Blizzard Cracks Down on Gold Selling in World of Warcraft Forever — and Streamers Are in the Firing Line
World of Warcraft: Classic has had a gold selling problem for its entire existence, but with Forever, Blizzard seems hard-set on reversing that trend, and some streamers are getting caught in the act.
Blizzard has taken significant steps to combat gold selling within World of Warcraft: Classic, particularly as it prepares for the launch of the Forever expansion. This move comes after years of issues plaguing the game's economy due to gold selling practices, most notably the practice of Grand Daily Gold Purchases (GDKP) in raids.
GDKP allowed players to bid gold to acquire items from bosses, which, combined with Blizzard's lax enforcement of real-money trading (RMT), led to the influx of millions of gold into the Classic economy.
With the introduction of Forever, Blizzard has vowed to ban GDKP, aiming to create a more balanced environment for all players. However, the issue of RMT remains problematic. If Blizzard fails to enforce its rules effectively, individuals with more disposable income could devise new ways to manipulate the economy for their benefit. Recently, Blizzard appears to be taking a firm stance against RMT, as evidenced by the actions taken against several Classic streamers suspected of engaging in or promoting gold selling.
Notably, streamer Ziqo experienced a significant reduction in gold, being left with only 9 silver, effectively leaving him stranded in Stonetalon Mountains without the means to return to Stormwind. While Ziqo maintains his innocence, his experience highlights the severity of the penalties that some streamers are facing. In contrast, another streamer, Payo, had one of his accounts permanently banned for promoting gold selling, despite claiming he had never bought gold himself.
Payo, however, quickly established a new account and is set to participate in a $100,000 duelling tournament.
The disparity in treatment between Ziqo and Payo suggests that it may be the high visibility of streamers' actions that leads to more severe consequences. Blizzard's response to these incidents is seen as a positive development, as it may discourage other players from engaging in gold selling. As World of Warcraft Forever prepares to launch on November 4, Blizzard's efforts to stabilize the game's economy are crucial.
The company has also addressed concerns about inappropriate character names, although these efforts have had mixed results.
Written by urgent.news from IGN's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
