CCP reveal plans to crack down on EVE Online botters

Like a variety of on-line video games, EVE Online has an issue with botters – gamers who create automated bots to slave away within the asteroid mines. That drawback solely bought worse because the MMO launched its free-to-play ‘Alpha Clone’ accounts. Pressure from followers has led to this recent update on the EVE Online weblog, wherein creators CCP define the state of the botting drawback, and what they’re doing about it. Short model: they’re getting harsher.

To begin with, CCP banned over 1,800 accounts in January, based on the put up. “Mining bots were the largest group represented,” they mentioned, “with ratting bots coming in a close second.” Around a 3rd of these – repeat offenders – have been banned on a everlasting foundation, whereas the others have been solely briefly ejected from the airlock, it being their first offense and all.

The method issues presently stand, preliminary bans final for 30 of our Earth days, however CCP has plans to cut back that interval. From March 1st onwards, anybody caught on a primary botting offense can be banned for simply three days, affording them “a painless chance to mend their wicked ways.”

It may appear an odd response to elevated experiences of botters, however CCP motive that if these gamers “don’t [turn things around] then they simply get removed from the game pronto and we can all move on.” That’s as a result of, from March 1st additionally, CCP will solely tolerate a single botting offense from a person earlier than reaching for the Level 2 Banhammer. The one that claims ‘Goodbye Forever’ in everlasting ink.

Lead group developer Sveinn ‘CCP Guard’ Kjarval went into a bit more detail within the feedback beneath the weblog put up:

“We used to have more strikes in the past but they were reduced down to two which is plenty enough. This policy covers all automation that we detect, and we’re not bound by it in case of serious offenders so we still one-strike when we need to. It’s good to refer to in cases where an otherwise regular player is likely to be educated and straightened out. Our goal isn’t to punish but to end the behavior that breaks the rules for the sake of the game. If we can do that without barring someone from EVE forever, great! If we catch them fast, even better.”

Overall then, EVE Online can be getting harsher on botters from the beginning of subsequent month. The new plans most likely received’t make an excessive amount of of a dent within the ongoing botting drawback, however hopefully there can be fewer of them floating about.