After years of fighting back by tracking online forums, monitoring players and tweaking their systems' software, game development companies are going old school: to court.
A legal battle is brewing between Eric and Mark Snellman, brothers from Brevard County, and an England-based company, Jagex, which owns and operates RuneScape, a multi-player online game with millions of participants from all over the world.
The brothers, Jagex attorneys say, are cheating, and it's not fair.
A UK court has ruled that the unauthorized stealing of in-game currency can be legally classified as criminal theft.
IGN is a fraudulent clik bait farm pretending to be a news organization.
"that the unauthorized stealing of"
...You know as opposed to the "authorized steal of" personal data sites like IGN take part in.
But yes it is both IGNorant and morally questionable to imply that there is such a thing as authorized stealing.
IGN isn't a "news organization". it's a magazine/content producer that generates revenue on ads and services. We aren't talking about the AP Wire, Reuters, etc. I suggest you adjust your expectations of what you think you are going to get from an industry content creator. this is entertainment, not geopolitics. furthermore, the story you are commenting on is in fact true and thats not IGNs fault. work out those issues. ;)
IGN is a gaming news site just because it covers entertainment doesn't make them a content creator.
Digital currency should be considered as legitimate as actual money. You buy it with real money, and has an equal exchange. So I fully agree with this and anything else that favours the consumer when it comes to digital currency in games.
Runescape gold cant be bought directly with real money, it is only used to buy items in game, not microtransactions, but there is sort of a time value to it
no it has no actual exchange value, because you can only put money into it. The only actual exchange value it gets is through 3rd party gold seller who attach an amount of dollars to it and they're the only ones who get the luxury of actually being able to "exchange". Unless Jaggex is just selling raw gold, then I'm wrong.
Jagex did add a safe form of gold buying a while ago as you can know buy "bonds" with real money that can be exchanged for 14 days of membership or about 15m gold (current price) in the GE.
Jon Bellamy lays out his vision for the long-running British studio, as well as discussing the success of the newly launched Dragonwilds and this year's Pride controversy
Jagex has just dropped the woodcutting and fletching update in RuneScape, providing you with a level cap boost to 110.
What ever happended to the old fashioned duel? Take 10 paces turn and fire? Although I guess the cheaters would only take 9 paces...
This is an interesting problem. Developers put in roadbloacks that gamers perceive as boring and try to circumvent it. Then a lawsuit happens!
I'm not sure who I would side with in a case like that....