus revelaing their real names if they do so after the change happens, will have less weight than those hat cancel their suscriptions, Activision-Blizzard will already have your money, you stayed with them, they know you are hooked. They will then start to think about how to move the line in the sand again, and how they can more profits from you.

The way to get Activision-Blizzard to take notice is to actually hit their bottom line, remove your money from them, they will then have to explain the declines in profit to their shareholders, and someone will be held to account for the decision.

If you stay, the bottom line doesnt change and the shareholders arent unhappy, and they can safely ignore and delete and mute all the rage posts on THEIR forum, as they dont have to entertain criticism on it if they don't want to.

Originally posted by huntard

I already pre-purchase the SC2 Collector Edition, and will also purchase for Diablo3 Collector as well as Cata's expansion once announced! As long as me and my friends can continue to fund in anyway Blizzard we will continue to do so at all costs.

I agree 110% with any decision they make, including RealID!!!

Proving yet again that the addicts will continue to get bent over a table until they pull the plug on the game.

Sad, sad sheeple; too blind to see where this is headed.

I will be happy to speak with my wallet, as some of you mention.  I have no desire to support this trend.  I'd be very interested to see the real (you know, the factual ones) cancellation trend as a result of this upcoming change.  I've seen many posts claiming to cancel.  How many really will, and how many will be back when Cata hits?  I will be emailing to have mine completely deleted, so none of that for me!

~Hashberry, seeking MMO!

I'm not so sure it's as simple as just walking away...Especially for those who do things the right way and enjoy helping out on the Forums but would like to keep the creeps off their doorstep...You know, the Folks who have put hundreds upon hundreds of hours into a Game they love...

I think the obvious 1st step (if you have that much of a problem with it) would simply be to stay off the Forums...Forum use will diminish greatly...I don't think there is any doubt about that...

Part of me thinks this is a genius move and the other part thinks there has got to be a better way...The last part wishes SOE had done the same with the SWG Forums years ago cause there are plenty of jerks I would LOVE to visit in person....

Just kidding...

Originally posted by mmoguy43

 

holy crap. 2014 pages and counting..

news link

Proof that this is a big deal to a lot of peoples. 2k pages. Is just a game, why should everyone know who you are. And why all this, to prevent trolling? Cmon, nobody ever died from troll posts. Kinda stupid the reason to implement this real id thing.

Originally posted by Edli

Originally posted by mmoguy43

 

holy crap. 2014 pages and counting..

news link

 

Proof that this is a big deal to a lot of peoples. 2k pages. Is just a game, why should everyone know who you are. And why all this, to prevent trolling? Cmon, nobody ever died from troll posts. Kinda stupid the reason to implement this real id thing.

That's the point.  Anyone with eyes can see it wasn't "to prevent forum trolling" and is an obvious trend towards profit, which is all they care about anymore even when it's at the expense of their fans.

This was definitely "the straw that broke the camels back" for me causing me to cancel my sub.  

Anyway, I completely understand how some people don't see this as a big issue, while others like myself do.  Personally I don't have a facebook, twitter, myspace, linkedin, etc account.  My name is unique.  I also know that I do searches on my employees and perspective employees.  I do look at what they do and how they present themselves outside of the workspace and have used those sites to influence my desicision in hiring / firing. 

Right off, it still might not be a huge thing.  it's just your name on a forum, but I don't see how that even fixes anything.  To use the sad excuse that they're trying to do it to clean up the forums.  If an a-hole wants to be an idiot on the forums, will his real name showing really prevent it?

Also, I look at the whole thing as data.  They're exposing the public forums to a customers PI, i.e. relating their game play to their real name.  Sure I don't have to post, but that doesn't stop that data as being exposed.  How long until other sites such as armory are then able to link to that data as well?  How long until each character that you run is tied to your name on those sites?  I'm willing to bet that it WILL happen.  maybe not tomorrow, but if this happens, that's next.

Sure, it ties the idiots names to thier toons.  Again, no big deal, but lets say your a healer who can't keep one of those idiots alive for some reason.  How long until they're getting harrassed in real life? 

Then again, there might be absolutely nothing negative that can come of it.  However, with 12 mil people subing to the game, I'm not up for playing those odds. 

implications on privacy as we are all aware of the telemarkiters and how identity theft is rampped with the online age. I for one would be concerned and can see down the road were like Facebook they maybe forced to change the policy. Time will Tell.

I guess it kind of sucks for people with rare names. As for me, I have a pretty common name, even including my middle name, so I don't really care about the realID thing.

Originally posted by Margrave

People have already started leaving over this. I wouldn't be surprised if it's more each day. I'm giving Bliz. a chance to come to their collective senses. If this is pushed live, the next step would be in game if this is successful. I never signed up for World of Facebook. If this does in fact go through, don't worry. I will be leaving. There's too many other mmorpgs out these days to have to put up with this.

 

Margrave this is the type of sentiment that Blizzard may not be sensitive to. You're going to wait and see rather than actually take action. Blizzard Ent. can just guess you will continue to play in the end. What I would recommend, since you seem to feel strongly about this, is go to the account manager and cancel your subscription and state the reason. That way, you've taken your action now and the message is clear. You can still play until your time has run out and you can always resubscribe if they change their mind (or if you do).

So to any other subscriber reading this: If you don't like this recent change, just go to the account manager and cancel your recurring subscription. It's not like you're locked into the decision, but at least you've made your point. You need to take a visible stand if you won't to make a difference.

i quit wow last yer but this move has made sure i will never re-sub or buy another blizzard product, i go to great lenghs to protect my privacy on the net and i want to keep it that way.

Just added a new blog entry regarding this topic.  I know realID has become a thorn in all our sides, but this is a new take on the impact this has on one group of the gaming community that plays WoW and it needsd to be told.   Please read it and comment.  ^_^

My blog  <<<  clicky

Originally posted by bisurge

I don't see what the big deal is. More than half of the people I know have fake names for online things.

I can't wait to see how Blizzard's forums will be like in a few months when more than half of the people are "John Smith".

It was my understanding the name used in RealID was connected to the payment, so if you pay by credit card, you can't use a fake name.

Some mmorpg companies will ban your account if they find you have used a fake name in your account registration, so it can be quite a risk to use fake names.

I think thats the point, the right to privacy on the internet IS a big thing, and it affects everyone.

Where Activision-Blizzard go, you can be sure others will follow if not go even further.

I like it....I will buy the expansion...I will buy starcraft 2. 

Originally posted by Liljna

Originally posted by bisurge

I don't see what the big deal is. More than half of the people I know have fake names for online things.

I can't wait to see how Blizzard's forums will be like in a few months when more than half of the people are "John Smith".

It was my understanding the name used in RealID was connected to the payment, so if you pay by credit card, you can't use a fake name.

Some mmorpg companies will ban your account if they find you have used a fake name in your account registration, so it can be quite a risk to use fake names.

 

Quite frankly, you are a professional wrtier for the game industry, so no one is going to descriminate against you for playing games.  I for one would have chosen to use an alias for all my online authoring just to be safe.

Fact is that plenty of people in decision making professions will discriminate against gamers due to sterotypes and pre-judgement.  If you cannot see that outside your professional existence, then you either have no friends outside the gaming business or your blind and dumb.

Personally I work hard at maintaining a low e-profile and like it that way.  Also anyone that thinks this kind of move is going to come with out added legal liability has there head up there arse.  Most judges barely know what a computer is let alone how to rule in the most techinical of issues.  Not saying they are dumb only that legal precedence is still being establishished.  WIth real world cases involving assault and murder with motive linked to online games, I fail to see how any more to expose a customer's privacy is good.

I for one do not see this move as some benign idea or policy.  It stinks, no matter how you try to gift wrap it.

Initially I was against the Real ID system, and even the requirement to post under your real name, but I've changed my mind and I'm behind these things, particularly the latter. Before you decide what to do, I suggest you give them some real thought and understand what they really mean, not what your knee-jerk thoughts say they mean. The arguments against exposure are not as sound as you might think.

Something to remember - there are dishonest people who do not want to be exposed, and they will use whatever emotional argument they can to keep your opinion on their side. Emotional arguments are indeed the favorite tool of the forum troll - isn't it likely that such a person would use the same tool to keep themselves hidden?

As to Jon's words here - I agree 100%; THE way to make your wishes know is to vote with your pocket book! For me, WoW has changes in some ways that I don't like, but it has added some things I do. Bottom line, I think about the total package, and why I still play it, and if the pluses don't outweight the minuses, no way I'm going to keep a subscriptioon going! To this point though none of the changes have been deal-breakers.

I have certain things I want to learn in WoW, and when I do, then I will be gone. Without a serious overhaul, it is a temporary MMO for me, and, much as I like Blizzard overall, I don't like the fact that they cater so much to the casual player in WoW, and I won't be looking to them for my next MMO experience. I will be voting with my wallet,

I'm thinking about switching back from a 6-month pay plan to a single-month plan for the reason Jon states - it would give me a more instant reaction effect on my statements to Blizzard. I have 4 accounts, but will only be purchasing 1 Cataclysm expansion pack until I decide it is worth upgrading my other accounts. It is very possible I will terminate my WoW experience within a month of Cat's release.

Then again, it could be the re-work I'm looking for, and I'll be playing for years to come. Whatever, Im looking forward to finding out.

I will then definitely be doing as Jon suggests.

;)

This article is just trying to fan the fire more.

It's a name, get over it.  Many may quit, but they'll come crawling back with the expansion.  Talk trash all you want, but even if a million people ACTUALLY quit, there's a million more coming.  It's just how it is with this beast like it or not.

It's a name, YOUR name.  With it, someone can find out where you live, your telephone number, your e-mail address and any other amount of info they so chose.  Privacy and security are huge issues.  Blizzard is violating both. Yay! I can be stalked.  My children can be harassed!  My exwife can fuck me over some more!  Kitteh do not want!

A lot of my "guild" mates (I actually belong to a raiding alliance in WoW) are already cancelling their subs and writing up letters to send in via snail mail to express their extreme displeasure. I don't think the community is failing to take action on this.

Take for instance my raiding group leader. He is a student working on finishing up his degree, in a very professional and academic field. He is also leading one of the top groups on our server, and as such, utilizes the forums to help recruit new members and communicate with players on the server who have questions about us, raiding progression, etc.

He is now unwilling to continue because he has been given a choice: continue raid leading under a real name, with which his future employers will show great prejudice when looking for information about him on the internet (employers do this now on a wide scale, especially in more professional industries); or quit raid leading and hope someone takes it on who doesn't mind having their identity exposed to the world.

For someone like me or Jon, posting with our real name doesn't matter as much. We're already out there. We're public figures. Since the new RealID forum system doesn't require us to connect our characters to our names, we still have anonymity of a sorts. But the fact of the matter is, if I participate on my server's forum, or a guild or raiding alliance thread, I expose who I am and where I am. And I invite people who don't like me to find out who I am and harrass me further. About the only thing that isn't private for me is my phone number and actual address, but that doesn't take much research to find out after everything else is said and done.

Am I worried about stalkers/harassers despite being a public figure? Absolutely. And while this change isn't going to lead to every individual being stalked, it will happen. My fears are based on my past, where I have been harassed, stalked, and much worse both through online interactions and real world interactions. I would like to not invite more people to "come and find me" even though that avenue is already wide open. I prefer my gaming to be a little more anonymous.

Thankfully, I long ago disregarded the WoW forums as unimportant. Even though I will likely continue playing, at least to some extent, the forums will never be graced with my presence if this change is enacted. It already appears that my raiding group, along with many other guilds, are collapsing with players throwing in the towel.

Privacy does matter. Yes, a first and last name may not be much for some people; for other people, it may be their entire profession or lives. First and last names give away much, and this reveal will go two ways - WoW players will be able to look people up based on their real name, and people will be able to find out that you play WoW and what you post about by looking for you in return (that is, unless Blizzard decides to make forums private to subscribers of Battle.Net only).

For those of you who argue the MySpace/Facebook route: there is a difference that makes your argument weak. A Facebok account is under the user's control. Their name and photo is all I have to share publicly, even though FB is trying to shove its way off any privacy at all. They choose who they friend and who gets more information like their location, their album, their status updates, etc. They choose whether or not that FB real identity will ever be connected with any of their personal hobbies or activities. You may never know that Dr. Smith, your family doctor of 25 years, even has played a single video game based on his Facebook because he controls that content. With WoW's forums, the information is 100% public - if you post, your name and your words are available for everyone as well as the implications of where and what you post about incline. Like the RealID chat system, there is no level of control other than "on" or "off."

There are plenty enough people who are concerned about having their gaming identity connected publicly that will, at the least, make the WoW forums a very quiet place. I appreciate those of you who say "who cares, it's just a first and last name," but I ask you to place yourself in the shoes of many - public figures, refugees, people with a crazy ex or family member, people who have been previously stalked, criminals, etc - and think about how they feel by being possibly forced off using the forums because they have a reason to "hide." Think about professionals who might be risk taking if they reveal their name publicly in a gaming forum; maybe they don't care, but their employers do. I agree  that some may be overreacting too dramatically, but this is still a very important thing for a large number of gamers.

I have yet to find this discrimination against game players that everyone talks about.  In the last three jobs I have had spanning over 9 years my bosses have played video games and my current boss' boss a 65 year old like to play Modern Warfare 2 Online with employees and this is a government job. 

I think your boss would be more worried about what you post than posting on a video game site.  And if you want to post crap that will get you introuble maybe you should be a bit more pickie about where you post it and not try to hide behind a fake name.  While I would not give our my private contact info I am not scared to post anything I have posted on this site or others under my real name. 

Originally posted by Horusra

I have yet to find this discrimination against game players that everyone talks about.  In the last three jobs I have had spanning over 9 years my bosses have played video games and my current boss' boss a 65 year old like to play Modern Warfare 2 Online with employees and this is a government job. 

I think your boss would be more worried about what you post than posting on a video game site.  And if you want to post crap that will get you introuble maybe you should be a bit more pickie about where you post it and not try to hide behind a fake name.  While I would not give our my private contact info I am not scared to post anything I have posted on this site or others under my real name. 

Just because you haven't experienced it personally, doesn't mean it doesn't happen to other people.

It's not just the name thing though, have any of you read anything else about how RealID works?  You'll have to be logged on even in a single player game.  Your e-mail address is visible to everyone and your friends' friends are visible to everyone.  It's not just the name bit at all! It's all a, sorry for cussing, piece of shit that will be rammed down everyone's throat.  It is ALL mandatory.

Originally posted by Tarsidous

It's a name, YOUR name.  With it, someone can find out where you live, your telephone number, your e-mail address and any other amount of info they so chose.  Privacy and security are huge issues.  Blizzard is violating both. Yay! I can be stalked.  My children can be harassed!  My exwife can fuck me over some more!  Kitteh do not want!

Originally posted by Margrave

People have already started leaving over this. I wouldn't be surprised if it's more each day. I'm giving Bliz. a chance to come to their collective senses. If this is pushed live, the next step would be in game if this is successful. I never signed up for World of Facebook. If this does in fact go through, don't worry. I will be leaving. There's too many other mmorpgs out these days to have to put up with this.

There are already screenshots of it in game.

NVM I just red it properly.

Originally posted by Liljna

Originally posted by Horusra

I have yet to find this discrimination against game players that everyone talks about.  In the last three jobs I have had spanning over 9 years my bosses have played video games and my current boss' boss a 65 year old like to play Modern Warfare 2 Online with employees and this is a government job. 

I think your boss would be more worried about what you post than posting on a video game site.  And if you want to post crap that will get you introuble maybe you should be a bit more pickie about where you post it and not try to hide behind a fake name.  While I would not give our my private contact info I am not scared to post anything I have posted on this site or others under my real name. 

Just because you haven't experienced it personally, doesn't mean it doesn't happen to other people.

 the defense of the paranoid...just because you think you are being watched doesn't mean you aren't?  I am sure the vast majority of people this will have no effect on them what-so-ever.  It is that small minority that want the world to cater to them, protect and coddle them.

Excellent article. People should both complain and leave.

I read about Real ID last night and went directly to my account management and canceled my subscription. I had been planning to buy Cataclysm, but now I will not. I will not buy any Activision-Blizzard game as long as this Real ID is attached to them.

There's a reason I don't have a Facebook. There's a reason I don't have a My Space. It's the same reason I'm not going to support or play a game that is trying to construct a similar system into their community without the option for it's members to say, "No, I do not want to participate in this in anyway, whatsoever."

How many of you who say, "This is no big deal, man, it's just a name!" were also saying, "It's no big deal, man, they can't do anything with just your e-mail!" when the Battle.net change made your account login your e-mail. Yeah, World of Warcraft has been World of Hackfest ever since. In real life I know five people (including myself) who play or played World of Warcraft. Three of them have had their accounts hacked since the Battle.net changes.

There are people out there with bad intentions. Why would you ever want to make it easier for them to act on those bad intentions?

Originally posted by MissyShade

A lot of my "guild" mates (I actually belong to a raiding alliance in WoW) are already cancelling their subs and writing up letters to send in via snail mail to express their extreme displeasure. I don't think the community is failing to take action on this.

 

Take for instance my raiding group leader. He is a student working on finishing up his degree, in a very professional and academic field. He is also leading one of the top groups on our server, and as such, utilizes the forums to help recruit new members and communicate with players on the server who have questions about us, raiding progression, etc.

He is now unwilling to continue because he has been given a choice: continue raid leading under a real name, with which his future employers will show great prejudice when looking for information about him on the internet (employers do this now on a wide scale, especially in more professional industries); or quit raid leading and hope someone takes it on who doesn't mind having their identity exposed to the world.

 

For someone like me or Jon, posting with our real name doesn't matter as much. We're already out there. We're public figures. Since the new RealID forum system doesn't require us to connect our characters to our names, we still have anonymity of a sorts. But the fact of the matter is, if I participate on my server's forum, or a guild or raiding alliance thread, I expose who I am and where I am. And I invite people who don't like me to find out who I am and harrass me further. About the only thing that isn't private for me is my phone number and actual address, but that doesn't take much research to find out after everything else is said and done.

Am I worried about stalkers/harassers despite being a public figure? Absolutely. And while this change isn't going to lead to every individual being stalked, it will happen. My fears are based on my past, where I have been harassed, stalked, and much worse both through online interactions and real world interactions. I would like to not invite more people to "come and find me" even though that avenue is already wide open. I prefer my gaming to be a little more anonymous.

Thankfully, I long ago disregarded the WoW forums as unimportant. Even though I will likely continue playing, at least to some extent, the forums will never be graced with my presence if this change is enacted. It already appears that my raiding group, along with many other guilds, are collapsing with players throwing in the towel.

 

Privacy does matter. Yes, a first and last name may not be much for some people; for other people, it may be their entire profession or lives. First and last names give away much, and this reveal will go two ways - WoW players will be able to look people up based on their real name, and people will be able to find out that you play WoW and what you post about by looking for you in return (that is, unless Blizzard decides to make forums private to subscribers of Battle.Net only).

For those of you who argue the MySpace/Facebook route: there is a difference that makes your argument weak. A Facebok account is under the user's control. Their name and photo is all I have to share publicly, even though FB is trying to shove its way off any privacy at all. They choose who they friend and who gets more information like their location, their album, their status updates, etc. They choose whether or not that FB real identity will ever be connected with any of their personal hobbies or activities. You may never know that Dr. Smith, your family doctor of 25 years, even has played a single video game based on his Facebook because he controls that content. With WoW's forums, the information is 100% public - if you post, your name and your words are available for everyone as well as the implications of where and what you post about incline. Like the RealID chat system, there is no level of control other than "on" or "off."

There are plenty enough people who are concerned about having their gaming identity connected publicly that will, at the least, make the WoW forums a very quiet place. I appreciate those of you who say "who cares, it's just a first and last name," but I ask you to place yourself in the shoes of many - public figures, refugees, people with a crazy ex or family member, people who have been previously stalked, criminals, etc - and think about how they feel by being possibly forced off using the forums because they have a reason to "hide." Think about professionals who might be risk taking if they reveal their name publicly in a gaming forum; maybe they don't care, but their employers do. I agree  that some may be overreacting too dramatically, but this is still a very important thing for a large number of gamers.

This should have been posted in the news instead of Jons blog post!

Very well written.

Facebook/Myspace are not infallible.

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-view-private-facebook-profiles/

So why are people using Facebook when there is risk?

WoW, I mean really wow. Are we talkign about RealID or the Healthcare legislation here? I swear I can compare the comments on this thread to the comments on FOXnews from the week after it was signed into office and they would match.

Maybe its just me, but I'm thinking no matter what we the player base says, we are going to get RealID, and its for our own good, and we are going to LIKE it. ;-)

Or we can just go play a different game - perhaps Blizzard is finally going to create its own 'WoW killer' MMO. Ironic that it may actually be WoW that does itself in.

I do not mind this change from Blizzard personally. I can understand people that are unhappy with the change thou. However, I still plan to buy Blizzard games if I enjoy them. 

Perhaps I see this from a different light. 11+ million players around the world, and none of them are proud enough to stand up and say in public that they play WoW? Seriously though, I have one of my CoH charcters as my desktop background at work on my PC and tell everyone who he is and what I like about playing that game. I'm proud of being an MMO gamer and happy to let everyone know its my off work hobby. Is playing WoW so negative your not willing to share your experience in a social environment? Do you honestly think so little of your fellow players that you believe this will bring nothing but doom, pedophiles, and stalkers to the world? Do you honestly think that being branded a WoW player will destroy your future? I must say, I am really shocked at how negative everyone feels about this. This simple little thing called pride, proud of who you are and what you like to do for fun. So strange...

Well for all those folks wh are against Blizzard forcing this down your throat you can do a few things.

(1) Contact your Congress-Man/Woman and request and investigation

(2) Contact your Senator and request an investigation

(3) Contact the FCC Federal Comunications, just google it.

I have contacted all of these to let them know this is a possible violation of childrens privacy rights. You want to get the ball rolling you mask it like that and you will get the big guns out, or should.

Nothing like getting a phone call from the feds asking you to come forward and explain yourself.

Otherwise the only other option is for you to pack up camp and go to another game.

Originally posted by Kaocan

Perhaps I see this from a different light. 11+ million players around the world, and none of them are proud enough to stand up and say in public that they play WoW? Seriously though, I have one of my CoH charcters as my desktop background at work on my PC and tell everyone who he is and what I like about playing that game. I'm proud of being an MMO gamer and happy to let everyone know its my off work hobby. Is playing WoW so negative your not willing to share your experience in a social environment? Do you honestly think so little of your fellow players that you believe this will bring nothing but doom, pedophiles, and stalkers to the world? Do you honestly think that being branded a WoW player will destroy your future? I must say, I am really shocked at how negative everyone feels about this. This simple little thing called pride, proud of who you are and what you like to do for fun. So strange...

That's really not even much of the point. For some, yes, it may be that they don't want others to know they play WoW. But that is a small minority that bring that to case. Many have friends and family that know they play MMO's and WoW. That has little to do with it.

As for thinking so little of your fellow players...there have been many real occurences of people being stalked on MMO's. This isn't ground breaking news. It has been done and continues to this day because there are (as you stated) millions of players in a game like WoW and thousands in others. That's a variety of personalities. I can tell you three real life females I know that have had issues in MMO's. I know I also ran across two issues as well with some crazy ass women also. So yes, it happens.

This really has little to do with 'pride' in who they are as much as it has to do with the protection of their privacy. They play a game to escape, to get away. Not to share their real life with others who they do not know or seek to know. It's one thing to have it in-game and have the option of sharing the information. Its another to have it given out to millions of individuals not knowing what could take place with such information.

The problem is that hate just doesn't have any effect on their bottom line. It's the strangest thing, and it a phenomenon that's repeated time and time again across pretty much every MMO. Players will hate, they will kick and they will scream. They will threaten to quit if their demands aren't met. In the end though, companies don't often take this particularly seriously because it is so rarely backed up with action.

Over the years, I have had numerous conversations with developers about this phenomenon, and every time it really comes down to: We'll let them complain, because in the end they're not going to quit.

I'm guessing that is what SOE thought too :)

Originally posted by Kaocan

Or we can just go play a different game - perhaps Blizzard is finally going to create its own 'WoW killer' MMO. Ironic that it may actually be WoW that does itself in.

Its been said many times before that if anything becomes the down fall of WoW will be itself. But the question is this going to do it? how much worse will it have to get before its players finally decide to move on?

Baby wth the bathwater. I will buy Starcraft. I won't use any RealID feature. My single player game experience is unaffected. If they require it's use in multiplayer I won't participate. I won't participate on any of their forums. I won't use their voice chat. If they require it's use in single player I won't buy their games.

@Zymurgeist

And if at some point in the future they decide to make it mandatory to play their game?

Oh my god, blizzard is making it where people might be able know my name and where I live and may want to become real life friends if they live close to me?

Potential for socialization outside of my home? Heresy I say! Blasphemy too for the hell of it!

I won't ever pla.... what's that? cataclysym is awesome? ok well maybe i just wont.....aww screw it.

I don't care what they do.

Paranoia is not going to stop me from playing if I think I'm going to have fun.

Originally posted by Sanguinelust

Oh my god, blizzard is making it where people might be able know my name and where I live and may want to become real life friends if they live close to me?

Potential for socialization outside of my home? Heresy I say! Blasphemy too for the hell of it!

I won't ever pla.... what's that? cataclysym is awesome? ok well maybe i just wont.....aww screw it.

I don't care what they do.

Paranoia is not going to stop me from playing if I think I'm going to have fun.

My sentiment exactly.

Where I work we have a fairly restrictive firewall system, however I can access the website of any game in existence except one.  Yep, can't access the WOW site or forums, its blocked as inappropriate content.

But no, there's no chance my employer would think badly of anyone who plays WOW now is there?

Just because you don't believe they are watching you doesn't mean they aren't.

Originally posted by Kyleran

Where I work we have a fairly restrictive firewall system, however I can access the website of any game in existence except one.  Yep, can't access the WOW site or forums, its blocked as inappropriate content.

But no, there's no chance my employer would think badly of anyone who plays WOW now is there?

Just because you don't believe they are watching you doesn't mean they aren't.

If they fire people for playing WoW, your better off with some other company in my opinion. I would never tolerate a company that spies on me and even cares about what I do with my spare time. My job is not my life. Of course, I don't know anything about your life situation and such, i'm just speaking for myself here.

Originally posted by Sanguinelust

Oh my god, blizzard is making it where people might be able know my name and where I live and may want to become real life friends if they live close to me?

Potential for socialization outside of my home? Heresy I say! Blasphemy too for the hell of it!

I won't ever pla.... what's that? cataclysym is awesome? ok well maybe i just wont.....aww screw it.

I don't care what they do.

Paranoia is not going to stop me from playing if I think I'm going to have fun.

The problem with that is people who offend others online will now get their revenge. If they don't provide your address, it doesn't matter.. well, unless the person goes beyond and looks up your name and your state, and finds your address. The fact is, there are sick people out there and a lot of them are on the internet.

Originally posted by frostsmith

Originally posted by Sanguinelust

Oh my god, blizzard is making it where people might be able know my name and where I live and may want to become real life friends if they live close to me?

Potential for socialization outside of my home? Heresy I say! Blasphemy too for the hell of it!

I won't ever pla.... what's that? cataclysym is awesome? ok well maybe i just wont.....aww screw it.

I don't care what they do.

Paranoia is not going to stop me from playing if I think I'm going to have fun.

The problem with that is people who offend others online will now get their revenge. If they don't provide your address, it doesn't matter.. well, unless the person goes beyond and looks up your name and your state, and finds your address. The fact is, there are sick people out there and a lot of them are on the internet.

So? These sick people exist outside of the internet too. Should we lock ourselves in our homes and never go outside because of them? It would be safer, right?

Originally posted by Codenak

@Zymurgeist

And if at some point in the future they decide to make it mandatory to play their game?

 I'll use the readily available hack that will be available to get around it and stop buying their games.

Originally posted by Zoulz

Originally posted by frostsmith

Originally posted by Sanguinelust

Oh my god, blizzard is making it where people might be able know my name and where I live and may want to become real life friends if they live close to me?

Potential for socialization outside of my home? Heresy I say! Blasphemy too for the hell of it!

I won't ever pla.... what's that? cataclysym is awesome? ok well maybe i just wont.....aww screw it.

I don't care what they do.

Paranoia is not going to stop me from playing if I think I'm going to have fun.

The problem with that is people who offend others online will now get their revenge. If they don't provide your address, it doesn't matter.. well, unless the person goes beyond and looks up your name and your state, and finds your address. The fact is, there are sick people out there and a lot of them are on the internet.

So? These sick people exist outside of the internet too. Should we lock ourselves in our homes and never go outside because of them? It would be safer, right?

Nah. But you would be safer. The fact is, they don't have your address... they just know your face, and maybe they would follow you home. You can't get away from that. However, the internet is something different. People tend to not bite their tongue and say what they want.. Thus, they will piss people off and not care about what will happen, because they don't have to look the person in the face. Now, they will get the chance, and the old say of, "If I find out where you live, I am going to beat your arse" rings true. Maybe they deserve the beat down, but some will find out where you live and probably end up killing. You can't just say sick people exist outside or whatever sad retort you gave me... it's a fact that they will KNOW where you live now.

In most walks of life you are correct however in the world of internet subscription gaming a mobilised and vocal section of the consumer base and POTENTIAL consumer base can effect change.  Blizzard need to hear loud and clear that this is unacceptable not just to current customers, but to potential future customers.

They have already alienated me from their forums after issuing me with a 4 day ban for saying "/bump for a nice group of people" on another guilds recruitment ad in our realm forums.  However with this system they have made sure I do not buy cata, do not re-new my wow sub and will not purchase starcraft 3 or diablo 3.  Its not what they are doing thats the issue, its that blizzard control the market, when they "try" something if it works most other mmos follow suit.

Now if they get away with this and sony and Cryptic follow suit, how long untill they are selling your data to third parties?

None of this would have been needed if they had managed their game community properly in the first place, instead of letting them act like little children in a sweet shop.

So no I will not be quiet about it, and neither should you, it was only through mass mobilization of the customer base that facebook backed down at all on their privacy issues, and its only through mass mobilization of customers old new and future that blizzard will back down.

Oh and for the "oh no I cant troll" crowd, tough, grow up and measures like this might not have been needed.

Its people who simply dont want their private life becoming public domain that I feel sorry for, what if I dont want inqisative work collegues to know I play(ed) wow or that at the time I ran a guild etc.   That is my PRIVATE life and if I choose to share my real lfie name with people thats my business not blizzards.

Originally posted by frostsmith

Originally posted by Zoulz

Originally posted by frostsmith

Originally posted by Sanguinelust

Oh my god, blizzard is making it where people might be able know my name and where I live and may want to become real life friends if they live close to me?

Potential for socialization outside of my home? Heresy I say! Blasphemy too for the hell of it!

I won't ever pla.... what's that? cataclysym is awesome? ok well maybe i just wont.....aww screw it.

I don't care what they do.

Paranoia is not going to stop me from playing if I think I'm going to have fun.

The problem with that is people who offend others online will now get their revenge. If they don't provide your address, it doesn't matter.. well, unless the person goes beyond and looks up your name and your state, and finds your address. The fact is, there are sick people out there and a lot of them are on the internet.

So? These sick people exist outside of the internet too. Should we lock ourselves in our homes and never go outside because of them? It would be safer, right?

 

Nah. But you would be safer. The fact is, they don't have your address... they just know your face, and maybe they would follow you home. You can't get away from that. However, the internet is something different. People tend to not bite their tongue and say what they want.. Thus, they will piss people off and not care about what will happen, because they don't have to look the person in the face. Now, they will get the chance, and the old say of, "If I find out where you live, I am going to beat your arse" rings true. Maybe they deserve the beat down, but some will find out where you live and probably end up killing. You can't just say sick people exist outside or whatever sad retort you gave me... it's a fact that they will KNOW where you live now.

Anyone who ends up killing someone over a verbal dispute on the internet clearly has issues. That person would most likely end up killing someone anyway, despite things like RealID or Facebook.

Anyway, the real sad thing is that people tend to only notice the bad aspects of everything. I blame it on the media, among other things. We are being brainwashed to be fearful of everything. I'm not saying you should be careless. I mean, use your common sense. It will take you a long way.

Real ID is evil I want my privacy, I haven't played wow in over a year I was sort looking forward to the new xpac with goblins and stuff but not anymore, I refuse to have anything to do with blizzard now. Cancelled my starcraft 2 also because of this. Giving out my name should my choice not there’s.

Even though my account has been cancelled for some time, I went to the account side and "recancelled", and put the whole REALID thing as to why, and also stated I will not be a part of something that is doing all they can to get real names out of people.  Nor would I buy SC2 or Diablo 3.  And I was REALLY looking forward to D3.

Oh well.

Originally posted by Swanea

Even though my account has been cancelled for some time, I went to the account side and "recancelled", and put the whole REALID thing as to why, and also stated I will not be a part of something that is doing all they can to get real names out of people.  Nor would I buy SC2 or Diablo 3.  And I was REALLY looking forward to D3.

 

Oh well.

 that sounds like a grand idea. maybe if they get more of that as the reason maybe they will think twice, Money is power

Originally posted by Zoulz

Anyone who ends up killing someone over a verbal dispute on the internet clearly has issues. That person would most likely end up killing someone anyway, despite things like RealID or Facebook.

You're probably right.  The issue is that I don't want it to be me, or anybody I care about.  Frankly, I don't care about you (nothing personal), but I still wouldn't want to see you, or anybody you cared about, come to harm as  a result of their use of RealID or Facebook.  Why give the sickos of the world another tool?  For profit?

Anyway, the real sad thing is that people tend to only notice the bad aspects of everything. I blame it on the media, among other things. We are being brainwashed to be fearful of everything. I'm not saying you should be careless. I mean, use your common sense. It will take you a long way.

I'm sorry, but you can't blame the media.  It's not the media that sets a house full of children on fire.  They just write about it.  Are you saying that we'd all be better off if we lived in ignorance?  That none of the bad stuff in the world would actually happen if they stopped writing about it?  You can't really believe that and still walk upright.

Shit happens, it's true.  I just don't want it to happen to me, and I'm going to take whatever steps are necessary to try and prevent it.  If that means that I have to stop playing a game that I enjoy, then I'll stop playing.  "Common sense" dictates that you never, ever give out your personal information on the internet.  It's not worth the risk.

I personally could care less about using my real name.  I don't see what the big deal is.  90% of the people I play with on a day to day basis know my real name anyways.  I chose to play games with a close tight nit community of friends.

Although, I still think it's a bad idea on Blizzard's part.  Consider this hypothetical situation.  Mr James Jones pisses off the hot tempered power gamer who is near the brink of insanity.  Let's call him Joshua Jenkins.  James Jones has carelessly left his Facebook profile open to the public, and Josh has found this guy online.  Now Josh has lost his mind, finds a little information by cruising his FB page and decides to pay one of those information sites where you can pay as little as 3$ to find someones address/phone number.  He tracks this guy down and murders him and his whole family.  All over a quarrel in a video game. 

Now, this is really stretching it , but it is possible given this sort of information.  The reality of it is though, we all know Josh wouldn't get  his fat lazy ass off his game long enough to pursue something like this, but I'm sure that there is a very slim percent of a chance that something like this will happen.

Originally posted by Horusra

Originally posted by Liljna

Originally posted by Horusra

I have yet to find this discrimination against game players that everyone talks about.  In the last three jobs I have had spanning over 9 years my bosses have played video games and my current boss' boss a 65 year old like to play Modern Warfare 2 Online with employees and this is a government job. 

I think your boss would be more worried about what you post than posting on a video game site.  And if you want to post crap that will get you introuble maybe you should be a bit more pickie about where you post it and not try to hide behind a fake name.  While I would not give our my private contact info I am not scared to post anything I have posted on this site or others under my real name. 

Just because you haven't experienced it personally, doesn't mean it doesn't happen to other people.

 the defense of the paranoid...just because you think you are being watched doesn't mean you aren't?  I am sure the vast majority of people this will have no effect on them what-so-ever.  It is that small minority that want the world to cater to them, protect and coddle them.

Thank you :) I have always been proud of being socalled paranoid, to me it is not a question of being paranoid, but being paranoid enough.

You don't mind me calling your defense 'the defense of the ignorant', do you? "It doesn't happen to me, so it doesn't happen to anyone and it isn't a problem."

Might I suggest you go read Kylerans posts here in this thread, they are talking about this (gamers and jobs)..here is a link 

Happy day/evening to you, Horusra.

Edit: It may seem as if I am singling you out Horusra. This is not my intention. Your post was the spring-board, not you personally. I just wanted to make that clear.

Originally posted by Zoulz

Originally posted by Kyleran

Where I work we have a fairly restrictive firewall system, however I can access the website of any game in existence except one.  Yep, can't access the WOW site or forums, its blocked as inappropriate content.

But no, there's no chance my employer would think badly of anyone who plays WOW now is there?

Just because you don't believe they are watching you doesn't mean they aren't.

If they fire people for playing WoW, your better off with some other company in my opinion. I would never tolerate a company that spies on me and even cares about what I do with my spare time. My job is not my life. Of course, I don't know anything about your life situation and such, i'm just speaking for myself here.

 yet if you make any livable sum of money at your job...99 per cent that you were drug tested, and thats okay? Hey my buisness, my personal time right?

I think the RealID change is a good one. Obviously people have seen the levels of dispicable and cruel interaction that anonymous writers are capable of and are rightly concerned with their own and other people's welfare given a lack of anonymity, but I think that may be a good thing. Having your name associated with your words makes you responsible for those words. And when people have to be responsible for their own words they tend to put a lot more thought into them and are much more likely to tone them down with reasonable words, rather than inflamatory ones.

Not only do I think RealID is a good idea for WoW, but I think that something like RealID is where things are headed as far anonymity on the internet is concerned. However, concurrent to that we need to develop better policing of communications such that people are more easily traceable and can't communicate threats without being identifyable to others. This may be the foreshadowing... Could it be that the days of the wild west on the internet are coming to an end?

And for those who truly are upset about the change. The only way to show your displeasure is to stop paying money.  Ultimately companies only understand one thing. Money. Complaining on the forms or whatever before you leave is quite reasonable, but complaining ad nausium and then not quitting basically tells Blizzard that you are OK with the change.

Originally posted by Spamalot345

I think the RealID change is a good one. Obviously people have seen the levels of dispicable and cruel interaction that anonymous writers are capable of and are rightly concerned with their own and other people's welfare given a lack of anonymity, but I think that may be a good thing. Having your name associated with your words makes you responsible for those words. And when people have to be responsible for their own words they tend to put a lot more thought into them and are much more likely to tone them down with reasonable words, rather than inflamatory ones.

Not only do I think RealID is a good idea for WoW, but I think that something like RealID is where things are headed as far anonymity on the internet is concerned. However, concurrent to that we need to develop better policing of communications such that people are more easily traceable and can't communicate threats without being identifyable to others. This may be the foreshadowing... Could it be that the days of the wild west on the internet are coming to an end?

And for those who truly are upset about the change. The only way to show your displeasure is to stop paying money.  Ultimately companies only understand one thing. Money. Complaining on the forms or whatever before you leave is quite reasonable, but complaining ad nausium and then not quitting basically tells Blizzard that you are OK with the change.

 Fact - a lot of us raising cain here have already left Blizzard for other reasons, but have friends still playing who are being affected by this.

Fact - corporations watch what other corporations do, and if something works, they are all over it like white on rice.  In other words, if Blizzard is successful in this, there WILL be others who follow that path, too.

Fact - I grew up with the understanding that we Americans have this lil' ol' fashioned thing called the Bill of Rights.  I'm frankly sick and tired of seeing our rights trampled under foot in the interest of big business profits.  Maybe it's okay with you and others if Big Brother invades every single area of your life, but it is NOT okay with me. 

Fact - Blizzard is NOT doing this for troll control on the forums, they are systematically setting up a social network, one that will invade areas of your internet life outside of the game, whether you like it or not, and can also negatively impact your real life.  Shrug it off, ignore the consequences, you have every right to do so....just as I and others have every right to speak out and take a stand to protect our rights.

Democracy at work,,,,,it's a work in progress.  :D

Originally posted by Bob_Blawblaw

Totally agree that walking away is a very important step. But honestly, you generally shouldn't just up and quit everytime the devs propose a change that offends you. There needs to be the opportunity for the devs to hear feedback (they announced they are going to do something soon, they didn't just go and do it), then assess as to whether or not they're still making the best decision.

There needs to be the 'hey if you guys are serious about this change, I'm gonna quit' dialog.

If the devs stick to their guns, fine, it's time to make good on your promise to quit.

BUT...

It needs to be public. It doesn't need to be hate filled or ranting or whatever (agree childish ranting can seriously compomise your cause), but your decision to leave needs to not just be addressed to the devs, but to the current consumers and potential consumers as well.

Word of mouth is the most powerful decision making tool a consumer has going for them, and if you want to make your point heard by any dev, they need to know you're not just taking your account from them, you're taking an unknown number of potential accounts as well.  That DOES sting them where it counts. Which is good. Not because you can have a feeling of revenge, but because showing that the players can't be screwed over is a GOOD thing for everyone (even the devs) when it comes to the next product being an actual improvement in MMO's and not just a more efficient money making scheme.

This is it, right here. Vote with your wallet and talk about it. But, more importantly, if their decisions are consistently this bad (or dangerous) people shouldn't go back to supporting their products if they suddenly realise it's a bad idea. Blizzard doesn't think it's a bad idea, or rather the people at Blizzard don't think this is a bad idea. People should pay attention to the company's history, take a broad view, and decide that Blizzard has more than crossed the line here and htis is a point of no return considering their past history.

On the other hand, the company can have a change in leadership and legitimate direction that people will have to see in action in order to judge whether or not the company and its people have legitimately reformed. If they have, have at it, support them again. If they haven't, and they likely will not, don't.

Cancel. Spread the word. Boycott.

I posted this in another thread but since I get some serious kudos to Jon Wood, I thought I would repost it here:

Earlier today I had posted several comments about the RealID and name issues. I stand by what I wrote when I say, to me, its not a privacy issue. I think your information is even easier to get than most people realize or want to think about. Maybe its because I work in a very public setting and many, many people see my information all the time. So I am not posting to comment on or debate the ins and outs of privacy and such.

What I am posting about is my disappointment in Blizzard. I grew up on Blizzard's games. I have played them all. Heck, I still play Diablo 2 all the time when I want my action-RPG fix. Those games got me through college in the 90s and part of the reason I started playing WOW and have played it since launch is because of Blizzard's reputation. That reputation was a company of gamers making games for gamers. A company that refused to cave-in to pressure and release early or release incomplete games. 

Now, and most likely since the corporate change at Blizzard with Activision taking over, that is no longer there. These Realid, name, e-mail address/account, integration with Facebook changes all clearly point to one thing: marketing. It is all about the sale, the money and Blizzard/Activision's desire to make a buck.

A company of gamers wouldn't be making this decision; this is a decision of marketer's, a decision of boardroom members who think its a good idea, a decision of greed and nothing more. Following in the footsteps of the new store and associated items, Blizzard is nothing more than a gaming company after a quick buck.

After 4 years, countless characters, running my own guild, almost 6k achievement points, doing every holiday event and immeasurable hours playing, my time has come to an end. My time with Blizzard games is done. Not because I fear my privacy is compromised, not because I disagree with their decisions, but because Blizzard is no longer about the game and the gamer. 

Cataclysm only has 5 levels and when you get down to it, it is a small expansion when compared to BC and WOTLK. Anyone think that it could be MORE had Blizzard not spent tons of time of things like Realid and other marketing based changes to the game. Do you honestly think something like this would be something TRUE gamers at heart would do?

So I am going to do what Jon Wood recommended: I am going to stand by my principles. I am going to cancel my account and let Blizzard know that it is their decision to become obsessed with their success and desire for money and popularity over making good games, games players love..then I will no longer support them or their product. 

Starcraft 2 pre-order canceled and most likely Diablo 3 as well. Its been a great 15 or so years but its time to move on. It is just sad to me that this is what Blizzard has become.

I have the beta for SC2 and i loged in today for a bit. Turns out the real ID service is active already there. It offers a chat thing like the FB one but it involves all the blizzard games so i was able to see both the real name and i guess the current character they were using in WoW in parenthesis. there was no offline or invisible option that i could see and no way to turn it off. You can also see the friends of those on your list very easily.

For people who know how to steal personal information this could be a goldmine and they would not need to use any illegal software or do anything but log in to an account.

Now that i think about it, phishing sites might hit jackpots here. They get not only one name they can dig into but all of your friends also....

Well, let's see if Activision-Blizzard "listens" (since they say they are listening, but give no solid evidence of it) to the sound of my canceled account.  I was going to give them until the 27th when this is supposed to go live, but Activision-Blizzard's seeming sense of infallibility changed my mind and I went ahead and canceled today and let them know that RealID's not being optional is the reason why.

It would seem that Blizzard themselves may end up being the "WoW-killer" after all.

Originally posted by Nifa

Well, let's see if Activision-Blizzard "listens" (since they say they are listening, but give no solid evidence of it) to the sound of my canceled account.  I was going to give them until the 27th when this is supposed to go live, but Activision-Blizzard's seeming sense of infallibility changed my mind and I went ahead and canceled today and let them know that RealID's not being optional is the reason why.

 

It would seem that Blizzard themselves may end up being the "WoW-killer" after all.

HANDSOME DAN: Back with you on WPIG, maximum grunt. Our special guests, Wayne Campbell, Garth Algar. Wayne's World, all right. Waynestock. Big event. Everybody's excited.

WAYNE: It's gonna be a big concert at Adlai Stevenson Park.

GARTH: A big party with some great bands.- Like Aerosmith.

WAYNE: There's still tickets left.- Don't wait till the last minute.

GARTH: 'Cause it's a chance for the city of Aurora...To do something...Fun.

(WAYNE AND GARTH SENSE THAT THE DJ IS NOT LISTENING.)

WAYNE: And to put the city on the map. - It's a lot of work.

HANDSOME DAN: Work is hard.

WAYNE: You're not listening, are you? I could say anything, like "you're a complete tool".

GARTH: You wouldn't hear, 'cause you're a freak with a microphone.

WAYNE: It's not challenging any more. It's like shooting fish in a barrel. True, Sphincter Boy?

HANDSOME DAN: What? (SOUND EFFECT) Oh. They're getting closer. Good information about Waynestock. We'll be back after PIG sports. It's minutes past the big hour. Right, Mr Scream? Great. Good stuff. I think people are getting cranked.

 

Originally posted by tawess

Agree.. I am not going to use the new forums but it is not enough to put me out of the game. That is as simple as it is.

I think this is how the majority of the playerbase feels. If this is the case, WoW subscriptions will not be affected dramatically.

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

 

 

ok....so your not a blizzard customer, yet you feel the need to tell them how unhappy you are with thier decision. If you feel like wasting your time feel free. If I had someone send a letter to, or call my company and tell them how much something we did displeased them, only to find out they were not even an active paying client. I would very kindly send them or provide a canned response that pretty much said thanks for your input but we really dont care.

The only people that have any kind of power to sway blizzards decision in this matter are paying subscribers to world of warcraft, not diablo customers, not starcraft customers, nor any future "potential" customers. If you dont like it strongly enough than quit.

Originally posted by SnarlingWolf

 

Blizzard gets away with a lot of stuff, and it has nothing to do with that stuff being a good thing to do. It has everything to do with 90% of their player base being completely apathetic and just siding with Blizzard no matter what happens. That is a bad thing. It's not enough to speak with your own wallet, you have to convince  others to join you.

 

Blizzard has the right to run their business however they wish.  They aren't "getting away" with anything.  Every decision they make costs them customers but judging by their massive popularity as a developer these decisions also gain them customers.

You are one of thousands of people sitting in the comfort of your own home telling Blizzard how you think they should run their company even though you likely had little to do with their success, likely do not have experience running a business of your own, nor have you likely invested in a business that has been as succesful as Blizzard has... so the question ultimately is:  What makes you think you know what is better for their company than the people who have invested their own money and time into it?

I get that you disagree with the decision they're making but you are posting as though you are speaking for a community of people.  Tell Blizzard what you want them to do so that you might be their customer again, stop acting like you've got them held hostage and if they don't cooperate you'll drive them right out of business.

http://www.kbtx.com/home/headlines/97439449.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4072704.stm

     Wow, i sure cant wait to read more story's like these. Thank you Blizzard for providing me with more morbid entertainment. It's a good thing that gamers are synonymous with socially well adjusted individuals. /sarcasm off.

      They just threw any chance i was ever going to play D3 out the window. Im very dissapointed. D2 was the whole reason i ever bought a computer in the first place long ago.

Technically posing the "are you successful or not" as a criteria to determine whether you can post a 'valid' opinion isn't really a good criteria. According to your view, then BP's CEO Tony Hayward's opinion matters more than anyone else involved in the BP oil spill since he heads the largest company involved in that situation in the gulf. In short, cut the crap on logic that you didn't think through. Whether someone has a 'valid' opinion or not should not be weighed against their background. If you want to look at it another way, not like George Washington ever ran anything larger than an army but that didn't mean his opinion would mean anything less when he was president and the fact he was never even a governor didn't impact nor hinder his performance. Tying a person's opinion to both their experience and position in life is rather biased, short-sighted and hugely ignorant.

Secondly simply telling a company "what you should do" never works or isn't feasible. Mr Wood has the right original idea that if Blizzards actions are themselves unpopular and someone feels a great many others feel likewise, then quitting does impact the one thing Blizzard does care about: bottom-line. All businesses do care about that and tie the success of their product to this feature. A product may be well received and praised  by developers and gamers but if its a financial disaster, don't expect it to stick around. Blizzard can do anything that makes the gaming experience as crappy as possibly BUT if they make money and are successful financially, there isn't any incentive to do anything. As I always say, ASKING DOESN'T DO ANYTHING IN BUSINESS OR POLITICS UNLESS YOU HAVE THE UPPER HAND!

And thirdly people have a right to feel outraged. It would be great if a conversation could emerge but very few mmo's do that with EVE-online being one of the big exceptions. But that's up to really WoW in terms of whether they really take advantage of it, it is their game after all and can do whatever they wish to it. But players are also consumers and a consumer has a right to feel that when they buy into a product certain expectations are met, especially when they feel they have invested into the product. Ever buy a car only to have something crap out under a year? Or how about a PC get messed up. Its true the company whom you brought those products "aren't holding a gun to your head" but as a consumer you expect to have some degree of quality and performance met with every purchase and with WoW you are purchasing something: entertainment. Heaven knows anyone who saw Gigli in theaters were probably pissed they paid good money to see nothing but crap. Again no gun being held at you to see it but you don't expect to see crap like that hit the movie screen and if people get pissed about it, can you actually blame them for doing so? I can't. 

Im just curious how many of these real names will be in chinese

Originally posted by XNephalimX

Originally posted by Nifa

Well, let's see if Activision-Blizzard "listens" (since they say they are listening, but give no solid evidence of it) to the sound of my canceled account.  I was going to give them until the 27th when this is supposed to go live, but Activision-Blizzard's seeming sense of infallibility changed my mind and I went ahead and canceled today and let them know that RealID's not being optional is the reason why.

 

It would seem that Blizzard themselves may end up being the "WoW-killer" after all.

 

HANDSOME DAN: Back with you on WPIG, maximum grunt. Our special guests, Wayne Campbell, Garth Algar. Wayne's World, all right. Waynestock. Big event. Everybody's excited.

WAYNE: It's gonna be a big concert at Adlai Stevenson Park.

GARTH: A big party with some great bands.- Like Aerosmith.

WAYNE: There's still tickets left.- Don't wait till the last minute.

GARTH: 'Cause it's a chance for the city of Aurora...To do something...Fun.

(WAYNE AND GARTH SENSE THAT THE DJ IS NOT LISTENING.)

WAYNE: And to put the city on the map. - It's a lot of work.

HANDSOME DAN: Work is hard.

WAYNE: You're not listening, are you? I could say anything, like "you're a complete tool".

GARTH: You wouldn't hear, 'cause you're a freak with a microphone.

WAYNE: It's not challenging any more. It's like shooting fish in a barrel. True, Sphincter Boy?

HANDSOME DAN: What? (SOUND EFFECT) Oh. They're getting closer. Good information about Waynestock. We'll be back after PIG sports. It's minutes past the big hour. Right, Mr Scream? Great. Good stuff. I think people are getting cranked.

 

This made me lol!  I thank you sir.

Originally posted by ianicus

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

 

 

ok....so your not a blizzard customer, yet you feel the need to tell them how unhappy you are with thier decision. If you feel like wasting your time feel free. If I had someone send a letter to, or call my company and tell them how much something we did displeased them, only to find out they were not even an active paying client. I would very kindly send them or provide a canned response that pretty much said thanks for your input but we really dont care.

You are very clearly missing the point here, most especially the clout and power that Blizzard has to be the catalyst for serious change. Granted, a great mass of people can be wrong about something (people thought the Earth was flat once and that the Sun revolved around the Earth) but when people are giving detailed arguments for something and there is far more consensus in that than not...well, there are times when a great mass of people can be right. Not, of course, because they are a great mass of people but because each one is right and they happen to form a great mass of people.

The only people that have any kind of power to sway blizzards decision in this matter are paying subscribers to world of warcraft, not diablo customers, not starcraft customers, nor any future "potential" customers. If you dont like it strongly enough than quit.

Again, you are very clearly missing the point. If potential customers, let alone existing customers who will be effected by the policies even though they fall under a different rubric, cannot influence a company's decision to do a given thing there is no point to marketing research. We can see that there in fact is great relevance to the aforementioned groups through the most cursory glimpse of any company's history.

My responses are in red. Please pay more attention to the issue at hand before opining, as it is very clear that you don't have a firm enough grasp on the various parts of this issue to understand why it is as important as it is. A final point would be to not tell people to simply quit if they strongly disagre with something. The only way change happens is when a voice accompanies the action; simply opting out is not strong enough nor does it inform other people who may genuinely want to know what is going on and why.

Account canceled, and I won't be coming back for the expansion unless this policy is changed.

Originally posted by laephis

Account canceled, and I won't be coming back for the expansion unless this policy is changed.

Iaephis, even if they changed the policy do you think they would not be working on a way to bring it back or do something else purely out of greed? Many people have noted that this move has nothing to do with the forums and everyhting to do with marketing, making more money. It seems to me that you're definitely making the right choice but do consider whether or not it is worth supporting a company that would dare to make such a move. It's most recent historical behaviour has demonstrated less concern for customer satisfaction and quality assurance than naked profiteering.

Originally posted by The_Grump

Originally posted by ianicus

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

 

 

ok....so your not a blizzard customer, yet you feel the need to tell them how unhappy you are with thier decision. If you feel like wasting your time feel free. If I had someone send a letter to, or call my company and tell them how much something we did displeased them, only to find out they were not even an active paying client. I would very kindly send them or provide a canned response that pretty much said thanks for your input but we really dont care.

You are very clearly missing the point here, most especially the clout and power that Blizzard has to be the catalyst for serious change. Granted, a great mass of people can be wrong about something (people thought the Earth was flat once and that the Sun revolved around the Earth) but when people are giving detailed arguments for something and there is far more consensus in that than not...well, there are times when a great mass of people can be right. Not, of course, because they are a great mass of people but because each one is right and they happen to form a great mass of people.

The only people that have any kind of power to sway blizzards decision in this matter are paying subscribers to world of warcraft, not diablo customers, not starcraft customers, nor any future "potential" customers. If you dont like it strongly enough than quit.

Again, you are very clearly missing the point. If potential customers, let alone existing customers who will be effected by the policies even though they fall under a different rubric, cannot influence a company's decision to do a given thing there is no point to marketing research. We can see that there in fact is great relevance to the aforementioned groups through the most cursory glimpse of any company's history.

My responses are in red. Please pay more attention to the issue at hand before opining, as it is very clear that you don't have a firm enough grasp on the various parts of this issue to understand why it is as important as it is. A final point would be to not tell people to simply quit if they strongly disagre with something. The only way change happens is when a voice accompanies the action; simply opting out is not strong enough nor does it inform other people who may genuinely want to know what is going on and why.

 Along with the points you made in your own reply... he seems to be forgetting something else very important. What exactly happens when people sit back and do nothing simply because "it doesn't effect them" or "it's not their problem", no matter wrong what is happening is. Things like witnessing crimes and not reporting them, in some cases even murders happening in broad daylight and nobody doing anything because theyre "not involved". And one of the largest examples of what happens when you let something get out of control because of the attitude of people who just sit back and watch things happen that they know are wrong simply because they don't fit directly into a group of people who have something to worry about:

"Oh the Nazis are killing all the jews? Oh well, we're not German or Jewish so who cares, it doesnt effect us" - We know how well that attitude worked out.

Originally posted by Horusra

Originally posted by Liljna

Originally posted by Horusra

I have yet to find this discrimination against game players that everyone talks about.  In the last three jobs I have had spanning over 9 years my bosses have played video games and my current boss' boss a 65 year old like to play Modern Warfare 2 Online with employees and this is a government job. 

I think your boss would be more worried about what you post than posting on a video game site.  And if you want to post crap that will get you introuble maybe you should be a bit more pickie about where you post it and not try to hide behind a fake name.  While I would not give our my private contact info I am not scared to post anything I have posted on this site or others under my real name. 

Just because you haven't experienced it personally, doesn't mean it doesn't happen to other people.

 the defense of the paranoid...just because you think you are being watched doesn't mean you aren't?  I am sure the vast majority of people this will have no effect on them what-so-ever.  It is that small minority that want the world to cater to them, protect and coddle them.

So you'd be okay if your government instated a law that every single person had to wear a nametag with their full name?

Sure, a bit of hyperbole there, but that's essentially what this is doing. There's a reason why you were told, as a child, not to tell your name to strangers. There's a reason why people don't so openly announce their name in public, while driving or walking down the street. It's the same reason why people are upset about this change.

What people want is a choice, and Blizzard isn't giving their customers much of a choice with this change, aside from completely avoiding the forums, and potentially WoW and Blizzard's other games depending on just how far they're planning on pushing this RealID nonsense.

This change does negatively effect me, and more specifically my wife. She runs a fairly successful guild, and in part of this she posts for recruitment and to organize ingame community events on the Blizzard forums. My wife has also had stalkers from WoW, who would harass her both in and out (on forums and such) of the game, bad enough that she had to server transfer to avoid most of them, some time ago.

When this RealID change comes into effect, my wife will not feel safe in posting on the Blizzard forums anymore, because her real name will be advertised next to her chacter if she posts, which would allow said stalkers to potentially push things a step further into harassment in real life.

So yes, it most certainly does have a negative impact.

What I want to know is, why is this even necessary? What value does this service actually add to anything, that couldn't be achieved via a similar system where players could simply just pick their own global username? The negatives of this far exceed any benefits, it's ridiciulous.

Lord - I've been over wow for awhile now, despite my name..it seemed appropriate.  I'm just waiting...saliva and all, for FFXIV to be released.  It will be an amazing game, I'm very certain of this...Square Enix had time to perfect an MMO..come on, its Square Enix, it will be immaculate, given FFXI was at the top of the charts when it was first released, the game that knocked it down to number 2 was WoW.

Originally posted by kaiser3282

Originally posted by The_Grump

Originally posted by ianicus

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

 

 

ok....so your not a blizzard customer, yet you feel the need to tell them how unhappy you are with thier decision. If you feel like wasting your time feel free. If I had someone send a letter to, or call my company and tell them how much something we did displeased them, only to find out they were not even an active paying client. I would very kindly send them or provide a canned response that pretty much said thanks for your input but we really dont care.

You are very clearly missing the point here, most especially the clout and power that Blizzard has to be the catalyst for serious change. Granted, a great mass of people can be wrong about something (people thought the Earth was flat once and that the Sun revolved around the Earth) but when people are giving detailed arguments for something and there is far more consensus in that than not...well, there are times when a great mass of people can be right. Not, of course, because they are a great mass of people but because each one is right and they happen to form a great mass of people.

The only people that have any kind of power to sway blizzards decision in this matter are paying subscribers to world of warcraft, not diablo customers, not starcraft customers, nor any future "potential" customers. If you dont like it strongly enough than quit.

Again, you are very clearly missing the point. If potential customers, let alone existing customers who will be effected by the policies even though they fall under a different rubric, cannot influence a company's decision to do a given thing there is no point to marketing research. We can see that there in fact is great relevance to the aforementioned groups through the most cursory glimpse of any company's history.

My responses are in red. Please pay more attention to the issue at hand before opining, as it is very clear that you don't have a firm enough grasp on the various parts of this issue to understand why it is as important as it is. A final point would be to not tell people to simply quit if they strongly disagre with something. The only way change happens is when a voice accompanies the action; simply opting out is not strong enough nor does it inform other people who may genuinely want to know what is going on and why.

 Along with the points you made in your own reply... he seems to be forgetting something else very important. What exactly happens when people sit back and do nothing simply because "it doesn't effect them" or "it's not their problem", no matter wrong what is happening is. Things like witnessing crimes and not reporting them, in some cases even murders happening in broad daylight and nobody doing anything because theyre "not involved". And one of the largest examples of what happens when you let something get out of control because of the attitude of people who just sit back and watch things happen that they know are wrong simply because they don't fit directly into a group of people who have something to worry about:

"Oh the Nazis are killing all the jews? Oh well, we're not German or Jewish so who cares, it doesnt effect us" - We know how well that attitude worked out.

Well said, good sir, well said indeed.

Hell I already quit WoW when I read what was going to be in the cataclysm expansion.  And I stated as much in the questionnaire you get when you quit.

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

Well said!  I'm in the exact same boat on every point you made made, including the fact that I have a unique name.

WoW isn't the only game that the battle net change's effect.  This has the possibility to cause a stir with other gamers outside of the MMO genre, but I question how well educated people will be on the matter before spending 60 dollars/euros for SC2 or Diablo 3.

Originally posted by Kilrane

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

Well said!  I'm in the exact same boat on every point you made made, including the fact that I have a unique name.

 

WoW isn't the only game that the battle net change's effect.  This has the possibility to cause a stir with other gamers outside of the MMO gener, but I question how well educated people will be on the matter before spending 60 dollars/euros for SC2 or Diablo 3.

oh right Diablo 3.  battlenet huh, I have a 95% certainty that you'll be required to register your copy on battle net.  which means...  I'm pirating a cracked version, because I like my privacy too much.

Originally posted by Daitengu

Originally posted by Kilrane

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

Well said!  I'm in the exact same boat on every point you made made, including the fact that I have a unique name.

 

WoW isn't the only game that the battle net change's effect.  This has the possibility to cause a stir with other gamers outside of the MMO gener, but I question how well educated people will be on the matter before spending 60 dollars/euros for SC2 or Diablo 3.

 

oh right Diablo 3.  battlenet huh, I have a 95% certainty that you'll be required to register your copy on battle net.  which means...  I'm pirating a cracked version, because I like my privacy too much.

Required BNet registration for Diablo 3 was confirmed a while ago.  Now when you bring up the piracy issue the fact of the matter is Blizz may be doing nothing but hurting them selves in the long run.  Would you have bought a legal copy of Diablo 3 if your privacy on the internet was not an issue?  I don't know about you, but I would have, and I'm not now.  This very well could drive others to seek a pirated copy instead of just coughing up the money to Blizz.

It's not hard to find alternatives.....

Originally posted by Kilrane

Originally posted by Daitengu

Originally posted by Kilrane

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

Well said!  I'm in the exact same boat on every point you made made, including the fact that I have a unique name.

 

WoW isn't the only game that the battle net change's effect.  This has the possibility to cause a stir with other gamers outside of the MMO gener, but I question how well educated people will be on the matter before spending 60 dollars/euros for SC2 or Diablo 3.

 

oh right Diablo 3.  battlenet huh, I have a 95% certainty that you'll be required to register your copy on battle net.  which means...  I'm pirating a cracked version, because I like my privacy too much.

Required BNet registration for Diablo 3 was confirmed a while ago.  Now when you bring up the piracy issue the fact of the matter is Blizz may be doing nothing but hurting them selves in the long run.  Would you have bought a legal copy of Diablo 3 if your privacy on the internet was not an issue?  I don't know about you, but I would have, and I'm not now.  This very well could drive others to seek a pirated copy instead of just coughing up the money to Blizz.

 

It's not hard to find alternatives.....

Yeah I would have bought a copy. Hell I have two copies of Diablo 1 and Diablo II.  But I heard a long time ago they were doing away with lan support on Diablo 3, so I'll be looking for a mod version that puts it back in to pirate.

I'm hugely invested in WoW and the folks in my guild, and this decision has me seriously considering leaving the game. It breaks my heart, as I've loved Blizzard games for many years and always thought they made excellent products. it also scares me, and makes me wonder what else they have planned to ensure conformity to the current social engineering trend.

I don't have Facebook, Twitter or any of those kinds of social accessories. My real name is quite unique and I guard my privacy. As you might have guessed, I'm also female and have been cyber stalked a number of times over the four years I've played WoW. In order to opt out of RealID I had to enable parental controls, so now I'm a child on my own account.

I really don't want to leave my community of friends. I was so excited about Cataclysm and now I'm worried. I keep wondering if this is why Eyonix left.

/sigh

Originally posted by SnarlingWolf

People always like to say "Well then just quit" or "Speak with your wallet." The issue is that course of action doesn't work on its own. 

 

I think it would work just fine "on its own." You don't think if a few million people canceled their subs that Blizzard wouldn't notice or care? I think too many gamers forget the power of the wallet in favor of shrugging and paying anyway beacuse it's just easier to do that. If you vote with your wallet, it actually means denying yourself something for a time.

Originally posted by Nesrie

Originally posted by SnarlingWolf

People always like to say "Well then just quit" or "Speak with your wallet." The issue is that course of action doesn't work on its own. 

 

I think it would work just fine "on its own." You don't think if a few million people canceled their subs that Blizzard wouldn't notice or care? I think too many gamers forget the power of the wallet in favor of shrugging and paying anyway beacuse it's just easier to do that. If you vote with your wallet, it actually means denying yourself something for a time.

You make it sound like MMOs are drugs.  Well in some people's cases it may as well be.

Originally posted by MacAllen

My sentiments as always, "put up or shut up".  Nothing more ridiculous than people ranting over an over on a board that shows they're still paying to play the game.

"You can spit in my eye only 16 more times, and THEN I'm leaving!"

Quit the game, and post in your exit survey why you're quitting.  Enough people quit, they'll learn.  Posting how much you hate the decision while still paying for the game makes your words empty and pointless, literally.  You might as well  be saying how much you hate a restaurant's food with a mouth full of it while ordering the second course and leaving a huge tip.

Credibility, it's not just for breakfast anymore.

Re: SnarlingWolf, nothing gets accomplish by ranting and paying, either.  If you don't like it, quit.  If enough people quit, it will change.  If you are the only one that quits, then it's just you that doesn't like it.  It's called capitalism, and it really is that simple.

What you want is to eat your cake and have it to, you want Blizz to value you as a person and your input, but to Blizz you are .00000000001% of their game population.  Keep in mind, they deliberately and with forethought of the consequences alienated 1% of their gaming population by making the upper tiers of the game easier and more available.  They intentionally decided "we have 30% of the  game being seen by 1% of the population, and if we change it, that top 1% will very likely leave the game, but the other 99% will enjoy it more....very well, sacrifice that 1%". 

As a consumer of a 12 million player game, your words could not be more empty, because they're not heard in the cacaphony.  If you quit, and you are alone, then it's just you, go play something else.  If enough people quit, Blizz will have to change to save the cash cow.  Not rocket science.

QFT

with one correction,

Bliz don't have 12 million wow subs. You may want to take a real good look at the chinese data before making that kind of retarded comment. As you said, people just keep putting out the same old crap...like the sub count. Not 12 mil now and would've actually have been lucky to be that high.

Oh and why you're talking to Bliz you guys should ask them why they give xpacks to the china market for free but charge the western muppets....good for the goose and all that jazz...

Hey, sorry for being stuiped but, whats Blizzard doing with the Real ID thingy? I quit WoW for APB so i havent kept updated? What happend??

Originally posted by Snakex

Hey, sorry for being stuiped but, whats Blizzard doing with the Real ID thingy? I quit WoW for APB so i havent kept updated? What happend??

Google.com, my friend, google.com .

Originally posted by Snakex

Hey, sorry for being stuiped but, whats Blizzard doing with the Real ID thingy? I quit WoW for APB so i havent kept updated? What happend??

 

Oh no sorry i now know what there doing, now my question is why is haveing your real name in Fourms such a bad thing? is it really that bad? you dont really have to use fourms

Originally posted by Snakex

Originally posted by Snakex

Hey, sorry for being stuiped but, whats Blizzard doing with the Real ID thingy? I quit WoW for APB so i havent kept updated? What happend??

 

Oh no sorry i now know what there doing, now my question is why is haveing your real name in Fourms such a bad thing? is it really that bad? you dont really have to use fourms

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBwTpHNZDpQ&feature=related

Watch this, the guy's spot on me with a lot of things.

Originally posted by Daitengu

Originally posted by Kilrane

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

Well said!  I'm in the exact same boat on every point you made made, including the fact that I have a unique name.

 

WoW isn't the only game that the battle net change's effect.  This has the possibility to cause a stir with other gamers outside of the MMO gener, but I question how well educated people will be on the matter before spending 60 dollars/euros for SC2 or Diablo 3.

 

oh right Diablo 3.  battlenet huh, I have a 95% certainty that you'll be required to register your copy on battle net.  which means...  I'm pirating a cracked version, because I like my privacy too much.

Originally posted by Illyssia
I think you need the battle net for online coop play with D3. Since Dungeon Siege 3 is releasing first half of next year, and may be a better game, might be easiest just to go to alternative games rather than using hacked Blizzard-ware.

for the point of it.  I already go to great lengths to get translated japanese only games. Or read them with atlas and Agth translator tools.  It's just another game that I want a specific way and won't pay for unless it's the way I want it.

Besides I never really liked dungeon siege.

Originally posted by Snakex

Originally posted by Snakex

Hey, sorry for being stuiped but, whats Blizzard doing with the Real ID thingy? I quit WoW for APB so i havent kept updated? What happend??

 

Oh no sorry i now know what there doing, now my question is why is haveing your real name in Fourms such a bad thing? is it really that bad? you dont really have to use fourms

Snakex: read the first post.. Granted, the thread has plenty of posts but the approrpiate thing to do isn't to ask such an asinine question but to actually read the first few posts in the thread. Chances are the first post will direct your attention to the meat of the issue and subsequent posts will show you more of the argument. These threads get big and unwieldy enough without someone asking these sorts of questions without bothering to do at least some looking on your own.

Originally posted by SWGmodAlpha

Quite frankly, you are a professional wrtier for the game industry, so no one is going to descriminate against you for playing games.  I for one would have chosen to use an alias for all my online authoring just to be safe.

 

Fact is that plenty of people in decision making professions will discriminate against gamers due to sterotypes and pre-judgement.  If you cannot see that outside your professional existence, then you either have no friends outside the gaming business or your blind and dumb.

 

Personally I work hard at maintaining a low e-profile and like it that way.  Also anyone that thinks this kind of move is going to come with out added legal liability has there head up there arse.  Most judges barely know what a computer is let alone how to rule in the most techinical of issues.  Not saying they are dumb only that legal precedence is still being establishished.  WIth real world cases involving assault and murder with motive linked to online games, I fail to see how any more to expose a customer's privacy is good.

 

I for one do not see this move as some benign idea or policy.  It stinks, no matter how you try to gift wrap it.

I personally speculate that within a year of Real ID going active, the world will see it's first WOW Serial Killer.  This makes sense because of:

a.  How passionate gamers can get over in game affairs

b.  The similarities of demographics between the typical cases of Serial killers, and gamers.  (both predominately males ages 20-35)

c.  The massive population of  WOW subscribers.  (with six million subscribers, the odds of there NOT being just one person capable of this is comparable to winning the Mega-Millions lotto, maybe twice over.

Imagine that nut-case who finally snaps and starts going down his multi-page list of people that did him wrong in game.

Originally posted by n00n3r

Originally posted by SWGmodAlpha

Quite frankly, you are a professional wrtier for the game industry, so no one is going to descriminate against you for playing games.  I for one would have chosen to use an alias for all my online authoring just to be safe.

 

Fact is that plenty of people in decision making professions will discriminate against gamers due to sterotypes and pre-judgement.  If you cannot see that outside your professional existence, then you either have no friends outside the gaming business or your blind and dumb.

 

Personally I work hard at maintaining a low e-profile and like it that way.  Also anyone that thinks this kind of move is going to come with out added legal liability has there head up there arse.  Most judges barely know what a computer is let alone how to rule in the most techinical of issues.  Not saying they are dumb only that legal precedence is still being establishished.  WIth real world cases involving assault and murder with motive linked to online games, I fail to see how any more to expose a customer's privacy is good.

 

I for one do not see this move as some benign idea or policy.  It stinks, no matter how you try to gift wrap it.

I personally speculate that within a year of Real ID going active, the world will see it's first WOW Serial Killer.  This makes sense because of:

a.  How passionate gamers can get over in game affairs

b.  The similarities of demographics between the typical cases of Serial killers, and gamers.  (both predominately males ages 20-35)

c.  The massive population of  WOW subscribers.  (with six million subscribers, the odds of there NOT being just one person capable of this is comparable to winning the Mega-Millions lotto, maybe twice over.

 

Imagine that nut-case who finally snaps and starts going down his multi-page list of people that did him wrong in game.

This, right here. What are the chances that this (Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back) becomes what you've just touched one.It isn't a longshot or paranoia either. I think we can all be honest here and say that most people aren't exactly the brightest or most ethical and that there really are plenty of people that are either half-cracked or just about to snap.

What would be very, very interesting is if the moderators would be kind enough to sift through this thread and the RealID Poll thread and compile the potential aftereffects of RealID. Alternatively, an enterprising community member can do the same thing. From that point, an e-mail can be formed that people can copy and paste to send to the ESRB or whatever body they think is appropriate. Any takers?

Breaking News~~~Blizzard loses 2% of its WoW population and earns millions worth of free publicity!!  Stay tuned.

** and then gets sued in a "wrongfull death lawsuit" to the sum of 200 million dollars....

THIS!

I canceled the sub on one of my accounts already; the other one will be canceled once the items are restored....lol...I should've put that mobile authenticator on it.

Still can't figure out why they didn't use Xbox Live's version...permanent ID..AND YOU CHARGE IF THE CUSTOMER WANTS TO CHANGE IT! And further give players the option to link their FaceBook with it; which is the real reason for this move (google the agreement with FB and SC2).

What.the.Fuck, both parties could have been happy.

So, the current situation... angst ridden 12 year old looses to you in a duel in WoW and launches into the standard R-tard-esq rant. You have an ignore button or a few minutes of fun winding him up, becuase frankly it'd be rude not too!

New Situation... angst ridden 12 year old looses to you in a duel and launches into the standard R-tard-esq rant... followed by being able to get your real name and email address in about 30 seconds. Now you have a mail box full of spam from the porn sites he's signed you up to, 30000 hits on the "<Insert your Real Name here>-IsAnAsshole.com" web site he's set up. Forum and twitter bombs all over the place calling you all sorts and complete domination of the first page of a google search of your name prclaiming you to be a prick to the world ("John Smith" you get away with this one because your name is common... more power to you).

Paranoia? Have you met the average disenfranchised kid today?

Any that's just the kids, you get off lightly. Imagine what the adults can get up to... kids are cruel sure, adults are cruel,  experienced, and maybe working in a position of power they can abuse. If I was crazy enough I could probably get the address and car reg details of anyone in the UK from their email address... sure I'd get sacked if someone found out, but it's a big ole system, it would take a while.

I think it was Ganhdi who first said... "Never take an crazy sociopathic idiot with you into the internet, you can always pick one up when you get there"...

... or was it Mr Myagi? Anyhow....

Now the aforementioned idiot has got your name and your email address... and via your email address the forum names and user names you've used all over the place, and if he's really lucky, your phone number, your zip code, and what ever other information is just a fews hours trawling the internet away, minutes depending on what his job is.

Real ID is a bad idea, and sets a precedent that others will follow. Anonymity on the internet has it's downside sure, we all know about that, but it's also massive protection from idiots. In extreme cases yeah the whole stalker wierdo  thing, but the 12 year old can cause you a massive amount of hassle if he knows who you are.

In all honesty if the Real ID system stays where it says it will and only effects the forums and those you choose to put on your Real ID friends list I could live with it by avoiding it.   However the fact that already Real ID goes a bit too  far with revealing to people on your friends list other people on your friends list and they were not too obvious about that fact bugs me. 

Once you slip up or a person on your friend's list or a minor child using an account with your name on it does the info is not changable cause your real name is pretty much your real name unless your willing to go to court to change it.  Even then by that time your home, phone number and other personal info about you and your family could already be compromised.

If you listen carefully, you'll hear the beeping of the truck reversing up to Blizzard HQ carrying the industrial sized vats of KY. They'll need every drop; so many customers to shaft, so little time.

Isn't this the same company that demands to be sent a copy of your passport or drivers licence if you get your account stripped or stolen and want it back? Who lock the account until the matter's resolved to their satisfaction? Who sack their own staff for *gasp* daring to have an opinion contrary to the party line? Who banned people for playing on their own account whilst on holiday overseas? Who dropped the infamous Warden program on peoples computers without a word?

Does their moustache-twirling douchebaggery know no end? Nope, not while people are lining up, trousers down, cheeks spread anyway.

Originally posted by ElGuappo

If you listen carefully, you'll hear the beeping of the truck reversing up to Blizzard HQ carrying the industrial sized vats of KY. They'll need every drop; so many customers to shaft, so little time.

Isn't this the same company that demands to be sent a copy of your passport or drivers licence if you get your account stripped or stolen and want it back? Who lock the account until the matter's resolved to their satisfaction? Who sack their own staff for *gasp* daring to have an opinion contrary to the party line? Who banned people for playing on their own account whilst on holiday overseas? Who dropped the infamous Warden program on peoples computers without a word?

Does their moustache-twirling douchebaggery know no end? Nope, not while people are lining up, trousers down, cheeks spread anyway.

 

ElGuappo, if I didn't like my forum signature so much I'd use the last two sentences of your post! Well said, well said indeed.

Remember Warden folks, something that many of the people currently playing or those who came in late (like myself) never experienced. Blizzard thought Warden was a good idea and now this. Clearly, in the interim, they were taking steps to control much more of players' information and even if RealID doesn't pan out there is no reason to think that they won't try something bigger and more legal seeming.

Unsub. Spread the word. Boycott.

I have not seen anywhere that this is mandatory to do except for the forums. In-game, it sounds like an option. I have played over 4 years (on and off), don't post on the forums, and hardly read them, even for builds/other info. So in my case, I am not bothered by it.

However, I never plan to use this feature, and if I was ever 'required' to post my real name in ANY game, I would simply not play it. I can see how this badly affects those who DO post on the forums, and for them, I sympathize.

In 4 years, I have never told anyone my real name in any online game, and I never plan to. If Blizzard ever made this an in-game requirement, I would consider it a threat to my identity and never play again. Even though I have more WOW breaks than binges these days, I always have fun when I go back for updates, at least for a month or so.

This has no real purpose if you ask me, except for agencies like Reynard, who get paid to spy on online games. Before anyone trys to call 'conspiricy theory' on me, go look up Reynard, and if you find nothing, google it with WoW or FBI in the text as well and you can find and read all about it. Over two years now, an agency has been getting paid to seek out would-be terrorist in online games, namely WoW and popular FPS games. Maybe, this is what online games are being 'forced' to do, and since WoW is so huge, start it out there. (ok, now you can call conspiricy theory on me). I'm sure if this feature went mandatory in all/most online gaming, Reynard could cut half of their staff.

Originally posted by Zairu

I have not seen anywhere that this is mandatory to do except for the forums. In-game, it sounds like an option. I have played over 4 years (on and off), don't post on the forums, and hardly read them, even for builds/other info. So in my case, I am not bothered by it.

However, I never plan to use this feature, and if I was ever 'required' to post my real name in ANY game, I would simply not play it. I can see how this badly affects those who DO post on the forums, and for them, I sympathize.

In 4 years, I have never told anyone my real name in any online game, and I never plan to. If Blizzard ever made this an in-game requirement, I would consider it a threat to my identity and never play again. Even though I have more WOW breaks than binges these days, I always have fun when I go back for updates, at least for a month or so.

This has no real purpose if you ask me, except for agencies like Reynard, who get paid to spy on online games. Before anyone trys to call 'conspiricy theory' on me, go look up Reynard, and if you find nothing, google it with WoW or FBI in the text as well and you can find and read all about it. Over two years now, an agency has been getting paid to seek out would-be terrorist in online games, namely WoW and popular FPS games. Maybe, this is what online games are being 'forced' to do, and since WoW is so huge, start it out there. (ok, now you can call conspiricy theory on me). I'm sure if this feature went mandatory in all/most online gaming, Reynard could cut half of their staff.

What you say about Reynard is true and, if I recall correctly, they have actually found terrorists discussing things inside guild/party/local chat.

Don't forget about Warden though. Blizzard dropped Warden and with RealID they take it a step further. Say RealID either doesn't launch or doesn't pan out in the end. With what we have seen from Blizzard, taking a broad view of their behaviour, they are only going to try something more overt. It may not effect more than the forums when it launches, yet it will not only set a precedent for other companies (gaming and non-gaming) but will embolden Blizzard further. Ambitious people are often greedy and, truly, Blizzard didn't get to where it is today without ambitious people. When ambitious people stand to make a profit you either have the Legislative Branch of the United States government (congressmen and senators as special interest puppets) or buisnesses like BP, AT&T and Blackwater (concerned exclusively with proft over the safety of their employees and consumers).

Originally posted by Fauzt

This was definitely "the straw that broke the camels back" for me causing me to cancel my sub.  

Anyway, I completely understand how some people don't see this as a big issue, while others like myself do.  Personally I don't have a facebook, twitter, myspace, linkedin, etc account.  My name is unique.  I also know that I do searches on my employees and perspective employees.  I do look at what they do and how they present themselves outside of the workspace and have used those sites to influence my desicision in hiring / firing. 

Shame on you! You're the kind of employer I avoid at all costs. You should NOT use facebook profiles and what someone says to their friends, groups they're part of, etc.  to judge how well a person will perform in a job. There should be a blacklist of employers who do this, it's misuse of social networking sites.

Originally posted by MurlockDance

Originally posted by Fauzt

This was definitely "the straw that broke the camels back" for me causing me to cancel my sub.  

Anyway, I completely understand how some people don't see this as a big issue, while others like myself do.  Personally I don't have a facebook, twitter, myspace, linkedin, etc account.  My name is unique.  I also know that I do searches on my employees and perspective employees.  I do look at what they do and how they present themselves outside of the workspace and have used those sites to influence my desicision in hiring / firing. 

Shame on you! You're the kind of employer I avoid at all costs. You should NOT use facebook profiles and what someone says to their friends, groups they're part of, etc.  to judge how well a person will perform in a job. There should be a blacklist of employers who do this, it's misuse of social networking sites.

It's pretty much standard practice at our place.

Thoroughly agree with this article. Though if people really want to play the game and still insist that this RealID stuff is the spawn of satan, why not just avoid posting on the forums?

Article is very true.... in most cases they (Blizzard) pull something bone-head and some folks, like me, get mad and let their sub lapse... then miss things and come back. The real question is what must they do to really make us walk away for good, in large enough numbers to get their attention. For me, I had my long-standing account hacked and someone else played my characters. They even were in the process of transferring one of them to another server. I had to jump through all the hoops to get my account back, which took way too long and then I noticed that toon in transfer limbo. I asked customer service to please put it back where it was. They sent me a very nasty response that said there was no proof my account was hacked. This after admitting it was. So it would cost me the $25 dollars to completer the transfer and another $25 to move it back. Plus another character was alone on another server, another $25. I was livid, and wrote for them to reconsider - their response - where's our money. That ripped it... I'm now gone for good. So, is realID enough for any of y'all to do the same?

Good article Stradden, though I believe there is something to be kept in mind about posting with your real name on an official game forum as opposed to mmorpg.com. Namely, games illicit extremes of emotions from a lot of players. Those who are trolling on the WoW forums might not troll here. I think people will overall respect your real-life privacy on here. If you posted with your real name on the WoW forums, it could be very different. That would be an interesting experiment, though I don't recommend doing it.

I also hope that this isn't a sign of things to come for official MMO game forums. Can you guys imagine the EvE online forums requiring peoples' real identities? Considering how seriously some EvE players take the game, the fact that it's PvP, and the fact that one can lose so much in it, it would turn into a nightmare!

There is a very real problem looming ahead, getting back to Blizzard and WoW. People who engage in fairly seedy activities are clearly interested in WoW: gold sellers, hackers, etc. What happens if other unofficial marketers use the Blizzard forums to gain access to one's information and further bombard the person with stuff or hackers use it to compromise their email account, identity, etc? It could leave gamers open as targets for tons of crimes. Is this really worth it for a game? The 'best' that could occur is getting one's WoW account hacked. The worst is too awful to contemplate.

Then there are people like the poster I reproached previously: do we want prospective employers to be able to find out whether we play WoW? I don't think all employers like the idea of hiring an online gamer. Even though I admit it openly on my CV as one of my hobbies since I target employers who either respond positively or don't really care, this is not the case for all.

Even though the change at the moment doesn't affect me straight away since I neither play WoW right now nor have I ever posted on their forums, it will affect me in the future with respect to their games.

As of right now, I'm going to boycott Blizzard products with the aim of providing myself just that little bit more control over my real ID over the internet. That's a shame because I've bought every single game they've released since Warcraft 2.

Originally posted by Perdition_uk

It's pretty much standard practice at our place.

That does not make it right.

A law needs to be passed to protect people from this. Even if the information is readily available online, it should not be used against people. What you do in your leisure time shouldn't have an effect on your job unless you're doing something criminal.

What's next? Judging a person's facebook friends? Calling them or emailing them to find out about the prospective employee? Heck, why not bug a prospective employee's house while you're at it? Maybe you can find out how much they take a dump everyday or what they look like naked.

How would you feel if an employer rejected your candidacy because you're a Liberal Democrat and the employer is a Tory?

Employers who do this are scumbags.

And the last tiny shred of RP WoW had left dies. The forums have always been a wonderful place to cultivate great Role Playing adventures and to make new in game friends. Since the inception of WoW I have played off and on (as most) but betwwen those community runing cross-realm lobbyland dungeons and this the immersion is no longer there. Camping Hadden when the servers come back up for the fishbone earring is far more immersive now.

This must be one of the worst moves Blizzard has ever made! Already canceled my sub, and wrote them a mail. I do hope, however, that they fix this problem, but i doubt it - Blizzard is all about the money, and they will probably change their EULA so they can sell our Real ID's to other companies.

I don't care about it, because I don't play WoW!

I just want to point out when I quit, I've did this because I've wanted to - game became just boring for me and some achievments couldn't hold me in, I won't be playing just to jump in the middle of Dalaran. Now, when I look at my brother (he still plays everyday) and the guild that I was in.... they are also bored ... and tired ... and despite constant bitching on ventrillo how boring it became they still pay ... just to log in and I don't know to do what, waste time and having minimum fun. The funny part is when I told them that I've read here, on mmorpg.com that Blizz will merge with facebook they were like wtf?! They've bitched about it (because they don't like facebook) but also again didn't do a thing.

Why I bring this up? Cause it's the same analogy ... here many people don't like the id change and many many many other things .... so if it's that bad, just quit, no drama. Vote with your wallet. That's what I'm always telling, vote with your wallet, you're as important as the other guy.

There's plenty of others games that you can get addicted too!

After all the talk about new mmos being WoW killers, turns out that Blizzard is the real WoW killer after all... who would have thought... 

Originally posted by Beermangler

After all the talk about new mmos being WoW killers, turns out that Blizzard is the real WoW killer after all... who would have thought... 

If Blizzard gets a hold of the Facebook market then you have no idea how many people that could potentially start playing WoW.

Originally posted by Treekodar

Originally posted by Beermangler

After all the talk about new mmos being WoW killers, turns out that Blizzard is the real WoW killer after all... who would have thought... 

If Blizzard gets a hold of the Facebook market then you have no idea how many people that could potentially start playing WoW.

 I think you're missing a verb in that sentence because I don't get it... 

I doubt Blizz is in any trouble over subscribers over this. Any sane person can see that this whole RealID thing really isn't a big deal. It will have blown over until cataclysm gets here.

I just hope that all parties involved here learn from this. I can understand why the player would not wantto have to post under a real name but also by posting under your real name puts a whole new level of being responsible for what you say. I am quite assured that by making this decision is mostly based on having the players take owner ship for some of the foolish threats and other things often posted in the forums. Blizzard has taken steps to protect themselves here after all this is the real world and we all look out for ourselves first. Now do I agree with what they are doing ... I have to say I am in the middle here. I am guessing that Blizzard is doing this to protect themselves and as a player we have come to expect some level of  anonymity . In the end I don't think this is going to make Blizzard hurt too much in the wallet. I think the end all be all is Blizzard is willing to take a hit with some of the player base leaving rather than take a huge hit but getting sued because player A said something cruel to player B and player B decided to take his or her own life or worse yet go postal. I also feel that Blizzard has timed this perfectly. They make a change knowing full well that the player base isn't going to like it and will likely loose a chunk of them but then Blizzard is quite confident that they will make up and surpass the amount of players that leave with the sales of the next expansion. Only time will tell and regardless of either way this goes it will be a mark in the MMO history book. Lastly try to look at it like this. If you wouldn't say it face to face to the people who the post is directed to then don't say it at all.

To SHARE a COMMON worldwide ID between games, to LET players CHAT within the game interface REGARDLESS of which game they are playing is a GENIOUS move.

Forcing you to use you real NAME is the worst shit ever thrown ever.

Then next time my virtual character kills and humilliate another virtual character a NERD guy with a SHOTGUN will visit my REAL home and kill all my real family (including my cat).

So fucking GORGEOUS, isn't it?.................

I quit WoW long ago. Now I won't buy Starcraft II or Diablo III. Why? Guess it. I dare you.

Originally posted by medianoche

 

I quit WoW long ago. Now I won't buy Starcraft II or Diablo III. Why? Guess it. I dare you.

Why bother with Diablo 3 when there's Torchlight available? :) 

Originally posted by Beermangler

Originally posted by medianoche

 

I quit WoW long ago. Now I won't buy Starcraft II or Diablo III. Why? Guess it. I dare you.

Why bother with Diablo 3 when there's Torchlight available? :) 

 Torchlight is going to be a F2P MMO, Diablo 3 is a stand-alone multiplayer game. For some people, that is a world of differences.

I am so outraged I will probably buy only two of the Diablo 3 games when they are released. If Blizzard backs off I will buy two of Diablo 3 games when they are released!

I could care less, but can't wait for the kicking SOE games will get when Diablo 3 rocks their world further, SOE games suck!

Do I feel strongly enough about the changes being brought in by the REAL ID system to honestly pack up and walk away from WoW, potentially forever?

The answer is a very simple, yes.

We, my boyfriend and I, have done exactly that. We've packed up and moved on and won't be revisiting it unless they revisit this idea and get rid of it. See what some people don't understand is the fact that this is just the beginning. Blizzard has already stated this in fact, by saying that there is more to come with this RealID system. I am not down with RealID at all.

You don't seem to understand that this is the direction everything is going. Not only Blizzard. Social networking is the next frontier. What will you guys do when everything online is a big social network? Boycott the internetz? In that case, good luck to you. Why not move back into a cave and start hunting deer in the forests too?

Originally posted by Zoulz

You don't seem to understand that this is the direction everything is going. Not only Blizzard. Social networking is the next frontier. What will you guys do when everything online is a big social network? Boycott the internetz? In that case, good luck to you. Why not move back into a cave and start hunting deer in the forests too?

lol, I agree with you 100%

You REALLY want people to quit? Perform a feat similar to Star Wars Galaxies "NGE"

That'll make people speak with their wallets. LOL

didnt read all the repilies but i think the write is right...

with saying that, a huge decision has been made in the past WHILE the community shouted/begged for the change not to come and a voice was heard at the end where most of the players just left the game. it was SOE and the game was ofc SWG..

meaning.. blizzard is taking a chance just like soe took one, doesnt matter what are the odds and what WE are saying as customers. at the end we have no voice, leaving the game is a void where there are no voices..

if you enjoy a game, all you can do is (assuming you enjoy the game & sarrounding [just like this new feature]) to hope the game wont be change to something you dont like, if it is new features of new gameplay etc...

just hope for the best.. you win some you loose some, remember what has transpired and remember who did it.. other than that, continue having fun while you can

(btw i havent played wow for since the first expansion and i didnt STOP because they did something wrong, it is just not a game for me ..)

"Please note that there is NO REQUIREMENT to add the Real ID system to your account. It is a non-obligatory option and you can still continue to enjoy your games as normal should you choose not to use it. This includes our various forums. If you wish to use it, you will need to activate in your account settings. 

Best Regards, 

Alex D. 
Account & Billing Support 
Blizzard Entertainment Europe "

From Blizzard in reply to my email about RealID and how I don't want it use it on the forums. 

I'm now completely unsure on the problem.. if you don't like it, don't turn it on. It's not really a big deal is it? Unless people think it will be forced on them one day?

Heres what it boils down to, to me. In life don't ever say anything, write anything, draw a picture of or do anything else that you wouldn't be proud enough of to put your name to. If you aren't being an asshat to your fellow man then no one will have a reason to hunt you  down by your real name. The fear of a stalker is about a one in 10 billion possibility I suppose. Identity theft is another slim possibility, but there is plenty of precautions out there for that. Of course there are also 100's of ways to find people on the internet without knowing their actual names anyway,,, IP tracing programs are everywhere.

My point is stop being paranoid, most likely unless you are a trolling douchebag, no one is going to give a crap what your real name is anyway.

-Dauntis

AKA: Stephen Laddusaw (a fairly unique name) come get me stalkers, ID theives, pedobears or whatever else is out there, because I am not afraid of fear tactics of the paranoid.

PS: For people that are going to quit WoW because of this, send me you gold and I will send you an aluminum foil hat.  

Originally posted by jayanti

I'm now completely unsure on the problem.. if you don't like it, don't turn it on. It's not really a big deal is it? Unless people think it will be forced on them one day?

What about the raiding guilds wich force all members/applicants to give their real id? If you don't want to use it, don't play with us.

Originally posted by Dauntis

Heres what it boils down to, to me. In life don't ever say anything, write anything, draw a picture of or do anything else that you wouldn't be proud enough of to put your name to. If you aren't being an asshat to your fellow man then no one will have a reason to hunt you  down by your real name. The fear of a stalker is about a one in 10 billion possibility I suppose. Identity theft is another slim possibility, but there is plenty of precautions out there for that. Of course there are also 100's of ways to find people on the internet without knowing their actual names anyway,,, IP tracing programs are everywhere.

 

My point is stop being paranoid, most likely unless you are a trolling douchebag, no one is going to give a crap what your real name is anyway.

 

-Dauntis

AKA: Stephen Laddusaw (a fairly unique name) come get me stalkers, ID theives, pedobears or whatever else is out there, because I am not afraid of fear tactics of the paranoid.

 

PS: For people that are going to quit WoW because of this, send me you gold and I will send you an aluminum foil hat.  

My sentiment exactly. Fear is the mindkiller.

Ok I cant agree with the living in a cave but hunting deer isnt all that bad and they taste soooo good. Also there are other things to do in  the world aside from the internet. Seeing I have been working for an internet help-desk for the past 8 years nothing disenhearts me more than when someone calls acting as if it is the end of the world. There are other things out in the real world to do like reading a book or something. But then also I can understand the level of frustration on this issue and only time will tell how it all pans out.

Originally posted by Vrika

Originally posted by jayanti

I'm now completely unsure on the problem.. if you don't like it, don't turn it on. It's not really a big deal is it? Unless people think it will be forced on them one day?

What about the raiding guilds wich force all members/applicants to give their real id? If you don't want to use it, don't play with us.

So, don't play with them if your scared of RealID? There are tons of raiding guilds out there. Honestly, that was one of the worst arguments i've read so far.

Originally posted by viditorum

Ok I cant agree with the living in a cave but hunting deer isnt all that bad and they taste soooo good. Also there are other things to do in  the world aside from the internet. Seeing I have been working for an internet help-desk for the past 8 years nothing disenhearts me more than when someone calls acting as if it is the end of the world. There are other things out in the real world to do like reading a book or something. But then also I can understand the level of frustration on this issue and only time will tell how it all pans out.

I totally agree with you. Ultimately, the internet is only a tool for us to communicate with eachother better. I believe it will be the tool that brings us humans closer together globally, as it knows no boundaries. I also believe it's essential that we shed our "we against them" mentality. People here are talking about stalkers and other criminal acts, but neglect to realize that internet privacy is just a band aid for those problems. It will never solve those problems. Never in a million years. You must solve problems at their roots. But this is a deeper and much more complicated discussion.

good review-I don't have a problem with what Blizzard is planning.

Originally posted by jayanti

I'm now completely unsure on the problem.. if you don't like it, don't turn it on. It's not really a big deal is it? Unless people think it will be forced on them one day?

They intend to introduce more features that involve social networking.  Their first foray eliminates anonimity, so it's clear they have no commitment to privacy.  Even if it there is always be an anonymous option, it will be an increasingly degraded version of the game over time and preserving privacy will be a new variable that has to be checked in every decision to use a feature of the game. They have made a deal with Facebook (and Massive) and the stated philsophy of Facebook's CEO is that privacy is dead; the entire business model of that company revolves around selling databases of personal information.  So if you disagree, if privacy is an issue that matters to you, then forum access is the logical place to draw the line in the sand because once you loose access access to the official forums, it will be much harder to provide feedback (short of quitting) to any future changes to privacy.

Everything comes down to personal decisions, but if you believe there is a conflict of interest between where the company's leadership wants to go and where you want to go, acting as a herd is more effective than acting as individuals - it's the reason policial parties, unions and even companies themselves exist.

Wrong at every statement. First, about your name revealed. You also have a “portrait” too. And it’s visible you are a white man, I can even add WASP (may be “P” is an extra here but you get my point). All of this reduces any potential thread by much. Now, writing columns and posting on forums – are very different things too. But this is just a note since you are talking about consumers rights.
Your advice “take it or leave it”... It is good for people who simply jump from one game to another. But Blizzard did everything to make WoW a common family entertainment, to actually already establish a social network which they shape now. So your advice is like “you do not like what a government’s doing with your country – then leave it, what’s the big deal?” 
I think from one point consumers do have to have rights to demand attention to their wishes.
From the other hands, even if Blizzard planed it ahead it could not be a better promotion for upcoming titles, like GW2, not to mention SW:ToR...

Originally posted by SnarlingWolf. I don't give Blizzard one cent of my money.

 

Then why bother posting at all.

Great article and as far as Blizzard and Real ID I think it's a good move it will at the very least give folks something to think about before trolling and hate mongering on forums, ironically this is the only forum I post in under something other than my real name and this name I actually use for my main toon in any mmo I play so it's not too difficult to find me.  But I think it's a good practice to have when dealing with the internet because far too long people have been allowed to act any way they want simply because they are anonomous.

I think the feedback on this thread is very illuminatng.

Two things are obvious in this thread:

1. People that post here predominantly are against the change.

2. People that post here and are against the change, were already not giving Blizzard their money.

From the looks of this, it appears that Blizzard is doing the right thing, as it will have a strong impact on those that dont pay their bills, and a much lesser impact on those that do.

It's probably more of a move to squelch any communication and to lessen the need for forum moderators (save $$).  "Fighting Forum Trolls" is just some stupid PR reason A-B is giving.  Look up Bobby Kotick and the corporate culture he fosters -- he's the empitomy of the "evil CEO who sucks the life out of everything he touches."

Originally posted by Edli

Originally posted by mmoguy43

 

holy crap. 2014 pages and counting..

news link

 

Proof that this is a big deal to a lot of peoples. 2k pages. Is just a game, why should everyone know who you are. And why all this, to prevent trolling? Cmon, nobody ever died from troll posts. Kinda stupid the reason to implement this real id thing.

 

I agree with the Article
If you dont like something then quit subbing for the game and move on.

I agree with the commentary; no one is forced to post.

Weak justification for continued hollow bitching. This article used about 20x the number of words actually necessary to simply convey the idea that the consumer, whether it seems so or not, has complete control, but only if they are willing to actually stick to their principles. If everyone had the balls to do that, then Blizzard would have little choice but to be more consistent with the views of the masses. The trouble is, as with most MMORPG's, there aren't enough balls in the Blizzard community to effect change. People like rant and rave and talk big, but the numbers clearly show that either, a) their opinion is not in the majority, or b) they don't feel strongly enough about the issue to actually do anything about it, so they're wasting their collective breath.

When you are a sheep, making a bunch of noise only tells the wolf where you are.

I think option A is the right.  Many people will bitch and scream, but when push comes to shove they will not quit if they are having fun with the game.

Those that do not play already, bitch and vote in the polls really have no say in the state of the game.  From what I know of this forum the vocal majority here are opposed to WoW anything.  They could shit real life gold bars for all the player and people would still complain that the gold is not shiny enough.

Originally posted by gilgamesh9

It's probably more of a move to squelch any communication and to lessen the need for forum moderators (save $$).  "Fighting Forum Trolls" is just some stupid PR reason A-B is giving.  Look up Bobby Kotick and the corporate culture he fosters -- he's the empitomy of the "evil CEO who sucks the life out of everything he touches."

Originally posted by Edli

Originally posted by mmoguy43

 

holy crap. 2014 pages and counting..

news link

 

Proof that this is a big deal to a lot of peoples. 2k pages. Is just a game, why should everyone know who you are. And why all this, to prevent trolling? Cmon, nobody ever died from troll posts. Kinda stupid the reason to implement this real id thing.

 

 

And nowhere close to enough people willing to take their money elsewhere.

I kind of like the idea. It *will* make the forums a more reasonable and mature place.

I have voted with my wallet already.  Like the author stated, it is the only way to truly voice your opinion.  Unfortunately, I suspect that the gamble Blizzard is taking is correct.  People will howl and complain and then log back on to their characters.  They  will lose a few like myself, for sure, but in the long run, people have shown time and time again that they will complain and complain, but not be willing to take any action that inconveniences them.  While there were well over a thousand pages of complaints the last time I looked at their forums, the number of those people who will actually cancel their subscriptions and stick to it are probably negligible.  Blizzard won't care that you don't like it, because you will keep paying.

I have not played world of warcraft for 5 years but at a gamer and a fourm user.

I can say I have gotten so mad before where if I had there name and the where in a 6 hour drive reach I would beat the fuck out of them 12 year old punk kid or not.   I would only hit a 12 year old to 16 1 time tho after that is fare game but im abit unstable with anger issue's when pushed .   But that there just go to show you never know who your dealing with.

Well, so far (and I haven't read any of the changes they plan on applying in the future) all real ID is for is connecting with friends in game.  You can send and receive invites to become real ID friends, and if accepted then you can connect with that friend no matter what server, character, or even battle.net game they are playing. You know, this isn't...required. You can always deny, and the only way players can send requests is by using your email, so if they don't know your email then you're fine. They use your real name to communicate between you and your real ID friends, because a.) They assume you are either really good friends in-game or friends in the dreaded "rl." I really don't care, I personally like the Real ID friend feature. If one of my friends wants to play on an alt on a different server, then I can still chat with them.

Of course, that is just my opinion I guess. I don't really care if people know my real name, Garrok and Jeremy Callaway are one and the same people. For those who don't want people in game to know their real name, then don't have real ID friends...and don't have your friends in real life play the game, that way you will only be known as "Gerbalpanties of Gnomergan"

Originally posted by banshe13

I have not played world of warcraft for 5 years but at a gamer and a fourm user.

 

I can say I have gotten so mad before where if I had there name and the where in a 6 hour drive reach I would beat the fuck out of them 12 year old punk kid or not.   I would only hit a 12 year old to 16 1 time tho after that is fare game but im abit unstable with anger issue's when pushed .   But that there just go to show you never know who your dealing with.

 

Well, that sounds like something you need to work on. :P If a twelve to 16 year old boy on the internet can push you over the edge, then you have serious mental issues that need to be worked out with a therapist. BUT, with the Real ID system, all you get is a name and an email. If you got the name and the where, you probably couldn't do anything with it unless they have a very strange name. With me, my name is (as I said in my last post) Jeremy Callaway. There are more than one Jeremy's in Birmingham, AL.

Originally posted by ianicus

Originally posted by Kyleran

How can I quit that which I am not subscribed to?

I left WOW over 4 years ago, so not much I can do to voice my displeasure about this move.

I am a long time fan of the Starcraft and Diablo franchises and this move will ensure that I won't be purchasing either title, but they'll never know it unfortunately.

So raging on forums is about the only recourse, though I am seriously considering actually sending them a snail mail just so they get an appreciation of my disagreement on their policy.

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

 

 

ok....so your not a blizzard customer, yet you feel the need to tell them how unhappy you are with thier decision. If you feel like wasting your time feel free. If I had someone send a letter to, or call my company and tell them how much something we did displeased them, only to find out they were not even an active paying client. I would very kindly send them or provide a canned response that pretty much said thanks for your input but we really dont care.

The only people that have any kind of power to sway blizzards decision in this matter are paying subscribers to world of warcraft, not diablo customers, not starcraft customers, nor any future "potential" customers. If you dont like it strongly enough than quit.

You're a moron. This change will eventually affect ALL Blizzard games including StarCraft II and Diablo III. If Blizzard understands how making money works at all (obviously the company does) then its looking for where its next potential dollar is coming from, not where it is currently getting its dollars. Blizz already has the money of the current subscribers; it needs/wants the money of people who are going to buy Cata, SC2, D3, etc. Basic economics would tell you that in order to increase your income, you have to acquire new sources of income--L2Math.

Originally posted by MacAllen

My sentiments as always, "put up or shut up".  Nothing more ridiculous than people ranting over an over on a board that shows they're still paying to play the game.

"You can spit in my eye only 16 more times, and THEN I'm leaving!"

Quit the game, and post in your exit survey why you're quitting.  Enough people quit, they'll learn.  Posting how much you hate the decision while still paying for the game makes your words empty and pointless, literally.  You might as well  be saying how much you hate a restaurant's food with a mouth full of it while ordering the second course and leaving a huge tip.

Credibility, it's not just for breakfast anymore.

Re: SnarlingWolf, nothing gets accomplish by ranting and paying, either.  If you don't like it, quit.  If enough people quit, it will change.  If you are the only one that quits, then it's just you that doesn't like it.  It's called capitalism, and it really is that simple.

What you want is to eat your cake and have it to, you want Blizz to value you as a person and your input, but to Blizz you are .00000000001% of their game population.  Keep in mind, they deliberately and with forethought of the consequences alienated 1% of their gaming population by making the upper tiers of the game easier and more available.  They intentionally decided "we have 30% of the  game being seen by 1% of the population, and if we change it, that top 1% will very likely leave the game, but the other 99% will enjoy it more....very well, sacrifice that 1%". 

As a consumer of a 12 million player game, your words could not be more empty, because they're not heard in the cacaphony.  If you quit, and you are alone, then it's just you, go play something else.  If enough people quit, Blizz will have to change to save the cash cow.  Not rocket science.

This ^

This right here should be the ONLY post on the 3000 threads spanning 100's of sites on this topic right now.

It is 100% truth and worthy of a stevo-o thumbs up award.

Sad but true reality of it is, you are all complaining, and very and I mean VERY few of you are going to quit this game. Not even a spec on the radar for blizzard which will make them fix nothing.

You all have the numbers on your side, there are enough of you that if you all unsubbed would make blizzard rethink this policy, but you will not, you will blow up forums across the world, and STILL dish out that 14.99 without skipping a beat.

This is why it seems Blizzard runs over it's paying customer, wrong, Blizzard doesn't run over you, you run over yourselves.

EDIT - It should be noted that money talks and bullshit walks, and Blizzard is about to take all of your money and walk it straight to the bank, dragging a briefcase with your real names inside it right behind them. Shrugs, who cares right.

This is an attempt to recreate a phenomenon like Facebook. Atleast that's how i see it.

Well, it  helps my decision for no more wait to play Diablo 3. Blizzard is burying the renown  owned along the yeras with good  games and the high quality with  bullshits. I bet tons of players will levae WoW after this decision by Blizzard.

I wouldn't mind giving my first name, but not my full name

Or at least just the initials of the surname

I find it a bit overboard

Originally posted by Maleus666

Well, it  helps my decision for no more wait to play Diablo 3. Blizzard is burying the renown  owned along the yeras with good  games and the high quality with  bullshits. I bet tons of players will levae WoW after this decision by Blizzard.

I bet the opposite, I bet hardly any of them leave. Reinforcing the fact that gaming companies can get away with doing this, which will set up and open a doorway for all gaming companies to do it from now on.

This isn't the first controversial change Blizzard has ever made. How many people did they lose over the Sparkly horse cash shop shit? Not many at all, but if you watched the forums during  that timeframe would have thought the sky was falling chicken little.

Nope, this isn't going to change anything, it will go into affect, and the mindless addicted masses will soak it up like hot rays on a white beach.

Watch and see.

why everytime someone complaint they got only one options , leave the game or say nothing ?

you dont think that wrong ? if we show you 14 year old litle girl having sex in the tv ( totaly random but im high so )  , you can only cancel the cable and never watch the tv again ?

people can stay in the game AND COMPLAINT , they can do both and something realy wrong if the game company listen only when you leave the game like you say , btw you post pretty nice screen shot of the game with ur post  .

if anyone dont agree about the real id they can post in the internet ,  talk about it , and let everyone know about that , and that probably the best way to go , not just dont say anything and cancel ur subs lol .

seriously mmorpg.com alway try to make you think the way they want ( strangely that usualy the way blizzard want too )

and this way = no matter if you complaint you will dont leave the game so the complaint mean nothing .

seriously why we cant play the game and dont accept everything too ?

think people ! and sorry for my realy bad english i have learn it only from gaming and internet .

on further notice ... apparently you can disable Real ID through parental control nehow so no biggy really ...

Congratulations naysayers, you have been defeated.

http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=25968987278&sid=1

Banding together, rising up, and shouting our displeasure worked, as it should. Perhaps there is hope left for humanity after all.

Originally posted by Kothoses

In most walks of life you are correct however in the world of internet subscription gaming a mobilised and vocal section of the consumer base and POTENTIAL consumer base can effect change.  Blizzard need to hear loud and clear that this is unacceptable not just to current customers, but to potential future customers.

 

They have already alienated me from their forums after issuing me with a 4 day ban for saying "/bump for a nice group of people" on another guilds recruitment ad in our realm forums.  However with this system they have made sure I do not buy cata, do not re-new my wow sub and will not purchase starcraft 3 or diablo 3.  Its not what they are doing thats the issue, its that blizzard control the market, when they "try" something if it works most other mmos follow suit.

 

Now if they get away with this and sony and Cryptic follow suit, how long untill they are selling your data to third parties?

 

None of this would have been needed if they had managed their game community properly in the first place, instead of letting them act like little children in a sweet shop.

 

So no I will not be quiet about it, and neither should you, it was only through mass mobilization of the customer base that facebook backed down at all on their privacy issues, and its only through mass mobilization of customers old new and future that blizzard will back down.

 

Just to point out, that what I described above is exactly what happened.

And the result ladies and gentlemen?  So sorry mr Wood, but you were wrong, just like your writers were wrong with the "Customer is not always right" column and various other columns written to be apologists for corporate mmo makers greed.

Once again People power expressed its self in a way to effect change, learn from this.

You can quit, but the fact remains only countless other players will fill your shoes. Developers know this, they don't care about user retainment rate. They care about your wallet, and how much of it is going to them.

If they can't have your money, there is always another player from another mmo desperate enough to try it. Eventually players simply end up playing musical chairs for the rest of their mmo career.

people are addicted to games, and developers know it.

There is no stopping companies like blizzard from doing what they want, and with peoples addiction to these games, we are all "fucked".

I don't see much hope for change, we were raised, and molded, and shaped by our society, parents and outside pressures, to be this way.

While many may not agree to portions or all of this post, in this end we are just slave to the system, one way or another, through tv, food, games etc etc...

Don't believe me? Try living a day without tv, computers, cell phones, fast food, that new outfit.

Anyways... I really hope that people find a way to adapt to the system to be happy, cause you can't beat it, and you can't exist outside of it.

flame as you like, I understand if you don't understand the words I am saying.

cheers!

Hahaha.  This just shows the mentality of the average WoW gamer.  QQ I'm gonna quit cuz I have to use my real name QQ.  Seriously?  My name is Brandon Erwin.  Why would I care if you knew it?  People just sound like a bunch of whining politicians.  It's sad.

Originally posted by DAS1337 Hahaha.  This just shows the mentality of the average WoW gamer.  QQ I'm gonna quit cuz I have to use my real name QQ.  Seriously?  My name is Brandon Erwin.  Why would I care if you knew it?  People just sound like a bunch of whining politicians.  It's sad.

This is why people don't want their names on the internet sir. Maybe you should STFU when you don't know what you're talking about:  http://seewhatyoudidthere.com/2010/07/07/realid-changes-the-very-real-ease-of-stalking-in-the-internet-age/

Now that this is all over and John was proven wrong :D

REAL ID does not in any way verify that you are the person you claim you are.  This is something that everyone needs to realise now.  John Wood playing on his battlenet account could be 12 year old girl - or 90 year old alien.  Cause Blizzard has no methods of verifying if you are actually the person that you claim you are. 

So plz... Remember this - if you are talking to a 15 year old girl through REAL ID system.  This could be 40 year old looney.  That was the most dangerous part of this all.  Blizzard claimed that ppl were actually talking under their own first and last name - when the company had no - and still has no way of verifying the true name of the user.

Continue to Play world of warcraft but refuse to use any portion/component of the game that requires the disclosure of your true name.

If I can keep my anonymity, or control it to a ceratin extent, then I'll continue playing.  IF I have the option of showing in game friends and family my real name to chat and communicate, then that's not an issue.  It would be exactly like Facebook.  But if you tell me that my ability to use your OFFICIAL forums REQUIRES that I use my true name, then I won't be using that portion of your service.

I'm disapointed in Blizzard and I believe if this goes through, people WILL be hurt in real life.  I won't partake in any of that. 

On another note, I'm a professional, and I carefully guard who gets to see my name and where they can see it.  I don't want future employers to google my name only to see all the posts I made for a game.  I believe playing video games and being good at my job have nothing to do with each other.  Future employers might think otherwise.

I won't take that chance....

Originally posted by LadyAlibi

Originally posted by Kyleran

Unlike John, my name is very unqiue and its far too easy for people to locate me therefore while he might not care, it matters a great deal to me.

 

I am in that boat too. If you type "Jon Wood" Facebook search, you probably have several to choose from. If you put my name in there, you get me. Just me.  If you google my name, everything that comes on the first several pages of hits is me and stuff I have posted under my own name. 

 

Re: People complaining and quitting:

I have noticed that some changes cause people to flee from a game-- I hate to bring it up anywhere, but there was that SWG NGE thing that seemed to cause a fairly large exodus. It doesn't even matter that the policy didn't change when those people left because it no longer applied to them. They go play other games and SOE doesn't get their money. 

On the other hand, back when EQ1 was still all the rage,  there were protests from time to time, in game and in the forums, and sometimes things got changed, but mostly they didn't. People would throw fits about problems with or changes to their classes, swearing they'd quit, but mostly they didn't-- they just switched to a different class. So, it does seem true that people will rant and froth all over the forums and in-game, but don't actually quit. 

 

SOE didn't listen to their own detriment.  They really caused the too early demise of EQ1 by not listening to their playerbase.  And when they did, it was too little too late because WoW hit the market and there was finally another game out that with enough to compete with them.  They didn't listen because they, in their minds, didn't have too.  Their was no competition for their money at the time.  I strongely feel that if they did, EQ would've lasted strongely at least 2-3 more years.  And sure, it's still around, but when the valve opened for people to leave, it was soon a floodgate.

Something like the whole RealID thing couldv've been that valve for SC2 and WoW.  And, no offense to OP, not everyone has a name where there are thousands of possibles.  Blizzard retracted the use of Real Name 'at this time' today and it's a good move.  It at least from a small standpoint says they listened.

However, I don't think it's because they wanted to, I think they thought it over in terms of money.  Some people left, lots of people cancelled pre-orders from stores and from them directly.  Enough outcry about it on their forums where people posted names and 5 minutes later, there were lots of personal histories, addresses, etc...  Though some of it not readily available ot the average person, but put into the hands of people that would use that information, it could be dangerous.  I firmly believe that if they went through with RealID+real names, at least 25% of SC2 sales would evaporate, and probably 10-15% of the WoW population would leave.  And when you talk about 10-15% of the WoW population, in terms of the financials, it's really straight out of the bottom line of profits, because servers won't shut down, thus overhead costs won't lessen.  It directly effects Blizzards profits, and for them, that really is the issue.

Lots of exciting things are happening over at LotRO, which is a much better game anyways.

Originally posted by Kothoses

Originally posted by Kothoses

In most walks of life you are correct however in the world of internet subscription gaming a mobilised and vocal section of the consumer base and POTENTIAL consumer base can effect change.  Blizzard need to hear loud and clear that this is unacceptable not just to current customers, but to potential future customers.

 

They have already alienated me from their forums after issuing me with a 4 day ban for saying "/bump for a nice group of people" on another guilds recruitment ad in our realm forums.  However with this system they have made sure I do not buy cata, do not re-new my wow sub and will not purchase starcraft 3 or diablo 3.  Its not what they are doing thats the issue, its that blizzard control the market, when they "try" something if it works most other mmos follow suit.

 

Now if they get away with this and sony and Cryptic follow suit, how long untill they are selling your data to third parties?

 

None of this would have been needed if they had managed their game community properly in the first place, instead of letting them act like little children in a sweet shop.

 

So no I will not be quiet about it, and neither should you, it was only through mass mobilization of the customer base that facebook backed down at all on their privacy issues, and its only through mass mobilization of customers old new and future that blizzard will back down.

 

 

 

Just to point out, that what I described above is exactly what happened.

 

And the result ladies and gentlemen?  So sorry mr Wood, but you were wrong, just like your writers were wrong with the "Customer is not always right" column and various other columns written to be apologists for corporate mmo makers greed.

Once again People power expressed its self in a way to effect change, learn from this.

People screamed about other changes as well. How do you know many did not do just as Jon Wood has stated to do? Maybe many many voiced their concerns and then did quit. Maybe in the past people only made their voice heard and did not actually quit. Who knows what drove them to change their minds.

There was also people sending letters to companies that advertise on Blizzard's website. Maybe they got worried and contacted Blizzard. We can't know for sure what caused the withdraw. I believe Jon Wood could be right.

I think an outspoken player base required Blizzard to re-assess the situation. The loud and wide ranging effect of the outspoken masses reached major media markets and their accounting of the player base's sentiment help lend weight to the situation. When the general populace starts to hear about interent security issues their ears perk up and they take notice. Blizzard had to take notice. When a large piece of the player base calls for game change and it doesnt reach the major media and therefore people that dont play MMOs, the power of the player bases is less significant.

For this issue Mr. Wood was wrong, in most other cases, he would be right.

I love WoW.  I've had some good times in that game. I've since anceled my subscription, but I plan on resubscribing when Catalysm hits, since I've got like 5 free months saved up from the WoW Visa card I got.

I really don't mind all the non-combat pets. I even got some myself. I even got the sparkly horse mount, which I think is really cool.

So yeah, maybe I'll see some of ya in-game on Cataclysm.

An article says "don't rant, act!" and gets followed by ranting... ironic...

Is it that important for you people to lash at each others opinions?

Is it hard to accept the fact that there are other viewpoints on the globe?

Do you even think that stating opinions here has a ounce of importance?

And yet people are so riled up.

Humanity is a strange bunch...

sure says dont rant yet he says basicly if you dont like it leave. Thank God Blizzard dont talk childish. And update the review.  There is no forums ID.

Originally posted by Reianor

An article says "don't rant, act!" and gets followed by ranting... ironic...

Is it that important for you people to lash at each others opinions?

Is it hard to accept the fact that there are other viewpoints on the globe?

Do you even think that stating opinions here has a ounce of importance?

And yet people are so riled up.

Humanity is a strange bunch...

Opinions stated on the official forums and other media made Blizzard cancel the implementation of RealID, so yes opinions voiced here can have an effect.

---

First, I'd like to say that while I can appreciate the massive storm of hate that has poured down on Blizzard since this announcement was made, both on their official forums and on third party forums like ours, I honestly don't think that this is going to get the job done.

---

LOL... 1 day later...

Glad to see the mmorpg.com did not buckle under and do the "i'm a fanboi routine" this time around. Less fanbois make better forums and better games. Kudos to you mmorpg.com! :D

And not that I ever agree with childish ranting, for the information of "Jon Wood", these styles of ranting have gotten so many class changes done.  Not just class changes either.  PVP changes, gear, etc.  Blizzard are notorius for listening the the whine, that is, if it comes in a big enough package of subscribers.  God help them if they slip to 10.9 million subscribers.

My question is this:

Will this carry over to wow armory where you do character searches - possible that will reveal your real name too???

Strange article as you don't actually explain what this program is. Google it is, but there should have been something here about it!

Point is mute now since they backed off their decision. 

I understand why they were thinking of doing it.  Now days people are too comfortable  behind an anonymous avatar saying whatever they like about whatever, true or not.  "I'm not gods gift to computing, but I play one on the internet".  If you have nothing to hide then most likely you wouldn't worry about using your real name.

As far as the argument goes about a nut job hunting you down  based on your real name, I very much doubt it.  Real names are required in every day life and many things throughout the internet.  If someone really wanted to hunt you down, they could, even without your real name.

Stop acting childish on the forums (and games in general in many cases) and companies wont have to threaten to do this kind of thing.  Of course most of the people who play WoW are children so I guess that is what we have to expect.

Originally posted by jpaprocki

Point is mute now since they backed off their decision. 

I understand why they were thinking of doing it.  Now days people are too comfortable  behind an anonymous avatar saying whatever they like about whatever, true or not.  "I'm not gods gift to computing, but I play one on the internet".  If you have nothing to hide then most likely you wouldn't worry about using your real name.

As far as the argument goes about a nut job hunting you down  based on your real name, I very much doubt it.  Real names are required in every day life and many things throughout the internet.  If someone really wanted to hunt you down, they could, even without your real name.

Stop acting childish on the forums (and games in general in many cases) and companies wont have to threaten to do this kind of thing.  Of course most of the people who play WoW are children so I guess that is what we have to expect.

http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=25968987278&sid=1

Explained there....^^^

In any case, as much as I agree that using real names would curb stupid and childish behaviour, I would worry about privacy issues.  Then again, I would sooner not post on the forums then quit the game (if I were still playing).  I don't necessarily want any jack ass knowing my real name and such.

Just when I thought the MMO industry couldn't sink any lower, Blizzard comes out and does this.  Ha!  So much for a reputable company.

Originally posted by seryth

In any case, as much as I agree that using real names would curb stupid and childish behaviour, I would worry about privacy issues.  Then again, I would sooner not post on the forums then quit the game (if I were still playing).  I don't necessarily want any jack ass knowing my real name and such.

 I firmly believe that this whole RealID thing has far less to do with controlling trollish behavior on the forums, and much more to do with long-term goals to integrate with Facebook.  As another poster said (and I'm paraphrasing), "Forcing people to post using their real names to prevent trolling is like using a nuclear weapon to kill a cockroach.  After the dust has settled, all you end up with is dead people and stronger cockroaches."

If you want to control trolling, force people to create a forum login ID which is tied to their account.  They can only post using that ID.  Then, if they insist on being a troll, you simply ban them from the forums.  Monitoring the forums for abusive behavior may be a time-consuming task, but (again, as somebody else pointed out) Blizzard has a vast pool of willing volunteers who would gladly spend a few hours each day (or week) policing the forums for them. 

The point is that there are many efficient, less intrusive methods to control forum activity available to them.  *IF* that was the true intent of this proposed change. Which, as I've already stated, I do not believe. 

Originally posted by Papamac

 I firmly believe that this whole RealID thing has far less to do with controlling trollish behavior on the forums, and much more to do with long-term goals to integrate with Facebook.  As another poster said (and I'm paraphrasing), "Forcing people to post using their real names to prevent trolling is like using a nuclear weapon to kill a cockroach.  After the dust has settled, all you end up with is dead people and stronger cockroaches."

If you want to control trolling, force people to create a forum login ID which is tied to their account.  They can only post using that ID.  Then, if they insist on being a troll, you simply ban them from the forums.  Monitoring the forums for abusive behavior may be a time-consuming task, but (again, as somebody else pointed out) Blizzard has a vast pool of willing volunteers who would gladly spend a few hours each day (or week) policing the forums for them. 

The point is that there are many efficient, less intrusive methods to control forum activity available to them.  *IF* that was the true intent of this proposed change. Which, as I've already stated, I do not believe. 

Who knows, maybe they were never going to do that; they just wanted a bunch of people to give them good ideas as to what to do.  So they dropped a bomb and listened to people's suggestions...cheaper than hiring "experts" in the field. =P

I think the sheer amount f posting in the official WoW forums would be an extremely daunting task to efficiently monitor.  Even with "volunteers", you would have to monitor the activities of these would-be do-gooders.  Let's not forget that people can and will complain about volunteers and how they are being biases and all that non-sense.  Reminds me pretty much of why I rarely post on forums anymore, unless it's part of a community/topic I enjoy posting on.

Originally posted by qombi

Originally posted by Kothoses

Originally posted by Kothoses

In most walks of life you are correct however in the world of internet subscription gaming a mobilised and vocal section of the consumer base and POTENTIAL consumer base can effect change.  Blizzard need to hear loud and clear that this is unacceptable not just to current customers, but to potential future customers.

 

They have already alienated me from their forums after issuing me with a 4 day ban for saying "/bump for a nice group of people" on another guilds recruitment ad in our realm forums.  However with this system they have made sure I do not buy cata, do not re-new my wow sub and will not purchase starcraft 3 or diablo 3.  Its not what they are doing thats the issue, its that blizzard control the market, when they "try" something if it works most other mmos follow suit.

 

Now if they get away with this and sony and Cryptic follow suit, how long untill they are selling your data to third parties?

 

None of this would have been needed if they had managed their game community properly in the first place, instead of letting them act like little children in a sweet shop.

 

So no I will not be quiet about it, and neither should you, it was only through mass mobilization of the customer base that facebook backed down at all on their privacy issues, and its only through mass mobilization of customers old new and future that blizzard will back down.

 

 

 

Just to point out, that what I described above is exactly what happened.

 

And the result ladies and gentlemen?  So sorry mr Wood, but you were wrong, just like your writers were wrong with the "Customer is not always right" column and various other columns written to be apologists for corporate mmo makers greed.

Once again People power expressed its self in a way to effect change, learn from this.

People screamed about other changes as well. How do you know many did not do just as Jon Wood has stated to do? Maybe many many voiced their concerns and then did quit. Maybe in the past people only made their voice heard and did not actually quit. Who knows what drove them to change their minds.

There was also people sending letters to companies that advertise on Blizzard's website. Maybe they got worried and contacted Blizzard. We can't know for sure what caused the withdraw. I believe Jon Wood could be right.

 

Did you read what Mr Wood typed?

He didnt say do both, he said simply quit?  Fact is simply quitting alone isnt enough, a customer base has more power over a corporate entity than they would have you believe, same as the populace has power over its government.  Enough of either rising up and the big fish is cooked so to speak.

The way the protest against real ID was handled, both directly and visibly and behind the scenes with snail mail letters of protest and contact of corporate partners is exactly the way to go with this kind of thing.

No publicity is bad publicity though, which is why I still believe the whole thing was a carefully managed feint by blizzard..... lets see if any other mmos were announcing anything important this week.... oh yes just one or two......

Originally posted by perefim

You can quit, but the fact remains only countless other players will fill your shoes. Developers know this, they don't care about user retainment rate. They care about your wallet, and how much of it is going to them.

If they can't have your money, there is always another player from another mmo desperate enough to try it. Eventually players simply end up playing musical chairs for the rest of their mmo career.

people are addicted to games, and developers know it.

There is no stopping companies like blizzard from doing what they want, and with peoples addiction to these games, we are all "fucked".

I don't see much hope for change, we were raised, and molded, and shaped by our society, parents and outside pressures, to be this way.

While many may not agree to portions or all of this post, in this end we are just slave to the system, one way or another, through tv, food, games etc etc...

Don't believe me? Try living a day without tv, computers, cell phones, fast food, that new outfit.

Anyways... I really hope that people find a way to adapt to the system to be happy, cause you can't beat it, and you can't exist outside of it.

flame as you like, I understand if you don't understand the words I am saying.

 

cheers!

I'm glad you were proved so wrong. I actually feel very sad for people who have such a defeatist attitude to anything in life, even games. I'm not having a go at you, your entitled to think the way you want, I'm just glad not everybody thinks that way or your way of thinking would actually become a reality.

When people get together and rightly make their voices heard it is a very powerful thing. I'm so glad that people spoke up like they did, in between the haters on either side there were many many valid points raised about why it was such a terrible idea to link with players real names, especially when there was no reason to do it. using 'real names' does not equal accountability, and accountability does not require real names.

What I'm saying is that the people who are sick of the trolls, well you can be happy for Blizzard can use an account based anonymous identifier  to ban such trolls if required, and this means that those who feel they need the protection of anonymity need not fear.

Surely this is a win win for everyone apart from the trolls. The horrible thing to come out of this is that once again it has shown how many people are simply incapable of seeing beyond their own situation to take onboard other peoples circumstances. Just because you have no good reason to hide your identity does not mean that others don't.

RealID has to be the dumbest reason to quit WoW ever (and I say this as someone who has quit WoW).  A lot of people don't seem to be aware of this for some reason, but no one on the internet cares who you really are. 

i just cancelled my account I don't want my real name used and posted on the forums thank you very much.

Oh sweet, Nicrox is gone!

*Resubbing*

MMO companies seem, too often, to think that their players are so hooked on a game that they can't walk away, no matter how they're treated.  The problem is, sometimes I think they're right.

Does an MMO meet most of a person's social needs?  Do they get self-esteem and a sense of accomplishment mainly in a virtual environment?  Do most of their recreational needs get met exclusively in an online game?  Have they invested an incredible amount of money, time or energy into an MMO--so much that walking away from it feels unbearable?

I think the more we rely on MMOs to get these basic needs met, the more power we give to MMO companies.  I think the more power we give them, the more likely they are to abuse this, and take us for granted.  They'll do what they want, no matter how loud we scream, because they know they've got us hooked.

If any gamer feels him or herself in that position, maybe its time to give game companies less power, and find out that life has more to offer than World of Warcraft, or any other MMO.

About that hate means nothing thing, *cough* SWG *cough*.  Certain things piss people off enough to destroy you, game development companies suffer from a lot of hubris and have not learned that yet.

-With regard to this, if you are a fool enough to use FaceBook or MySpace (which are both tracked by the police, oh and so is YouTube), then this decision does not affect you since you screwed yourself already.

The only way to be completely anon on the internet is through the use of prepaid phones that are paid in cash and use aliases, a different alias every so often.

I prefer not to connect my internet personas with my real world self, it is bad for business as everything you say here is tracked.  So something you said drunk , for example, can be used against you as if you said it sober.  I definately would not buy any MMORPG that wanted my identity to be public record like this, but some people really don't care as they think "I've done nothing wrong."  But that is not the problem, as we know with game Developers, people are prone to incompetence, laziness, and greed.  Police agencies are made of people and prone to this as well.  It is the potential screw-ups that you should fear, not necesissarily if you are innocent or not.

Im one of those gamers if i dont like it i dont yell hate or scream about it i just ask if they will chance it if not i quit.

Ive done it before, so not words only but action and they wont get my money any more untill they chance it.

Luckly im not involved in activision/blizzard games so for now realID is not my problem:)

Ignorrance can be your downfall remember that many bad people out there even if you dont have to be affraid or wrong doing anything its a huge risk known with real name on internet.

1. lawsuit, if you actually think this can or will happen, your dreaming with the rest.

2. Your name , isn't as unique as you think it is. Mine is Noel Bohac, OH NO < IM SCARED NOW! :P

3. Facebook intergration, probably does that bother you?

4. Don't like it, don't buy it, that is your ONLY recours that any corp will listen to period.

5. They got your real name now and it's easy enough to find you by your IP to the exact building you are on the net from, are you scared now? Time to unplug from the internet , because if this scares you, sorry to say it's allready out there, your just not blantly aware of it. Got a network guru friend? Ask them and you will know why.

6. Do you really think a thread of 12thousand post or even 100thousand will make them stop the process? If you do, your really not to bright. If this wasn't WoW, maybe, but it is and as we know membership is in the millions, So ya, if it was a 500k membership and 100k complained, ok maybe, just  maybe then they might "might" listen. Get the idea here? Complain all you like death ears approch.

7.  You will quit, there are plenty more to take your spot.

8. The only thing that will kill WoW or any game is if the game is not fun. Period. People said another company would fail because they require constant internet connections to their games , it might have hurt sales, but not enough to make them stop it. You might think you know the company to which I speak, you probably are right, but did you know there are actual 5 publisher that require and more that are going to same rout to your favorit IP games?

9.Get ready to give it all up, the trend is openess and security of IP, this means RealID, Constant Internet Connection and more for any game you will play in the future. So at least you had a good run while it lasted right?

10. Refer to point 7 if you think it matters.

Originally posted by PyscoJuggalo

About that hate means nothing thing, *cough* SWG *cough*.  Certain things piss people off enough to destroy you, game development companies suffer from a lot of hubris and have not learned that yet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

-With regard to this, if you are a fool enough to use FaceBook or MySpace (which are both tracked by the police, oh and so is YouTube), then this decision does not affect you since you screwed yourself already.

 

The only way to be completely anon on the internet is through the use of prepaid phones that are paid in cash and use aliases, a different alias every so often.

 

I prefer not to connect my internet personas with my real world self, it is bad for business as everything you say here is tracked.  So something you said drunk , for example, can be used against you as if you said it sober.  I definately would not buy any MMORPG that wanted my identity to be public record like this, but some people really don't care as they think "I've done nothing wrong."  But that is not the problem, as we know with game Developers, people are prone to incompetence, laziness, and greed.  Police agencies are made of people and prone to this as well.  It is the potential screw-ups that you should fear, not necesissarily if you are innocent or not.

Ack, I better get my tinfoil hat!

6. Do you really think a thread of 12thousand post or even 100thousand will make them stop the process? If you do, your really not to bright. If this wasn't WoW, maybe, but it is and as we know membership is in the millions, So ya, if it was a 500k membership and 100k complained, ok maybe, just  maybe then they might "might" listen. Get the idea here? Complain all you like death ears approch.

 

Heh, the post made it to around 2500 pages and blizzard locked it after releasing they are canning the requirement to use real names in forum posts.  Just thought I'd point that out to you.

Originally posted by Scot

There was a storm over the pets, but who got their way? Blizzard.

 

There was a storm over Real ID but who got the ratings system they wanted introduced? Blizzard.

 

Posters are talking of ‘people power’, but you were conned guys. Its called expectation management, you tell people something very bad is going to happen (real ID names on your forum) then you cancel that but get through another controversial change (rating system) and you guys are patting yourself on the back. Brilliant play on Blizzards part.

 

I have quit MMO’s before because of changes, or just forums because of changes to the forums. He is right , voting with your feet is all that counts.

 ^^^THIS^^^ !!!

Extremely true....Congress does it all the time, it's a tried and proven way to get what you REALLY want while making yourself look like you are doing what your constituency wants.

The key to the so-called Blizz response was...AT THIS TIME...respectfully, I say people really need to learn to read, and comprehend what is being said, or in this case, NOT being said.  Nowhere did they say it would never be implemented, nowhere did they say they were going to fix the flaws with RealID and Battle.net that have made it easier for people to get hacked, and in fact they left the door wide open for dumping a whole new load of 'stuff' on the player base.

http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=25968987278&sid=1

Really READ what is said/not said....and try to realize that this is politically correct manipulation from beginning to end.

And people are buying it,,,as evidenced by the subsequent Blizz praising posts that follow it.  O_o

Originally posted by Drachasor

RealID has to be the dumbest reason to quit WoW ever (and I say this as someone who has quit WoW).  A lot of people don't seem to be aware of this for some reason, but no one on the internet cares who you really are. 

I think you are way off. Even though I don’t currently play WoW, I have dabbled in it off and on since its release. If they continued with the Real ID system I never would have returned. Why? Because it is MY choice to tell people who I am, not the choice of an entertainment company whom I pay for, well, entertainment. Simply telling me not to post on the forums is a shallow line of reasoning.

People quitting over some forum feature that won't even go live now? Truly stupid. Tough luck for missing out on some of the best games from one of the best companies on the gaming market out of some stupid principle. The loss is only on you.

Well, I have to admit I am impressed that Blizzard actually backed out of this decision after seeing how upset it made people. It is not the company it once way, but, regardless of Kotick's control, this does seem to be a positive thing to note.

why does it always seems that these articles come out so late to the game?

Originally posted by chaintm

1. lawsuit, if you actually think this can or will happen, your dreaming with the rest.

2. Your name , isn't as unique as you think it is. Mine is Noel Bohac, OH NO < IM SCARED NOW! :P

5. They got your real name now and it's easy enough to find you by your IP to the exact building you are on the net from, are you scared now? Time to unplug from the internet , because if this scares you, sorry to say it's allready out there, your just not blantly aware of it. Got a network guru friend? Ask them and you will know why.

6. Do you really think a thread of 12thousand post or even 100thousand will make them stop the process? If you do, your really not to bright. If this wasn't WoW, maybe, but it is and as we know membership is in the millions, So ya, if it was a 500k membership and 100k complained, ok maybe, just  maybe then they might "might" listen. Get the idea here? Complain all you like death ears approch.

8. The only thing that will kill WoW or any game is if the game is not fun. Period. People said another company would fail because they require constant internet connections to their games , it might have hurt sales, but not enough to make them stop it. You might think you know the company to which I speak, you probably are right, but did you know there are actual 5 publisher that require and more that are going to same rout to your favorit IP games?

 

1. lawsuit.  I don't think it's the lawsuit that is the issue.  Because the chances of Blizzard actually being proven guilty would be extremely small.  However, if one happened, it would likely be a huge media circus and in that, it would be an insane amount of negative publicity that would most likely do irrevocable harm to the company.  For Example, Michael Jackson was proven not guilty, but lets face it, it pretty much ended his career.

Add that, regardless of outcome, it would also mean something horrible happened.  Meaning, someone would've actually used WoW forums and got someones name, found info about that person and did something to harm that person.  And if that did happen, then that is one too many.

2.  And also, regardless to Noel Bohac, your name has information.  It isn't out of the question these days for companies to do background checks.  A lot of which means Googling your name, looking you up on Facebook, etc...  And if they find that you have 1000+ responses on MMORPG, on WoW forums, etc...., some companies will look another direction.  There are lots of companies that see mmorpg gaming as an extremely negative pasttime that will effect your work and productivity, regardless of whether or not it's true (personally, depending on the job, I think the reverse is true), the perception is the reality.  

Thus having a real name used could seriously having longer reaching effects than you could possibly imagine, and might have financial impact as well.

5. see response #1, because it is that easy, and there are 10,000,000 people who play WoW and it really only takes 1 nutjob to cause someone serious harm.

6.  average complain post is usually 50 to 100 pages.  This change generated 2500+ pages.  I think that speaks volumes.

8.  Not fun game play is essentially a mixed bag that has tons of reasons that effect that.  Say 10% of the WoW population leave.  That could kill some servers and guilds.  Thus it could start a bleed effect that dovetails to more people quitting and the game becoming less fun.  RealID most likely would have a negative impact on people who would join and on people who might resubscribe.  Thus people leave and less people coming back.  As people have said on this thread, some have quit over it, some have cancelled their SC2 pre-order.  RealID detracts from their fun.

What it comes down to is that there really isn't anything positive that would come of this, other than possibly getting rid of level 1 alt troll posting.  And is that really worth losing a customers over?

I like how people are complaining about a system that isn't a mandatory mechanic to play WoW, and is pretty much like getting a friend invite on FaceBook, MySpace, and Twitter. Look people the Real ID Program is pretty simple you give your login id to people who are either in your guild or on your friends list already so they know when you log on to your characters. If you dont want people to know this DONT GIVE IT OUT. its just that simple. Blizzard has never stated either use this new system or you can play WoW they said use this system along with your friends list. SHeesh all you idiots who are crying over this system are crying over nothing.

Originally posted by Scot

There was a storm over the pets, but who got their way? Blizzard.

 

There was a storm over Real ID but who got the ratings system they wanted introduced? Blizzard.

 

Posters are talking of ‘people power’, but you were conned guys. Its called expectation management, you tell people something very bad is going to happen (real ID names on your forum) then you cancel that but get through another controversial change (rating system) and you guys are patting yourself on the back. Brilliant play on Blizzards part.

 

I have quit MMO’s before because of changes, or just forums because of changes to the forums. He is right , voting with your feet is all that counts.

no offense, but I don't see how rating posts is that controversial.

I just laughed harder when I heard about this real name thing or whatever.  It's just blizzard proving that they're god because they can.  While a few of us older gamers and long-time fans have grown disgusted and distanced from blizzard you kids are still laping it up.  We're a shrinking number so blizz doesn't care about us anymore.  This is you kids' fault.

Originally posted by akiira69

I like how people are complaining about a system that isn't a mandatory mechanic to play WoW, and is pretty much like getting a friend invite on FaceBook, MySpace, and Twitter. Look people the Real ID Program is pretty simple you give your login id to people who are either in your guild or on your friends list already so they know when you log on to your characters. If you dont want people to know this DONT GIVE IT OUT. its just that simple. Blizzard has never stated either use this new system or you can play WoW they said use this system along with your friends list. SHeesh all you idiots who are crying over this system are crying over nothing.

The concerns that I think most people have is that Blizz had planned on making all forum posts show real names instead of screen name.  However, due to the huge public outcry over legitimate privacy concerns, Blizz has since removed that part of RealID.  As far as Blizz's choice to change that, I suppose reasonable people can disagree; however, I think it is pretty rash to shoot down the concerns people had as nothing.

Originally posted by Benaiah21

Originally posted by Scot

There was a storm over the pets, but who got their way? Blizzard.

 

There was a storm over Real ID but who got the ratings system they wanted introduced? Blizzard.

 

Posters are talking of ‘people power’, but you were conned guys. Its called expectation management, you tell people something very bad is going to happen (real ID names on your forum) then you cancel that but get through another controversial change (rating system) and you guys are patting yourself on the back. Brilliant play on Blizzards part.

 

I have quit MMO’s before because of changes, or just forums because of changes to the forums. He is right , voting with your feet is all that counts.

no offense, but I don't see how rating posts is that controversial.

That all depends on the details of how its to be implimented.  Done properly, it could enhance the forums and the community. Done poorly, it could shatter what little remains.

Originally posted by Billybob2006

Originally posted by akiira69

I like how people are complaining about a system that isn't a mandatory mechanic to play WoW, and is pretty much like getting a friend invite on FaceBook, MySpace, and Twitter. Look people the Real ID Program is pretty simple you give your login id to people who are either in your guild or on your friends list already so they know when you log on to your characters. If you dont want people to know this DONT GIVE IT OUT. its just that simple. Blizzard has never stated either use this new system or you can play WoW they said use this system along with your friends list. SHeesh all you idiots who are crying over this system are crying over nothing.

The concerns that I think most people have is that Blizz had planned on making all forum posts show real names instead of screen name.  However, due to the huge public outcry over legitimate privacy concerns, Blizz has since removed that part of RealID.  As far as Blizz's choice to change that, I suppose reasonable people can disagree; however, I think it is pretty rash to shoot down the concerns people had as nothing.

When they can come up with a logical reason to complain then I will listen. Most of the complaints on this topic are anything but logical. Yes the RealID Forum Idea was in bad taste so Blizzard Fixed it. but the complains about RealID in game option is a baseless complaint. They dont need to use it so they dont need complain about it. Most of the people that are complaining are just doing so cause they can.

you fail to read  , no one here talk about the op in real id ingame .

I had the same thoughts as this article- that Blizzard would see the rage coming and decide to move forward with it anyway. So it surprised me when they decided to take their word back. It almost makes me think that they planned this all along, just to get a reaction out of people and make themselves look like the good guys in the end. Especially when you read the last part of their apology post which states: "In closing, I want to point out that our connection with our community has always been and will always be extremely important to us. We strongly believe that Every Voice Matters, and we feel fortunate to have a community that cares so passionately about our games. We will always appreciate the feedback and support of our players, which has been a key to Blizzard's success from the beginning."

Good article there.

Originally posted by BlacRyu

I had the same thoughts as this article- that Blizzard would see the rage coming and decide to move forward with it anyway. So it surprised me when they decided to take their word back. It almost makes me think that they planned this all along, just to get a reaction out of people and make themselves look like the good guys in the end. Especially when you read the last part of their apology post which states: "In closing, I want to point out that our connection with our community has always been and will always be extremely important to us. We strongly believe that Every Voice Matters, and we feel fortunate to have a community that cares so passionately about our games. We will always appreciate the feedback and support of our players, which has been a key to Blizzard's success from the beginning."

 I read the appology and what I saw that stuck out in my mind was "At this time",  Well that tells me they want to get the expansion sold, then I believe they will try this again after they make a ton of cash.  At that point how many folks are going to quit if they do it like 3 days after they launch the expansion.

Originally posted by erictlewis

Originally posted by BlacRyu

I had the same thoughts as this article- that Blizzard would see the rage coming and decide to move forward with it anyway. So it surprised me when they decided to take their word back. It almost makes me think that they planned this all along, just to get a reaction out of people and make themselves look like the good guys in the end. Especially when you read the last part of their apology post which states: "In closing, I want to point out that our connection with our community has always been and will always be extremely important to us. We strongly believe that Every Voice Matters, and we feel fortunate to have a community that cares so passionately about our games. We will always appreciate the feedback and support of our players, which has been a key to Blizzard's success from the beginning."

 I read the appology and what I saw that stuck out in my mind was "At this time",  Well that tells me they want to get the expansion sold, then I believe they will try this again after they make a ton of cash.  At that point how many folks are going to quit if they do it like 3 days after they launch the expansion.

This was pointed out by a few members on these forums. I myself even pointed it out, let's face it the WoW community as been side-swiped and most of you don't even realise it. It's got to be said, Blizzard as got one good PR department, because they've managed to take the wind out of your sails and now they're aiming all guns at you, and preparing to fire.

“Sorry, for all the sea references,”

well then since the RealID for the forums is no longer there then there is no real reason to complain is there. But like i said before you never really had a reason to complain in the first place your just complaining cause you can

Originally posted by akiira69

well then since the RealID for the forums is no longer there then there is no real reason to complain is there. But like i said before you never really had a reason to complain in the first place your just complaining cause you can

 Thousands of people felt the RealID was a bad idea. That IS a real a reason to voice an opinion whether you agree with it or not.

Holy God, it's hard to believe such a contrast between such thick PR in the past and such lousy PR now. I mean, looking at their videos from their anniversary retrospective, you would never guess the cynical "let them bitch, they'll be back" attitude within the group. The depth and breadth of the bull**** they have laid down to make customers believe their emotional attachment to the game was appreciated is unbelievable.

I might have less cause to speak as I'm not playing WoW, but, Blizzard used to be one of those companies that was part of my childhood, and I'd always have some special affection for. When Sierra, EA, and others let me down, Blizzard seemed to be saying, "Not us! We still love you! We're the good guys!" But the good guys never are, are they.

I'll tell you what, this is a real eye-opener for everybody, and it's going to end the days of fierce player loyalty. Game companies won't be able to count on the 'they'll be back' mentality once a bonfire of customer affection like this has gone up. It's kind of a signal fire to the rest of us. If players don't trust a company enough to get attached in the first place, they'll just roam nomadically through every title that catches their eye-- and that bodes badly for everybody. They won't be willing to put down a lot of investment in any particular game because the point's been driven home that it's money paid for something that doesn't exist, little pixels you'll probably walk away from soon anyhow. The ways companies will have to pander for micro-payments and fad signups will get more and more whorish, and their databases will bloat up with all the people who try, lose interest, and move on.

Great business model.

Playing to fickle fans rather than hang on to the genre's most insanely loyal and fanatical followings is a bad idea. They're seriously overestimating the addictiveness of the game itself, which burns out pretty fast when the fun is gone and there's an ugly mood of mistrust with the game staff. They'll soon find out that the fan emotion they mock behind closed doors is part of why people kept going back, and when it's gone, they'll just be left with a faceful of ADD kiddies demanding 'moar, moar, moar!' while simultaneously corpse-humping each other out of the game.

I guess I'm out of the MMO genre until I find out which companies cater to people who actually have enough self-respect not to post every detail of their lives for public consumption. It's getting harder and harder to find the thoughtful, smart people in the MMOs anyhow, they're drowned out by screaming hordes.

Hey, anybody but Blizzard or Sony! Give us premium MMOs that cater to grown-ups! Please? I'll pay a lot more to get something confidential, non-codependant, and relaxing to do in my downtime that doesn't force me to deal with a bunch of attention-starved adrenaline junkies but lets me connect with people I click with. I have monies! Just waiting to spend them! :D

Originally posted by SnarlingWolf

People always like to say "Well then just quit" or "Speak with your wallet." The issue is that course of action doesn't work on its own. It is like voting, sure you could just go out and vote and hope that enough people vote your way but that isn't really going to accomplish anything, there is a reason why every candidate has a support team who's whole job is to get people to vote for them and not the other guy. In order to get something accomplished you have to campaign for your cause, because just like voting in real life, when it comes to voting with your wallet a lot of people either 1)Don't ever vote or 2)Don't have a clue of what they're actually voting on.

 

When it comes to a new bill for example, a huge portion of our country don't have a clue about anything (arguable a larger percentage of the population then does understand the issues). Those people still vote one way or the other, but since they don't understand the issue at hand, they have to be led to vote one way or another.

 

Nothing has ever been accomplished in life by people sitting back and choosing a side on an issue in peace and by themselves. Everything has been accomplished by campaigning for a side and getting people to realize why they should vote your way. So saying people should just quit if they don't like it is not enough, they need to try and convince those who will automatically side with blizzard no matter what they do, that what blizzard is doing is wrong and bad for the future of gaming.

 

Blizzard gets away with a lot of stuff, and it has nothing to do with that stuff being a good thing to do. It has everything to do with 90% of their player base being completely apathetic and just siding with Blizzard no matter what happens. That is a bad thing. It's not enough to speak with your own wallet, you have to convince  others to join you.

 

Actually speaking with your wallet <i>always</i> works. Thats how entire countries make their decisions; people die for money every day. I'm a tad certain(sarcasm!) that money is enough reason to stop Blizzard from destroying anonymity. This to people like myself, is a side effect of large corporations trying to completely ruin net neutrality. This kind of thing is much more important than the marjority of players will ever understand. This is about control. When the people speak in terms that cannot be ignored, we get what we want. When we stand around and bitch, moan, and actually do nothing; we are kept in our places.

 Mike Morhaime, co-founder and CEO of Blizzard Entertainment, has released a statement that says "real names will not be required for posting on official Blizzard forums."

LOL

finally they figure it out....

http://www.wow.com/2010/07/09/mike-morhaime-real-names-will-not-be-required-on-official-forum/23

Wow, I couldn't care less about me using my real name. Don´t play WOW but I have already bought SC2 and I am planning to buy D3. If you are able to conjure up enough hate for a nerd to search you up IRL, maybe you need to think about how you behave.

I honestly don't understand why people are so emotional about this. It's the same as when some of my friends are scared of answering their phones when they don't recognize the number. I'd be thrilled to have a conversation with some random person concerning a post I made. Who gives a shit what medium to discuss in.

Maybe I'm just naive to believe people are reasonably sane enough to respect peoples privacy. I don't know. Maybe I'm gonna be the last one laughing when one of you guys put an axe in my door. Got to warn you though, I have a guard-dog. He's small, fluffy and spends 90% of his day licking his own balls but knows how to fight!. =)

Jokes aside, very well made post and I enjoyed reading many of these comments.

Jacob

Originally posted by Hillestad

Wow, I couldn't care less about me using my real name. Don´t play WOW but I have already bought SC2 and I am planning to buy D3. If you are able to conjure up enough hate for a nerd to search you up IRL, maybe you need to think about how you behave.

 

Jacob

 For some men, a woman telling him to take a hike is enough to send him into stalker mode.

Damn straight, put up or shut up!

well said by Jon Wood, if u dont like stop spamming, and quit.

I like the real id system, if u want to keep your real id hidden, is because u want to do something wrong... if not... give your real id, and continue playing as usual, nothing is going to change. what u gain is a lot more..., the kind of people that usually ruin the game, will do so just 1 time, then they wont be able to do it twice.

I like it.

This has nothing to do with the reasons blizzard gave.  This has all to do about a deal they have cut with social media.  Many young people do not mind posting their entire life online for everyone to see however many of us do not want our real names out there for many reasons and that should be respected.  If I wanted to post in my real name I would have done that when I registered.

Just as a thought one of the first things I do before I interview a person appling for position with my company is google them and see what comes up.  If I do not like what I see, they are most likely not going to get a job.  And that includes thoughts on twitter, facebook if I can get in, and now will include postings on Blizzard forums. 

What blizzard has done with REAL ID means I will no purchase any product from them in the future.  What once was a company run by gamers for gamers has turned into nothing more than another EA.  They are going to slowly kill the golden goose.

This also means I will not let my children play World of Warcraft anymore either because their account is my account in my name, in addition I would not want my childrens real name being published.  I hope they think this is worth it because it is going to cost them customers and not just WOW customers. 

Originally posted by kredom

well said by Jon Wood, if u dont like stop spamming, and quit.

I like the real id system, if u want to keep your real id hidden, is because u want to do something wrong... if not... give your real id, and continue playing as usual, nothing is going to change. what u gain is a lot more..., the kind of people that usually ruin the game, will do so just 1 time, then they wont be able to do it twice.

I like it.

 I don't. You have a typical fallacy in your above. Simply because someone is concerned about privacy issues, does not mean they are doing, or thinking of doing anything wrong.  As for trolls and other such scum, they will likely always be with us.  Unless this was a ploy, Blizzard likely looked at the potential losses (not to mention governmental involvement because of the privacy issues) and decided it wasn't worth it. 

Like others have said you can't quit what you're not apart of anymore. I played WoW since launch, and for me personally it finally became dated. I finally realised that I really am 'done' with World of Warcraft for good.  I did every thing I wanted to do. WoW was great back in 04 and even in 08 it was still great for me. But after that it really did just go down hill. I can honestly say I've been gone from WoW for months now and I've not ever been tempted to resub. Heck, I haven't really even thought about the game hardley at all until now. usually I quit and make myself swear it off, this time I didn't even do that. I just let my sub run out when I got bored and never looked back. I bought a PS3 and have been having a great time with it. I was just finally ready to truely let go of that game for good, I was 15 when I started WoW and had just turned 21 when I quit. I hadn't even realised all of the great console games that I had missed out on.

With so many new MMO's that I'm extatic about WoW just does not look good to me at all anymore. I love Star Wars and can't wait for SWTOR, and FFX14 looks great too. I am a huge fan of the series but FFXI was just to old. Then theres GW2.

With choices like this one that Blizzard has made, it just makes me that much more glad that I'm not apart of the WoW community any longer.

Cheers.

Originally posted by Scot

A ratings system leads to rating wars, a lack of negative critique and the supremacy of popularity over information and genuine opinion.

Exactly. We see pretty much the same thing in our "election" system.  The Real ID was a bad idea from the start, if one considers the implications and the problem it was claimed to be addressing.  I suspect some bean counters and/or suits got blinded by the FacePalm numbers, and didn't consider the implications (or thought they could push it through any way, with minimal losses).

Hey guys,

I don't know if somebody already posted this link but here is the article that says that Blizzard has done away with the Real Names on forum posting thing,

http://gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2010/07/09/blizzard-stops-plan-to-force-real-ids-in-forums.aspx

Apparently the Angry bloggers did the trick. Who knew, the actually do have a good PR department...actually this was said last thursday to be correct.

Power to the Consumer yo!!! And we did'nt have to cancel our WoW accounts.

Except that they haven't removed RealID. They've simply dropped the requirement to post using your real name on the o-forums.

They will still go ahead with the rest of the RealID implementation, and Facebook crossover. And I would not be at all surprised to see them work the real name thing into the forums a wee bit at a time. At first it'll be special perks for those that have sold their souls to the RealID overlords, and little by little, you'll eventually have to acquiesce to it, or be left out in the cold.

As such, I canceled my accounts, as well as my Starcraft II preorder. While I do enjoy WoW for what it is, I have a large selection of other games I can play without having to fully give up any semblance of privacy any more than I already do simply by being on the internet. I left them a detailed listing of why I was canceling my accounts, and the preorder as well.

I hope they reconsider this RealID plan, but given how everyone has read their 11th hour decision to back off the forums issue as a win against RealID, I really doubt they will not move forward with this.

Maybe Blizzard is just trying to help the competition... beef up the player base in LoTRO and EQ/EQ2 so they don't end up getting labeled as a monopoly. ;-)

"In the end though, companies don't often take this particularly seriously because it is so rarely backed up with action. "

so true, mainly because most gamers are nothing more then lazy crap talking posers, who wouldn't try to back up what they said even if they already had it in reverse.  they whine and whine and whine, while the companies just laugh at them and point out, then why are u still playing.  Face it, nothing will ever change unless people grow a spine and stand up for themselves.  I'd bet that if everyone complaining about this change, actually proved they were willing to enforce their threats, companies would take them seriously instead of taking advantage.  But thats just my opinion.

The best example of people speaking with their wallets was Star Wars Galaxies.  They made horrendous changes.  And now the game is all but a ghost town.  I agree with the article if you don't like it.  Quit  Honestly they cant ignore subscription numbers and cancellations.  They have a pain threshold and if that is reached they will change their direction.  But the reality is it wont be reached because people like to complain about issues like this.

Originally posted by Merxion

The best example of people speaking with their wallets was Star Wars Galaxies.  They made horrendous changes.  And now the game is all but a ghost town.  I agree with the article if you don't like it.  Quit  Honestly they cant ignore subscription numbers and cancellations.  They have a pain threshold and if that is reached they will change their direction.  But the reality is it wont be reached because people like to complain about issues like this.

 Sorry that is really not a good example.  Yes a lot of us canceled our accounts. Several folks i knew got refunds on mustifar as well, due to how shady the deal was.

However what did that get us.  Abosolutly nothing.  the NGE stayed in place.  Do you see any pre nge servers run by soe?

So yea SOE lost a lot of players, but that did not stop the nge.  

But I do agree if you dont like what the company is doing dont give them your cash.

I couldn't agree more with the article. I  quit WoW years ago because they didn't have any in depth housing or player driven and world changing aspects. It was just purely PvE for the sake of raiding or PvP for the sake of grinding equipment to look "cool". I have to agree if you don't like what Blizzard is doing then leave the game and show them how upset you are. Funny thing is they ask you why you're leaving when you cancel your account so that's a great time to point out how upset you are.

Wow, I never thought blizzard will be the one to do such an awsome thing as REAL ID, seeing they have the biggest amount of kids and nerds, flaming and trolling on their forums knowing no retribution will ever come to them, because their real IDs are hidden. Imagine the world without flame and trolls... just awesome, heads up Blizz!

Also, to ppl saying "they will easily find me irl":

1) Why would anyone wanna find you? I mean forum trolling and flaming is just that - trolling and flaming, noone will bother to buy tickets to your town to kick your ass, thats just dumb, only a 14year old might think that.

2) Why would anyone wanna find you? Unless you're insulting and trolling people, that being exactly the point of the REAL ID system - preventing this kind of stuff from happening.

Also who got balls to post with their real name? ;P BLIZZ = WIN this time xD

So its whiney as people who say "We don't want real ID" and then when Blizzard says alright now real ID. Its moved too somthing else as far as i see it this post has changed to discuss the Real ID and now its to bitch about World Of Warcraft.

Originally posted by ConjureOne

Wow, I never thought blizzard will be the one to do such an awsome thing as REAL ID, seeing they have the biggest amount of kids and nerds, flaming and trolling on their forums knowing no retribution will ever come to them, because their real IDs are hidden. Imagine the world without flame and trolls... just awesome, heads up Blizz!

Also, to ppl saying "they will easily find me irl":

1) Why would anyone wanna find you? I mean forum trolling and flaming is just that - trolling and flaming, noone will bother to buy tickets to your town to kick your ass, thats just dumb, only a 14year old might think that.

2) Why would anyone wanna find you? Unless you're insulting and trolling people, that being exactly the point of the REAL ID system - preventing this kind of stuff from happening.

Also who got balls to post with their real name? ;P BLIZZ = WIN this time xD

Way too late. Blizzard has already backed down on this one.  Real names are not going to be used in the forums.  I suspect it wasn't just the number of out raged players. I suspect it was the potential liability from the privacy departments of various *governments* that changed their minds.  It was a BAD idea from the start.  It violates one of the most basic principles of privacy/security policy.

Not to mention, that I suspect that the troll side show was simply an excuse. Trolls can be more effectively dealt with in other fashions(if that is the real intention).  Those who aren't concerned about their privacy, security have never had a run in with 4chan or some such.

Dear Mr Woods (if that is in fact, your real name) after 30 some pages on your article, you succeeded in being able to provide a biased opinion and getting a flood of replies, your efforts have thus been successful and on this I congratulate you.

I am however, appalled at how otherwise intelligent people today simply do not grasp the principles of privacy rights, but I guess I should be used to it, I mean look at how they feel about their personal liberties here in the U.S.  Big Brother has been training them for a long time to not to care, for after all, Big Brother is totally benevolent and can be trusted to do the right thing at all times regardless of any "crazy person" claiming otherwise.  But some countries are staying truer to protecting their citizens' rights than ours is and have privacy laws that will be violated by this move on the part of Blizz, and to an American like myself, the irony of that is deafening.

And as I've said before in other posts.  What's the big deal?  Its "just" your name, nothing will happen with it, etc.  I'm sure in early days of the 3rd Reich's relocation program exactly the same thing was said.  Granted, this isn't a case of rounding people up and herding them into concentration camps, but your privacy rights are being systematically gassed in much the same way, and you and others like you, don't care about your personal liberty or privacy rights because you have been successfully conditioned to be apathetic and blindly trusting. And as most, you won't notice the harm until its torn a decent bite out of your backside, and then stunned, you'll wonder wtf just happened, but by then, it'll be too late.

Originally posted by kredom

well said by Jon Wood, if u dont like stop spamming, and quit.

I like the real id system, if u want to keep your real id hidden, is because u want to do something wrong... if not... give your real id, and continue playing as usual, nothing is going to change. what u gain is a lot more..., the kind of people that usually ruin the game, will do so just 1 time, then they wont be able to do it twice.

I like it.

 

This sentiment is just flat wrong.  There are many reasons to keep your identity private that are perfectly legitimate.

I know many people that have important reasons to keep their identities private.  I know teachers and military personel who play WoW.  They are seriously reconsidering now whether or not thay can continue to play the game.  I am not in a career that is currently effected by my play but I some day could be.

I did cancel my WoW account and will not be purchasing SC2 or D3 over this issue.  To me this was a wakeup call for the whole Real ID system.  I cannot trust the system as a whole.  I think there are serious security and privacy issues they have opened pandora's box on.  Until sucha a time that I am confident that all of these security and privacy issues are taken care of, I won't be back to WoW.

This is all simply solved by using a gammer tag type system instead of real names.  That change alone would make me very happy and have me merrily on my way back to Azeroth.

Originally posted by Seeker728

But some countries are staying truer to protecting their citizens' rights than ours is and have privacy laws that will be violated by this move on the part of Blizz, and to an American like myself, the irony of that is deafening.

 Thanks for writing this. As a European, I've always had a lot of respect for the way US citizens stand up for their rights in unison. It's decidedly weird to see americans arguing so vehemently that there is no such thing as a right to privacy, and that they wouldn't want it even if it did exist. Never thought I'd see the day.

Originally posted by utopium

Originally posted by Seeker728

But some countries are staying truer to protecting their citizens' rights than ours is and have privacy laws that will be violated by this move on the part of Blizz, and to an American like myself, the irony of that is deafening.

 Thanks for writing this. As a European, I've always had a lot of respect for the way US citizens stand up for their rights in unison. It's decidedly weird to see americans arguing so vehemently that there is no such thing as a right to privacy, and that they wouldn't want it even if it did exist. Never thought I'd see the day.

Thats the tragic part of this entire affair.  Far too many people have little if any concept of a basic human right such as privacy.  Its a combination of ignorance and indoctrination.  Both of which have been fostered by a mass media more concerned with retaining access to the powers that be, than informing the people about what they need to know.  Without an informed population, how can they be expected to retain control of their own government?  The reality is that they lost that control generations ago.

The reasons are complex, and most are outside of this limited topic.  But Blizzard is hardly the first, nor will it be the last such offender. As long as there is money and power to be had, and as long as they are allowed to, both corporations and governments will continue to trample on people and their rights.

the new system dont require people to give their real id to people ingame ... they can just add the game name... the real id is just an additional way to add real life friend lol if u use the normal way to add people no they wont see ur real id

Originally posted by Wraithone

 

The reasons are complex, and most are outside of this limited topic.  But Blizzard is hardly the first, nor will it be the last such offender. As long as there is money and power to be had, and as long as they are allowed to, both corporations and governments will continue to trample on people and their rights.

And this Sir, though I risk straying well outside the theme of this thread, is the truth that people should be waking up to.  I often feel like I'm one of a small group of people who refused some drug that was handed out while seeing so many around me stumbling around in a daze with a drug induced grin fooled into thinking they're now happier with the pill than without it, never realizing they're addicted to said pill, and I can't shake them out of it.

Another axiom is power and authority always connive to have more, it is a gluttonous beast that is never, ever, content with what it has.  Our Founders knew this, took it into account, and structured things to combat this. And to decode the corruption that takes place one has to do but one thing, follow the money.