Darkfall dev Tasos Flambouras posted on the official forums regarding player accusations that GMs have been crashing servers, refunding money and items. As players are often unsure of what awesome powers the average Games Master possesses but Tasos is keen to reassure players such reports are completely bogus.
He says: "First of all GMs cannot crash the server, or cause a client to crash. They cannot create items or money. All their actions and communications are monitored and logged. We re-checked all chat logs and GM activity for every report mentioned in the forums or reported to us at the help desk, over the time periods that the questionable conduct was supposed to have taken place and found absolutely nothing. Because of this, any public accusations on the forums accusing GMs or the company of any such activities will be removed, and everyone contributing in the thread will be banned from the forums. GM activity is always monitored by us. If you would like to report GM conduct, then you should use support.darkfallonline.com to do so if you have proof of misconduct."
We're not quite sure why players have been accusing the GMs but crashing servers is certainly above their powers. That's more likely to do with technical problems with the game client or overpopulation on the servers. Tasos is also keen to remind anyone that if they've been banned from the game or the forums, a message will appear when they try to log in.
Reader Comments (27)
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 3:05PM (Unverified) said
That company is a lying joke... Tasos is a moron and I hope Darkfail dies soon... this game is worse than Age of Conan...
File a credit card dispute and get your money back before the 90 days runs out... if they ask why you are doing a charge back... link them to their outdated website that has not been updated for 6 years...
What a lying bunch of idiots... Tasos is a lying prick...
File a credit card dispute and get your money back before the 90 days runs out... if they ask why you are doing a charge back... link them to their outdated website that has not been updated for 6 years...
What a lying bunch of idiots... Tasos is a lying prick...
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 3:38PM (Unverified) said
I work in the credit card industry. And just to clear that up, it will not work. Well... maybe.. maybe... if you're using an Amex, but Visa, MC and likely Discover will tell you no. Also, if there is EVER a time you’d like to comeback to the game, you’ll need all new info, as you, your card, your address and any other varying account info you provided will be banned. This goes for any game FYI.
OT:
I don't have a lot of interest in this game, but I do love that the devs have such a hard "no bullshit" policy. I think it's severely lacking in most forums, and players should be treated as assholes, if they act like assholes. Regardless of their intentions. I think it promotes a stronger community over time. B/c if people want to piss & moan about crap, they can go to the cesspool that is mmorpg.com or here, rather then ruining the community feel for players who enjoy the game, and new players alike.
So, I applaud their "Fuck us? Fuck you" mentality. Any player acting like a sniveling douche bag needs to be treated as such. The level of slap-on-the-hand “make nice” garbage that it allows posters to get away with on official game forums is absurd.
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OT:
I don't have a lot of interest in this game, but I do love that the devs have such a hard "no bullshit" policy. I think it's severely lacking in most forums, and players should be treated as assholes, if they act like assholes. Regardless of their intentions. I think it promotes a stronger community over time. B/c if people want to piss & moan about crap, they can go to the cesspool that is mmorpg.com or here, rather then ruining the community feel for players who enjoy the game, and new players alike.
So, I applaud their "Fuck us? Fuck you" mentality. Any player acting like a sniveling douche bag needs to be treated as such. The level of slap-on-the-hand “make nice” garbage that it allows posters to get away with on official game forums is absurd.
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 3:38PM Temko said
nerdrage much?
seriously, do you even play the game? tried the game? LOOKED at the game? i dont think so.
let me tel you of a typical siege.
1 -"THE ARE ZERGING"
2 - " NO YOU ARE!!@#!@#@"
1- " We only zerg becouse you zegr!$!%!@"
2- "pfft, you just won becouse admin crashed server for you! we pwn yo!!"
...got it?
in any other game Accusing Gm's, Staff or volunteers is at the best a locked thread and at worst a perma-ban of the forums. why should darkfall be different. GM issues can be brought to them by support. like any other game.
the website though... yh... i'll do it for free ffs :S
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seriously, do you even play the game? tried the game? LOOKED at the game? i dont think so.
let me tel you of a typical siege.
1 -"THE ARE ZERGING"
2 - " NO YOU ARE!!@#!@#@"
1- " We only zerg becouse you zegr!$!%!@"
2- "pfft, you just won becouse admin crashed server for you! we pwn yo!!"
...got it?
in any other game Accusing Gm's, Staff or volunteers is at the best a locked thread and at worst a perma-ban of the forums. why should darkfall be different. GM issues can be brought to them by support. like any other game.
the website though... yh... i'll do it for free ffs :S
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 4:20PM MrGutts said
Can you translate that Temko into the Queen's English?
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 4:25PM (Unverified) said
the kind of crowd Darkfall wants is the kind of crowd that needs such ruthless moderation, I applaud their heavy handedness, they know their demographic and the type of player that wants a no consequences grief-fest
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 4:26PM Russell Clarke said
If they keep banning players at this rate, they won't have any left soon.
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 4:34PM Snow Leopard said
This game puzzles and yet fascinates me in its unabashed hardcore stance. It’s a sandbox title where the players are more or less allowed to not only murder each other but ridicule their dying opponents as they lay on the ground bleeding, pleading or insulting their killers back. This is most certainly not the comfortable amusement park resort seen elsewhere in the genre. This is a murderous fight club where only the strong reap the rewards.
The very difficulty one has in merely joining this game seems to solidify its blood sport image in my mind. Where, and seemingly more important, when, does one buy this game? In the sewers of the meat-packing district on a full moon? The basement of a dive-bar on Wednesday night? Or is there some secret more clandestine initiation involved in joining this dark cabal? I’ll start preparing my cauldron and séance circle in the meantime…
Either way, whereas many MMO’s seem to coddle their player base and treat the game as a product to be sold and enjoyed by the masses, Darkfall seems to hold firm in the idea that more than anything their universe is privilege and that its players should feel lucky to be inhabiting it. It’s a proud, unforgiving philosophy and the strange part is…it seems to be working.
The very difficulty one has in merely joining this game seems to solidify its blood sport image in my mind. Where, and seemingly more important, when, does one buy this game? In the sewers of the meat-packing district on a full moon? The basement of a dive-bar on Wednesday night? Or is there some secret more clandestine initiation involved in joining this dark cabal? I’ll start preparing my cauldron and séance circle in the meantime…
Either way, whereas many MMO’s seem to coddle their player base and treat the game as a product to be sold and enjoyed by the masses, Darkfall seems to hold firm in the idea that more than anything their universe is privilege and that its players should feel lucky to be inhabiting it. It’s a proud, unforgiving philosophy and the strange part is…it seems to be working.
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 4:49PM Russell Clarke said
That sounds like a very romantic vision of a bunch of sweaty-palmed little shits calling eachother cheats and noobs all the time.
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Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 5:28PM Interitus said
"but crashing servers is certainly above their powers"
Not true
In the early days of of CoH I discovered a bug where if I used a certain power on a mob I could cauze the zone to crash. I tried it in multiple zones and repeatedly could cause the game to crash. I reported it that night, but the point is if a player can make a zone crash through a bug. it's not a stretch to imagine a GM, who has a wider range of powers could do something (intentionally or not) that could cause a server to crash.
Not true
In the early days of of CoH I discovered a bug where if I used a certain power on a mob I could cauze the zone to crash. I tried it in multiple zones and repeatedly could cause the game to crash. I reported it that night, but the point is if a player can make a zone crash through a bug. it's not a stretch to imagine a GM, who has a wider range of powers could do something (intentionally or not) that could cause a server to crash.
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 5:38PM Russell Clarke said
I think the point of the statement was that there is no functionality built into the system to enable GMs to crash the system. Only conspiracy theorists (or the sweaty-palmed little shits I mentioned above) would believe that this function would be built in.
Present company excepted, by the way!
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Present company excepted, by the way!
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 5:41PM Grok said
By that argument Russell, anyone could cause a server crash, so pointing the finger at a GM is still a pretty silly.
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 5:42PM Grok said
Sorry I meant to direct my comment to Ineritus, not Russell.
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 5:47PM Russell Clarke said
Good-oh - I was about to crash your computer just by the power of my mind - or the evil tools I had build into my faux-GM console! ;)
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Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 6:33PM (Unverified) said
Heh ya know what I love about darkfall? It is a great gatherer for all the asshats that used to populate the other games I play. It sucked them up like a vortex for over serious l33t kidz. The ratio of d3wd to normal guy in that game must be like 4 to 1. Please stay, enjoy, never ever come back to bring your idiotic conspiracy theories to our games :)
LOL gm's crashing servers is absolutely hilarious in concept. Try this, create a chat user group on yahoo or something, set yourself as administrator, now crash the yahoo servers. Ya, its just exactly what your saying.
LOL gm's crashing servers is absolutely hilarious in concept. Try this, create a chat user group on yahoo or something, set yourself as administrator, now crash the yahoo servers. Ya, its just exactly what your saying.
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 7:31PM Russell Clarke said
Indeed. I do get the impression that the players and this Tasos fellow may very well deserve each other.
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Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 9:58PM (Unverified) said
@JP
Good post. Sooner companies start waking up and just banning people like the first poster straight up without weeks of putting up with their BS, the sooner we'll actually be able to use forums again.
Darkfall's approach to managing their players is very refreshing and as a player, I have no problem with it. The people who constantly need to shove against the rules are the kind of people who devalue your game anyway.
Good post. Sooner companies start waking up and just banning people like the first poster straight up without weeks of putting up with their BS, the sooner we'll actually be able to use forums again.
Darkfall's approach to managing their players is very refreshing and as a player, I have no problem with it. The people who constantly need to shove against the rules are the kind of people who devalue your game anyway.
Posted: Apr 23rd 2009 10:37PM Russell Clarke said
Ermmm...the people didn't have a chance to 'constantly shove against the rules' did they? One strike and they were out.
Whether the posters deserved a ban or not, a warning is usually the first response. The only reason I could think of for not having a policy of giving a warning is because the dev team is verging on 'militant anti-whiner'.
While I also share this attitude to some extent, it's not a good business model for a company providing a paid service unless they honestly think that getting rid of some people will get rid of more. It'll be interesting to see how that pans out.
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Whether the posters deserved a ban or not, a warning is usually the first response. The only reason I could think of for not having a policy of giving a warning is because the dev team is verging on 'militant anti-whiner'.
While I also share this attitude to some extent, it's not a good business model for a company providing a paid service unless they honestly think that getting rid of some people will get rid of more. It'll be interesting to see how that pans out.










