Scammers are getting wiser. Since we started Ragnarok in the Philippines way back in 2003, scammers also started their fiendish “art”. The most common method was impersonating a GM and asking for your username and password. Sadly, a lot of people fall for these tricks.
Now, they use more complicated methods; replicating a game’s customer support page, top up page or even log-in page. They also use YM spams and e-mail. A couple of days ago, I received this message in my personal mail.
This tale is now a classic… a legend even, in the field of MMORPGs. First, let me introduce Lord British. Lord British is the character of Ultima Online creator Richard Garriot (yeah, the guy who wants to go to the moon).
The date was August 8, 1997 during beta testing of the game. Lord British’s royal visit was conducted as a part of server population stress test. A player character known as Rainz cast a spell called “fire field” on Lord British that, surprisingly, killed him.
Look at the now famous screenshot below and mark the chat; “HE DIED”. You can see the corpse just behind the raised portcullis in the lower left.
It was reported that Rainz was ultimately (pardon the pun) banned. But not for his actions against Lord British but for some other complaints from players.
Excerpts from his interview after the break.
Sometimes, MMO players (and their avatars) qualify for the minimum requirements in forming a guild within the current game they’re playing. Be it level requirements, money or item requirements, etc – more often than not, most will say “Hey! I can start my own guild now… let me just hop on over to the NPC and then I’ll invite my friends”.
Sadly, this process is just the start of a long and ardous journey. A journey which is not for the faint of heart, which calls for dedication, leadership and a HUGE amount of your time. So, if you are forming your guild to be competitive and have no idea what you’re getting into, this post of mine might help…
I was inspired by the comments on my latest post about the Top 5 Myths about GMs. Some really agree that there are a lot of players who feel that all employees are GMs. Also, I got support and feedback that indeed, GMs are understaffed and over-worked.
I agree. With a lot of tasks that a GM has to do, there has to be some sort of “assitance” needed.
That’s precisely the point why I (together with GM Garamond and the RF team) started the RF Vanguard program. And this is what empowerment is all about
Posted in General, Online 
Tags: assistant, game, General, gm, gm tristan, Online, Online Games, online-game, vangaurdMore often than not, a lot of players have misconceptions on what a Game Master (GM) is. What do we do? What are our jobs? Are we like gods on Mount Olympus hurling thunderbolts and banning players on a whim?
The most common assumption is that GMs’ are all-powerful beings that have complete and utter control over the game and its denizens. How I wish it were true. Quite the opposite. In order to avoid corruption, bias and favoritism within the ranks, a GMs powers are limited. He or she is given powers and tools to do specific tasks according to the job description.
Another funny thing to note is that some younger players think that ALL employees of a gaming company (like ours) are GMs. If this were the case, there would be utter chaos in the office and no true work will be done.
Read more as I venture into the myths about GMs…
Posted in General, Musings, Online Tags: game-master, General, gm, gm tristan, Musings, myths, Online, Online Games, online-gameAs of last week, I am writing for a special column in the free, local “newszine”, Transit. Transit is a new (and FREE) weekly news-magazine being distributed every week (wednesdays).
You can get your copy of Transit in key locations such as 7-11 , Gloria Jeans, in Airlines (Aisana, JAL, SAL, etc) in gyms (Gold’s, Fitness First) and unviersities, schools and hospitals in Metro Manila.
Posted in General, Level Up, MMORPG News Tags: General, gm, Level Up, macutay, MMORPG News, mon, tristan
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