I wouldn't call many of those "cheats," more like cheap tactics. If you're running scripts to play the game for you it's basically the same as hiring a leveling service for free. This is a pretty good indication that the game isn't very much fun. Ditto for twinking and buff bots. Although I gotta disagree with giving the good gear that you don't need anymore to your friends or guildmates. In a RvR game, you want to make your faction as strong as possible and outfitting the newer players with better gear is one way to shore up the weak points in your organization.
BTW, for the guy that didn't know what Punkbuster is.... It's a program that makes sure that 1) your current game client is completely standard (no spiked models or tweaked gamestates) 2) you aren't running any third party programs that interfere with the client (this is done by scanning active memory for known cheat software) and 3) makes sure that you aren't using any programs that are meant to circumvent Punkbuster's normal operation.
It also checks for unknown exports in graphics libraries like DirectX and OpenGL. Furthermore, it allows server admin to keep real-time logs and the ability to request a screenshot of what is on any player's screen. Since most of this was originally geared toward FPS games, an admin was looking for "see through walls" and spiked model hacks and not what kind of porn you had as your desktop wallpaper.
Seriously, I'm as much for online privacy as the next guy, but when I'm playing a game, that's all I'm doing. I'm not downloading MP3s or sending chat messages to my friends in the mafia. Since these programs only look at things that affect the game I'm playing, I'm not really worried about my privacy being invaded.
Except in the case of Battlefield 2142 when they discovered that EA was using the software to monitor how long players were looking at in game adds for the purpose of marketing. That's something entirely different.
Not a very good article and I don't have much else to do at work then to read these. Better points could have benn made. Like these for instance.
IMHO, None of these are cheats they are flaws of the developer.
<p><b>The Great Logoffski: (AKA Link Death, LD, and "Oops I disconnected right as you were about to kill me.")</b>
This is easily fixed by allowing for a character to remain in game for 1 minute or longer. Most pvp last much longer then that but this is solely based on game mechanics and is in no way a cheat but a bad game mechanic. At the very least allow for only loadable/unloadable areas for characters to enter/exit the game from, Actual LD's will result in a player warping to these which can be difficult but a time balance will also allow for those players who LD and want to come right back to that place will be able to do so.
<p<b>Training mobs :(AKA Death Parade, Teh pull from hell, TPFH)</b>
Trains have been around for a long time, but so have counters. Chaining mobs to a player only and not an aggro radius can and is made today so that only mobs you attack are going to be the ones that attack you so no trains. Obviously pre-encounter area attacks are usually the issue with train wreckage. To counter this, mob-return to spawn on break contact code is implemented so no train on area even occurs.
<p><b>The Zerg Rush : (AKA The Blob)</b>
Uhm, if you have the numbers and all things are balanced in a game's mechanics well then duh. This should happen. WTF Happened to Custer? Even in situations where you have superior levels/firepower numbers still overwhelm. This is a true statement in life as it is in any game world. Safety in numbers as well as superiority. The worst are those games where 30 level 10's couldn't even touch a level 90 or whatever, that is horrible balance. Now that's a counterpoint.
<p><b>Buff Bots: (AKA The Silent Buffer and "Dude! I just doubled my armor and hit points!")</b>
Someone willing to pay more then someone else to be able to have a 2nd character, equipment(computer) and ISP connection (phone/dsl/cable) should be able to. I 2-box all the time, always have, I can afford to. Cry more noob if you can't. Now a game mechanic counter point if a development team wanted to avoid people doing this and the company making less money? Well that would then be to limit Accounts to IP addresses and allow for no duplicate IP address connections to remote server calls, easily done. Counterpoint.
<p><b>Twinking : (AKA Super-noob and Polishing a turd)</b>
Ah, one of my favorite. I just got to laugh at the whole statement. Twinking is essential if you have an open market (i.e. auctions) in the game world, and open economy system where the players make it up because they are also the ones purchasing it and building the economy. Now a way to counter this, would have been what's seen in many games today. Bind on pickup. Scare limited trade, Equipment rating auction price limits, Min/Max bid economy bid zoning, quality/mat costing, No trade and several other things that have been implemented but the easiest and the one that pisses farmers off the most is Bind on pickup. This single one stops most farmers right away and they are the true master cheaters.
Oh and you totally left out real cheating btw, this is just game mechanics stuff developers implemented poorly.
Comments
BTW, for the guy that didn't know what Punkbuster is.... It's a program that makes sure that 1) your current game client is completely standard (no spiked models or tweaked gamestates) 2) you aren't running any third party programs that interfere with the client (this is done by scanning active memory for known cheat software) and 3) makes sure that you aren't using any programs that are meant to circumvent Punkbuster's normal operation.
It also checks for unknown exports in graphics libraries like DirectX and OpenGL. Furthermore, it allows server admin to keep real-time logs and the ability to request a screenshot of what is on any player's screen. Since most of this was originally geared toward FPS games, an admin was looking for "see through walls" and spiked model hacks and not what kind of porn you had as your desktop wallpaper.
Seriously, I'm as much for online privacy as the next guy, but when I'm playing a game, that's all I'm doing. I'm not downloading MP3s or sending chat messages to my friends in the mafia. Since these programs only look at things that affect the game I'm playing, I'm not really worried about my privacy being invaded.
Except in the case of Battlefield 2142 when they discovered that EA was using the software to monitor how long players were looking at in game adds for the purpose of marketing. That's something entirely different.
Not a very good article and I don't have much else to do at work then to read these. Better points could have benn made. Like these for instance.
IMHO, None of these are cheats they are flaws of the developer.
<p><b>The Great Logoffski: (AKA Link Death, LD, and "Oops I disconnected right as you were about to kill me.")</b>
This is easily fixed by allowing for a character to remain in game for 1 minute or longer. Most pvp last much longer then that but this is solely based on game mechanics and is in no way a cheat but a bad game mechanic. At the very least allow for only loadable/unloadable areas for characters to enter/exit the game from, Actual LD's will result in a player warping to these which can be difficult but a time balance will also allow for those players who LD and want to come right back to that place will be able to do so.
<p<b>Training mobs :(AKA Death Parade, Teh pull from hell, TPFH)</b>
Trains have been around for a long time, but so have counters. Chaining mobs to a player only and not an aggro radius can and is made today so that only mobs you attack are going to be the ones that attack you so no trains. Obviously pre-encounter area attacks are usually the issue with train wreckage. To counter this, mob-return to spawn on break contact code is implemented so no train on area even occurs.
<p><b>The Zerg Rush : (AKA The Blob)</b>
Uhm, if you have the numbers and all things are balanced in a game's mechanics well then duh. This should happen. WTF Happened to Custer? Even in situations where you have superior levels/firepower numbers still overwhelm. This is a true statement in life as it is in any game world. Safety in numbers as well as superiority. The worst are those games where 30 level 10's couldn't even touch a level 90 or whatever, that is horrible balance. Now that's a counterpoint.
<p><b>Buff Bots: (AKA The Silent Buffer and "Dude! I just doubled my armor and hit points!")</b>
Someone willing to pay more then someone else to be able to have a 2nd character, equipment(computer) and ISP connection (phone/dsl/cable) should be able to. I 2-box all the time, always have, I can afford to. Cry more noob if you can't. Now a game mechanic counter point if a development team wanted to avoid people doing this and the company making less money? Well that would then be to limit Accounts to IP addresses and allow for no duplicate IP address connections to remote server calls, easily done. Counterpoint.
<p><b>Twinking : (AKA Super-noob and Polishing a turd)</b>
Ah, one of my favorite. I just got to laugh at the whole statement. Twinking is essential if you have an open market (i.e. auctions) in the game world, and open economy system where the players make it up because they are also the ones purchasing it and building the economy. Now a way to counter this, would have been what's seen in many games today. Bind on pickup. Scare limited trade, Equipment rating auction price limits, Min/Max bid economy bid zoning, quality/mat costing, No trade and several other things that have been implemented but the easiest and the one that pisses farmers off the most is Bind on pickup. This single one stops most farmers right away and they are the true master cheaters.
Oh and you totally left out real cheating btw, this is just game mechanics stuff developers implemented poorly.
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