'Overwatch' Bot Maker Ordered To Pay Blizzard $8.7M

[Guest]

Yet another loss for Bossland, a German company that makes bots for "Overwatch" and "World of Warcraft" as well as other multiplayer games.

'Overwatch' Bot Maker Ordered To Pay Blizzard $8.7M : Read more

 

[Martell1977]

To be honest, I'm happy to hear about this. The botting really ruins the games and I hope Blizzard keeps at it.

As for their current projects, the Starcraft: Remastered looks awesome. I loved the original and I have to admit, I am going back and playing older games more than I do new ones. Not just Blizzard games, I'm on a Ultima Online Freeshard and find it to be a lot more fun than games like WoW.

 

[Virtual_Singularity]

I agree, yet at the same time I can understand why some turn to botting. Per Blizzard's rules, which are clearly stated in their EULA, there could be no other legal outcome, and ultimately it's the right decision. Yet, otoh, most people don't have the time, patience, etc, it takes to build a char in many games to be powerful or well geared.

If a player really wants to have among the best geared, most powerful characters in WoW, other games from Blizz, and plenty of other games in general, they have to spend an incredible amount of time to do so. It gets to be like work, even more time consuming than a full time job, depending on the game. Hell, people in some areas of the world actually have/continue to grind for others as a job, for that matter.

Because of this, some reckon that having to practically live and breathe a game day in and out is just as unfair as botting. Despite never having used a bot in any game, ever, I don't necessarily blame those who have/do, depending on the circumstances.

 

[HyperMatrix]

I'm conflicted. Glad to see an anti-bot/cheating ruling. But also not happy that companies are turning gaming, which used to allow people from all economic backgrounds to play and compete on an even level, into yet another arena where those with money (or poor judgment skills) are paying money in order to get an advantage over others.

Of course, I will admit blizzard is the lesser of all evils with the way it handles micro transactions. Or at least it was until it started selling gold in game (through the "buy/sell a months subscription" loophole).

 

[toffty]

Classic level based MMO's require time. If someone doesn't have the time and wouldn't be happy unless they're max level, MMO's are not for them.

OverWatch requires skill to be good. That can come from other FPSs. People still have to commit some time to OW to learn the maps/characters/abilities/etc.

 

[Anarkie13]

Guess I'm a bit old school on this. I'd rather play the games. Get frustrated. Be Challenged. And mostly, evolve both my character, and my own skills. If it takes time, I guess I'll have to put in the time.

Yeah, I might WANT to have the top level everything. But if I don't get it myself, it would be a shallow victory. If I don't have the time, it'll have to wait until I have time.

 

[SteveRNG]

Agreed, Anarkie13.

[CrankyOldMan] Saying it's not fair that you have to grind like a full-time job in order to be the best at a game is like saying it's not fair to have to practice *anything* to be good at it. Life isn't fair. If you want to be or have the best, expect to put in the time. It's the very much the same with most skills. You can't be a master musician/athlete/[anything] without putting in the time. That said, I also hate pay-to-win. But I never dealt with that when playing WoW.

 

[caustin582]

There's really no excuse for botting in Overwatch. I can sympathize to an extent when it comes to botting in games like WoW or Diablo III, since those involve a long, arguably pointless grind before endgame content can be accessed, but in Overwatch everything is available to you upfront, other than the purely cosmetic skins and sprays. The only point of botting in Overwatch is to win matches that you'd otherwise lose. It's just plain cheating, and since OW is an exclusively PVP game it ruins the experience for everyone else involved.

 

[Virtual_Singularity]

Agreed, Anarkie13.

[CrankyOldMan] Saying it's not fair that you have to grind like a full-time job in order to be the best at a game is like saying it's not fair to have to practice *anything* to be good at it. Life isn't fair. If you want to be or have the best, expect to put in the time. It's the very much the same with most skills. You can't be a master musician/athlete/[anything] without putting in the time. That said, I also hate pay-to-win. But I never dealt with that when playing WoW.

I'd like to agree, and guess I do to an extent. But the comparison of mastering gaming to RL arts, e.g, music, athletics, etc, despite your reasoning & eloquence, really isn't applicable imho. Or more precisely, shouldn't be. For one thing, with possible few exceptions, mastering some games may often result in a person having no life other than the game. Mastering a RL art or profession, otoh, results in something far more tangible. I know it may seem hypocritical to say, especially coming from someone who's also a gamer, but felt it should be pointed out just the same.