Real Money Trading and You

This week the Chinese government announced that they are banning the sell and trade of virtual goods for actual money. For the unaware, this selling and trading is known as “Real Money Trading”, or RMT. Selling characters with elite gear, and acquisition of excess amounts of virtual currency in exchange for actual currency is as old as MMOs themselves.

What makes the news interesting, however, is how the Chinese government finally stepped in to do something about it. China’s role in RMT is a pretty big one. Companies advertise in local papers, trying to draw in disenfranchised and troubled youth, promising that they can play video games for money. After all, it sounds like a good deal on the surface: Play video games all day and earn a paycheck at night, who wouldn’t? The cold reality though is that these youths are playing the game for hours on end, rotating in shifts, having two paltry meals and making only a few cents a day. This is a job, after all, and most of them will never see the fruits of their labor. Instead, companies will buy their virtual currency for an abysmal rate, and then sell it themselves at a huge markup, maximizing their own profit.

Yet, if one were to ask those who play MMOs about this kind of behavior, one would get a very apathetic response. Many players are often harassed by RMTs (the people themselves) in game, receiving spam messages or in-game mail while they play. RMTs often monopolize game monsters or items in an effort to maximize virtual profits. Obtaining control of an in-game economy is also quite common, buying low and artificially selling high to get players to give them currency. The player has very little concern about the person on the other end, instead viewing them as annoying at best and hostile at worst.

As someone who has played (and still is playing) an MMO, I can understand the emotions of the player. Though I admit, talking about RMT with a background in Final Fantasy XI, when everybody is playing World of Warcraft is like… well, honestly, I can’t think of an appropriate analogy. Anyway, there seems to be a general set of common threads and themes that can be talked about.

Let’s be clear, getting involved with RMT is, in fact, cheating. Many game companies state in their terms of service that they own all virtual property (in as much as you can own something virtual), and that selling or buying it is against the rules. Even if a rule like this wasn’t stated, you’re certainly altering your character in a way that gives you an advantage over someone who hasn’t.

There is an amusing double-standard though. While players decry and deride both the tactics of RMT and the players who enable them, they find no fault in altering the game themselves in ways that benefit them. This is not to imply that everyone who plays MMOs cheats, but the line to what is acceptable and what isn’t is often blurred. Blizzard and Square-Enix may come down hard on those who use bots, speed hacks, or whatever, but one won’t hear the same kind of outcry as one would for those who partake in RMT.

There’s the argument that RMT and buying your way to the top somehow cheapens the achievement for those who got there legit. This might be a valid concern if there was a rubric to judge players outside of a social group. However, there are two measures of personal achievement in an MMO. The first is mechanically; if you have it in game or have beaten Monster X, then you have succeeded – a cold truth. The other is socially; if you’ve skipped your way to the top, then your peers will look down and scorn you. For some, they are not looking for social acceptance, so such a guideline winds up failing.

There’s also the idea that RMT monopolizes items or fights in an effort to get people to pay for things in game that they otherwise wouldn’t pay for or can’t otherwise get. However, when players partake in the same practice – it is not exclusive to RMTs – there is no outcry. Moreover, this same rebuttal can be used in terms of economy manipulation. When players manipulate the economy to suit their needs, there is no objection, only when RMTs partake in the practice.

It seems that the argument the players are trying to rally behind, if we delve into it, is that RMTs aren’t interested in achievement or adventure, but only making virtual money in the most efficient and profitable way possible. While this may be a possible concern, the problem is that suddenly it no longer becomes about the idea of enabling cheaters.

Moreover, if the RMTs are beating out the players, it also means that they’re doing better, which makes a player-base highly resentful. Perhaps this isn’t a fair assessment, as RMTs work as a collective hive-like mind for one goal: making a profit. If you ban them, they just come back and repeat the process. A flimsily equipped RMT character that gets banned has a lot less to lose than a player who has invested years in his character. The RMT starts over with no issue, but the player is less likely to start over from the beginning.

Square-Enix recently banned over 1,000 endgame players in Final Fantasy XI for duplicating items (AKA “duping”) in an endgame event. Square-Enix was absolute in their decision, and players were unable to object. Some of those players started over, for one reason or another, but many moved onto other games or just stopped playing MMOs altogether. This number almost certainly doesn’t come anywhere near the amount of RMT characters that Square-Enix has banned, yet there are still plenty of them in game, coming up with new ways to generate currency.

Why is RMT necessary though? Many believe the idea of buying fictional currency is absurd, and to many players it’s ridiculous. Yet, such an industry flourishes. Players find that virtual currency is important, whether they admit this or not, to a point where they will forgo their actual money for virtual money. Success in a virtual world seems to be important to that individual, to a point where if they were exposed, they would be the subject of scorn and ridicule.

Of course, this only applies when RMT is explicitly banned by the company. In the case of EVE Online, RMT is allowed. Yet, the drawback is that there are harsh penalties for death in the game world, to a point where you can lost mostly everything if you die. At that point, RMT becomes an almost assuredly, eventually losing gambit, both for those offering the service and those interested in buying.

What if a company decides to actively partake in RMT, though? Square-Enix sells baubles and trinkets that, if one purchases, they recieve a code to get an ingame item. Second Life is based entirely around giving real life money away for virtual commodity. China’s new laws will, almost assuredly, affect these as well.

It’s difficult to determine what will come of China’s new laws in regards to real money trading. It seems at best a good-faith gesture, making sure news stories of sweat-shop gamers lack a certain legitimacy.  Someone more cynical though might say that China wants its cut of the profits, and until it gets it, its not allowing anyone to flourish in it. As long as someone is willing to forgo their cash for virtual advancement, someone will provide the service.