The DDO Offer Wall launched yesterday, and was met with a very enthusiastic reaction from fans of Dungeons and Dragons Online. Unfortunately, a lot of it was negative.
Players greatest concerns stem from the fact that Turbine is working with SuperRewards, a third party lead generator, for these point opportunities. Giving personal information to an unknown is worrisome, of course, and concerns have grown to the point where some players claim that just looking at the offers page will infect your computer. On the other hand, many players are reporting that they checked out the offers, received their points, and moved on with a computer that was completely unaffected.
Update: Turbine has since added an update post to their forums, giving further information about the program. The Offer Wall has been temporarily removed while Turbine investigates player concerns over email and username security.
Trading rewards for offers in this fashion is nothing new -- Runes of Magic does something very similar, and the concept itself goes back years in the form of sites such as MyPoints. So what's the truth behind this new promotion?
We've contacted Turbine and are awaiting a response, and keep an eye out for Thursday's Exploring Eberron when we take an in-depth look at this new feature.
Reader Comments (27)
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 4:16PM Tanek said
"concerns have grown to the point where some players claim that just looking at the offers page will infect your computer"
While I have seen posts phrase it that way, I think the concern started out as:
viewing the Offer page sends your email address and your account name to a third party".
I am eagerly awaiting Turbine's response, as Patience has posted that they are working on getting answers to the questions that have been raised.
While I have seen posts phrase it that way, I think the concern started out as:
viewing the Offer page sends your email address and your account name to a third party".
I am eagerly awaiting Turbine's response, as Patience has posted that they are working on getting answers to the questions that have been raised.
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 4:20PM Mr Angry said
Low brow move by a former triple AAA MMO studio, unnecessary, it's hurt both their game and the DDO brand. I wouldn't be surprised if they have issues with the IP owners as a result of degrading the experience to selling insurance and credit card services, even shoes, c'mon
One step forward, two back.....
One step forward, two back.....
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 4:30PM (Unverified) said
This^^
Just as DDO was seemingly going from strength to strength (in my eyes anyhow) and really gaining a foothold as a title that could show others how to run things with success, this comes along.
Whether or not the transactions are fishy is one thing, but even if they're not I must admit I was really surprised to hear the news they were going down this route.
Even from purely an image perspective, it's made me think twice about the company.
Odd, because to my mind there was absolutely no need for Turbine to take things this far - they were already garnering press and player praise from all quarters.
Who's idea was this? I'm betting it was pushed through by a member of senior management and was met with opposition in general by a lot of employees..
Sad. That's two image-blows in one week (Mythic/Turbine).
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Just as DDO was seemingly going from strength to strength (in my eyes anyhow) and really gaining a foothold as a title that could show others how to run things with success, this comes along.
Whether or not the transactions are fishy is one thing, but even if they're not I must admit I was really surprised to hear the news they were going down this route.
Even from purely an image perspective, it's made me think twice about the company.
Odd, because to my mind there was absolutely no need for Turbine to take things this far - they were already garnering press and player praise from all quarters.
Who's idea was this? I'm betting it was pushed through by a member of senior management and was met with opposition in general by a lot of employees..
Sad. That's two image-blows in one week (Mythic/Turbine).
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 4:25PM (Unverified) said
I'm agreeing with Mr Angry here. I mean DDO was a great game. Their move to make it free did miracles for their fan base. Then they put up this offer wall which is a swift kick to the . . . well you know. Shame on you Turbine.
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 4:33PM Sorithal said
Eh, Nexon and other F2P companies do this. I don't see what's so bad about it; it's not like you -have- to do the surveys and whatnot. It's just an alternative way of getting points.
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 6:27PM whateveryousay said
no no, read the forum post they linked to. Apparently just visiting the wall will send your email and account username out over an unencrypted line. On top of that your info WILL be used and sold to third party scammers. People have aready reported receiving spam emails (specifically WoW phishing scam emails) after just visiting the wall. It's not like the offers you see all the other games like Runes of Magic use. It's a huge deal.
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Posted: Apr 13th 2010 4:37PM Nef said
This wall thing is completely optional, right? You don't even have to look at the thing? So, if you don't like it you can just ignore it, yeah?
What's the problem, again? They give another means to get points, one that some people seem to dislike -- people that aren't forced to use it -- while there are others that might be perfectly fine going through with these 'offers'.
How about just not using it if you don't like it?
What's the problem, again? They give another means to get points, one that some people seem to dislike -- people that aren't forced to use it -- while there are others that might be perfectly fine going through with these 'offers'.
How about just not using it if you don't like it?
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 4:48PM Mr Angry said
How about they concentrate on the game and give compelling reasons to subscribe or use the item shop, rather than disclose personal details to third parties without permission, just by visiting this 'offer wall', not even signing up for an offer.....
How about they put the resources that were obviously spent on this to better use for subscribers or store shoppers?
How about they make the offers at least suitable for people who play PC games, why not sell D&D books or fantasy novels or gaming equipment or PC's?
Making something optional does not make it a good idea, and in this case it's been very poorly implemented and turns the DDO experience for people who believe and like the game into advertising space for the highest bidder.
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How about they put the resources that were obviously spent on this to better use for subscribers or store shoppers?
How about they make the offers at least suitable for people who play PC games, why not sell D&D books or fantasy novels or gaming equipment or PC's?
Making something optional does not make it a good idea, and in this case it's been very poorly implemented and turns the DDO experience for people who believe and like the game into advertising space for the highest bidder.
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 5:01PM Nef said
I doubt this took much in the way of resources to set up, and the people that work on the website are not the same people that work on the game, itself.
Also, if you're not signed in, can they still send your info just by visiting the page? If you *have* to be signed in to view the page, is there any warning about them sending your info to the people (if they actually do, I'm not one to believe rumors)? That would be a different matter entirely and one which does raise concern.
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Also, if you're not signed in, can they still send your info just by visiting the page? If you *have* to be signed in to view the page, is there any warning about them sending your info to the people (if they actually do, I'm not one to believe rumors)? That would be a different matter entirely and one which does raise concern.
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 4:40PM (Unverified) said
I never really understood this, most offers require a purchase of some kind if you want points then you can just buy them. As far as "blighting their reputation" I think most cash shop games do this so they're just following suit. Besides, the game is already inundated with advertisements for its own cash shop and the idea that you are missing out on so much stuff by not purchasing items is ever-present. Both aspects do enough already to ruin the "experience" but DDO is already a terribly Meta game to begin with I doubt anyone playing it feels a true sense of immersion.
Posted: Apr 14th 2010 7:52AM (Unverified) said
"..most cash shop games do this.."
Yeah, and you know what DDO's reputation was prior to this? It was the F2P cash shop game that was _different_. The one that people thought was fair, and reasonable, and not a cheesy scam.
Now.. well, it's reputation isn't what it was last week, that's for sure.
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Yeah, and you know what DDO's reputation was prior to this? It was the F2P cash shop game that was _different_. The one that people thought was fair, and reasonable, and not a cheesy scam.
Now.. well, it's reputation isn't what it was last week, that's for sure.
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 4:58PM VioletArrows said
I looked at it yesterday and wrote it off (and I seriously doubt any of the "you've already given away your info just by *looking*" business). I don't think it needs the kind of moral outrage I can only guess is going on in the forums... It's just a stupid idea that will go away if no one uses it, is all.
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 5:24PM whateveryousay said
Fail.
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 5:50PM SkuzBukit said
Chicken Little is alive and well & posting on the internet......
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 6:21PM HereticalPenguin said
Turbine is just running ads, just like almost every other website you'll visit today. BFD.
In the words of Ahnuld, "STOP WHINING!"
In the words of Ahnuld, "STOP WHINING!"
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 6:48PM (Unverified) said
I saw this backlash coming the instant I heard about the upcoming plan to allow people to fill out "surveys" for Turbine Points. It's a bad idea for anyone to sign up for an online contest, take a Facebook quiz, etc. The outcry really grew when people realized that their account names were being sent over an unencrypted data stream to these third parties in addition to their email addresses.
Turbine's now taken it down. I bet we don't see it ever again...
Turbine's now taken it down. I bet we don't see it ever again...
Posted: Apr 13th 2010 6:59PM dudes said
Whoops.



