Ok, from your post in another thread we got to know that the anti-cheat detection is up and running (good !!) and that all the data about the accounts being played in UO, with their unique ID numbers, and how they are being played, is in a nice Excel file for further evaluation and decision making about what to do with the problem of cheating in Ultima Online.
Now, without knowing the magnitude of the problem, it is hard to even imagine what solutions you guys will come up with the problem.
it goes without saying though, I would imagine, that the first reaction about cheating in the game with scripts, hacks and so forth should deem the banning of the account violating the rules as well as accounts linked to it (i.e. benefitting from such violations like getting the stuff obtained from scripting etc....).
Now, clearly if the accounts in violation are a small number, dealing with the problem would come easier than if a vast majority of the accounts have been and are cheating when playing the game.
Still, something clearly needs to be done, I would imagine.
So, even if the problem is of a wide spread magnitute, still, I think, the accounts abusing it the most should be kicked out from the game, cheating stopped for good and then the problem remains of what to do with those (the largest number I suppose) who have been cheating although not so extensively.
Well, the reason for this post is about a suggestion.
If you guys find it hard to ban all those accounts (probably the largest number) who have been cheating though not extensively, my suggestions about how to handle could be something like this :
# 1
Besides the usual warning and temporary bans to let the user know that what they did was not acceptable, as a sort of punishment perhaps you could strip the account of some in game items be them gold, artifacts, whatever. The number of the items stripped might depend on the amount of cheating estimated and what the account is thought to have gained from the cheating.
# 2
Another possibility, if banning or punishing a too much large number of accounts is not advisable (but the accounts found cheating the most or gaining the most through cheating as well as the connected other accounts benefitting from this will still, I think, need to be kicked out from the game), since I think it still is important that you guys send a signal out that you do not want nor can tolerate cheating in your game, that for this one time you will "pass over" for those accounts who have not too much abused of it (supposedly the largest number) but that you still find it right and proper to then praise those accounts which you have found did not cheat and did not benefit from cheating in the game.
What I am trying to say, is that if you decide it too difficult or a problem to issue punishments over cheating in UO because the magnitude of the problem is too high, please do consider, to send out a clear and inequivocable message out there that cheating is not right, that you will then prize -as an alternate measure- those accounts who you found did not cheat (this, supposing they are a minority of the active accounts...). Of course, they have to be accounts in no way connected to accounts that have been found cheating. What I am trying to say, is that a player can have more than an account. One account might be used to cheat (a disposable account that can be risked) and the other account(s) are not used for cheating but they still gain from cheating like the scripting and such, for example. Prizing the non cheating account of the same player who has been cheating on some other account would not be fair, of course. So, some carefullness would be needed in pin pointing which accounts deserve the special prize, really.
Now, what could be the prizes to honorable and "by-the-rules" playing ?
You could offer special, cool items which are tied to the account and not transferable to other accounts, period. Or you could offer a choice of a number of tokens still tied to the account, anything important enough which could make the players who suffered playing the same game where others were cheating to gain an unfair advantage, not at a loss for having played according to the rules.
It is just an idea, I am curious as to see what you guys will in the end come up with.
Have a nice work.
Now, without knowing the magnitude of the problem, it is hard to even imagine what solutions you guys will come up with the problem.
it goes without saying though, I would imagine, that the first reaction about cheating in the game with scripts, hacks and so forth should deem the banning of the account violating the rules as well as accounts linked to it (i.e. benefitting from such violations like getting the stuff obtained from scripting etc....).
Now, clearly if the accounts in violation are a small number, dealing with the problem would come easier than if a vast majority of the accounts have been and are cheating when playing the game.
Still, something clearly needs to be done, I would imagine.
So, even if the problem is of a wide spread magnitute, still, I think, the accounts abusing it the most should be kicked out from the game, cheating stopped for good and then the problem remains of what to do with those (the largest number I suppose) who have been cheating although not so extensively.
Well, the reason for this post is about a suggestion.
If you guys find it hard to ban all those accounts (probably the largest number) who have been cheating though not extensively, my suggestions about how to handle could be something like this :
# 1
Besides the usual warning and temporary bans to let the user know that what they did was not acceptable, as a sort of punishment perhaps you could strip the account of some in game items be them gold, artifacts, whatever. The number of the items stripped might depend on the amount of cheating estimated and what the account is thought to have gained from the cheating.
# 2
Another possibility, if banning or punishing a too much large number of accounts is not advisable (but the accounts found cheating the most or gaining the most through cheating as well as the connected other accounts benefitting from this will still, I think, need to be kicked out from the game), since I think it still is important that you guys send a signal out that you do not want nor can tolerate cheating in your game, that for this one time you will "pass over" for those accounts who have not too much abused of it (supposedly the largest number) but that you still find it right and proper to then praise those accounts which you have found did not cheat and did not benefit from cheating in the game.
What I am trying to say, is that if you decide it too difficult or a problem to issue punishments over cheating in UO because the magnitude of the problem is too high, please do consider, to send out a clear and inequivocable message out there that cheating is not right, that you will then prize -as an alternate measure- those accounts who you found did not cheat (this, supposing they are a minority of the active accounts...). Of course, they have to be accounts in no way connected to accounts that have been found cheating. What I am trying to say, is that a player can have more than an account. One account might be used to cheat (a disposable account that can be risked) and the other account(s) are not used for cheating but they still gain from cheating like the scripting and such, for example. Prizing the non cheating account of the same player who has been cheating on some other account would not be fair, of course. So, some carefullness would be needed in pin pointing which accounts deserve the special prize, really.
Now, what could be the prizes to honorable and "by-the-rules" playing ?
You could offer special, cool items which are tied to the account and not transferable to other accounts, period. Or you could offer a choice of a number of tokens still tied to the account, anything important enough which could make the players who suffered playing the same game where others were cheating to gain an unfair advantage, not at a loss for having played according to the rules.
It is just an idea, I am curious as to see what you guys will in the end come up with.
Have a nice work.
