Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
Warcraft Forums to Display Your RL Name
Qazz
Member Posts: 577
http://www.wow.com/2010/07/06/official-forum-changes-real-life-names-to-be-displayed/
One of the biggest complaints about WoW is the community. Let's see how it changes once the trolls are exposed!
The MMO community will be watching closely to see how this one turns out!
Edit:
Here is a direct link to Blizzard's forum post about the subject:
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
wow... WoW...
I sense a block of Americans about to inform us which of their rights are being violated. The right to troll anonymously on the Internet? I guess?
------
Played - UO, FFXI, WAR, WoW, EVE
Currently - Bored.
Im sure it will change for the better, unlike here, where the trolls can stay annynmous. But then again, so what if someone has their real name shown, does it mean anything really? Some one called bob, or nanne, or jim, or george, or mickey, or nilam dosnt make any difference, its just theri names.
I don't think it will change anything. Immature people are immature, and they are still safely behind a keyboard.
One of the worst community for sure but why are they doing that in forums seriously?
Online, I can remember the worst lines and constant abuse of channels and never a GM intervening. WoW is basically a playground of demented kids saying horrible things and so proud of themselves because no grown-up will ever tell them to shut up or punish them as they would in real life.
You may wonder with all the money Blizz is making why they never enforced anything in their channels? Greed, incompetence, carelessness?
And now after 6 years of abuse in their game, real first names and family names will be displayed in their forums as if it was a priorty to sort the forum garbage
Oh btw, isn't Internet cool partly because you can express yourself freely and anonymously?
I'm glad I turned my back on Blizzard long ago.
Do keep in mind that you will now be posting under you first and last name. And while there may be quite a few John Does out there, they are also integrating B.net with Facebook (at least for Starcraft 2 so i am sure WoW will get it as well).
I don't think i have to explain to you, what someone with photoshop and and access to your photos through Facebook is capable of doing. Ever heard of 4chan? And this is just one example to the dude above saying what could possibly go wrong. This goes way beyond taking away your right to be an anonymous forum troll.
Be afraid, be very afraid.
"It is my opinion, that my opinions are always right"
http://thenoobcomic.com/index.php?pos=378
What's next; obligatory exposure of our SSNs?
I truly hope this trend remains restricted to Blizzard. One thing's for sure, I would never divulge any RL information to a company that so recklessly exposes it to the masses.
Which Final Fantasy Character Are You?
Final Fantasy 7
The right to privacy of the many should not suffer because of a few trolls.
Displaying your real first and last name will make it easier to hack accounts, as people will be able to hunt down information on people much easier using Google and a combination of any of the paid background services out there.
It is pretty retarded when you think about it.
Instead of policing their forums, they've decided to open their customers up to the dangers of providing too much information on the internet.
I miss the MMORPG genre. Will a developer ever make one again?
Explorer: 87%, Killer: 67%, Achiever: 27%, Socializer: 20%
So, is there any risk if you aren't posting on their forums?
As far as this affecting trolls and such, I don't see it. I mean, people are just as trollish on Facebook pages where their names are already available. If someone wants to be an ass, they are gonna be an ass.
That said, I don't really like the idea that my name would be on display, but assuming not posting solves that, I've got an easy solution.
-mklinic
"Do something right, no one remembers.
Do something wrong, no one forgets"
-from No One Remembers by In Strict Confidence
I want absolutely nothing to do with this real name business. I think its absolutely absurd. A lot of the reason why people turn to MMO's is because they can ignore who they are in real life and be someone / something else here.
Not even just that, but
a) I do not need another stalker. Been there, done that, no thanks.
b) What if person A gets in a fight with person B, they find out who you are and come kick your ass real-life style. I'm not down with that at all.
Its not that I troll, because I don't, its just that I don't need real life entering my gaming, kthx.
Racism and Sexism, here we come!
Female players should get used to being stalked I guess.
This will end bad for Blizzard in the long run.
I cant see how anyone thinks this a good idea. Now Blizzard is making your email address and real name available. Give me those two pieces of information and within 15 minutes I can find out everything about you; your address, your phone numbers, where you work, parents information, children's information and I am not even a stalker. This is going to make things dangerous for a lot of people.
After they removed anonymous accounts and required email addresses for logins, my account got hacked within 30 days, after 2 years of no peoblems. Dropped my account then. I feel for all of you out there that are going to have your personal lives and information spread all over the internet for anyone that ahs any kind of beef with hou to, to have so easily.
BAD, BAD NEWS BLIZZARD
Gaming since Avalon Hill was making board games.
Played SWG, EVE, Fallen Earth, LOTRO, Rift, Vanguard, WoW, SWTOR, TSW, Tera
Tried Aoc, Aion, EQII, RoM, Vindictus, Darkfail, DDO, GW, PotBS
Guess everyone who works at Blizzard that agrees with this idea is named Bob Smith.
Gonna be interesting for Sam L. Jackson, Mr T. and others. Wonder if Tom Cruise will change his Real ID to Les Grossman.
Engaging Blizzard support to confirm retroactive effects and if so, pursue deletion of forum entries.
Made my day, cheers!
-Edit: Do you know what they can do with your e-mail and your real name + your address? Yea, not much.
Who cares if people know where you live, what are they going to do about it? Order pizzas to our home? Oh noes I'm scared now.
Eleanor Rigby.
Hehe... this is going to be so much fun...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdlfd35pBUE
As that google guy said "don't be evil." Hehe, you explain to this gal what "evil" is.
This is how internet freedom ends, not with a bang but with an overweight teenage chick wielding a lead pipe.
From googling my name there is only one other person on the planet with my name, and he lives on another continent. So basically anyone that googles my name will be able to find out where I live, phone number, social security number, etc. It opens up a whole can of worms in terms of potential harassment.
Also, what about minors? This just removes one more barrier between pedophiles and potential victims. And if you roleplay it could also cause problems, especially if your game characters are accessible by looking at your forum name, which I'm not sure is possible or not. I don't post very much on the WOW forums.
And in the short run I guess.
We'll see the "spaghetti" hitting the fan when we get our first WoW murder lol. Suicides were obviously not enough for Bliz PR department. 
/squeals with barely concealed glee
Never mind that, will be interesting to see how the stalking and harassment of women, boys and girls will go in this new situation.
The ACTUAL size of MMORPG worlds: a comparison list between MMO's
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums:
Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."
Lol. Noobcomic ftw!
The ACTUAL size of MMORPG worlds: a comparison list between MMO's
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums:
Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."
At long last we shall discover what kind of being that plays female elves.
Eleanor Rigby.
Have you heard of the crime of Identity Theft? All they need if your real name and address/e-mail address to get started on a long road that will cost you thousands if not tens of thousands to get fixed. It is a major crime in the modern world and is increasing every year, making it easier for the criminals is not the most intelligent mood. Those who think Identity Theft doesn't happen, or can't happen when only a small amount of your info is released are the ones it happens to the most.
This idea is terrible for Blizzard, it doesn't currently affect me as I don't play WoW. However I would like to play SC2 and being part of the real id system at all makes me not want to buy that game.
Sure a few people might post nicer if their name is out there, most won't care and will continue to flame and be a-holes. Long before the internet there were a-holes in real life who just insulted and attacked people for no reason, putting people's names out there now isn't going to change anything in that regard.
Blizzard is really trying hard to effect their company. Their company could remain as one of the top game companies for a long long time with their track record of polished games that people find fun. For some reason they are trying as hard as they can to hurt themselves.
I... There are just no words... No words for how blindingly stupid an idea this is.
I'm truly at a loss. Congratulations, Blizz. You're your own WoW-killer.
Its not just trolls who need to be concerned about this. Many, MANY people stay far away from Facepalm and other so called "social networking" systems for their own reasons. That Blizzard is taking it upon themselves to make these types of changes, without the ability to opt out, could very well see them end up in a great deal of un necessary trouble. I'd imagine that groups like the EFF and other such would be rather interested in these changes. It seems that they are almost as clue less when it comes to privacy issues, as they are about class balance ^^
You guys are all aware that it isn't retroactive on posts?, Also blue comment
"All posts in the future on the new forum systems will be an opt-in choice and ample warning will be given that you're posting with your real first and last name."