Home » Games News » 'Gold Trading Exposed' a look at multi-billion dollar grey market
If there are any massively multiplayer online games on the market (with virtual economies) that are not overrun at times with azuga gold spammers that multiply like cockroaches, we have yet to hear about it.
While the various MMO developers and operators have their own approaches to the problem, ranging from public humiliation of spammers to an anti-RMT strike force that exists to root them out and eliminate them, a key part of this equation for grief is the player-base itself.
Gold Trading Exposed is the first in a series of articles tackling the issues surrounding RMT written for Eurogamer by Nick Ryan. Over time, Ryan will look at the multi-billion dollar trade in virtual gold through the eyes of all parties involved - the gold traders, the developers, and of course the players themselves (many of whom deny they buy gold).
Ryan points out there there's no small amount of hypocrisy from MMO player-bases which profess a hatred for the gold selling trade since, after all, there must be a reason that gold sellers thrive and multiply.
Ryan's introductory piece for Gold Trading Exposed looks at the interplay between gold buyers and sellers has evolved over time, providing a good overview of the situation at present, and of course setting up future pieces exploring the gold trading market.
Have at look at Nick Ryan's Gold Trading Exposed series of articles at Euro gamer for a comprehensive look at this bane of the MMO world.