July 8, 2010 by Jack Fox
The popular game World of Warcraft has made the headlines this week, following a decision to bring a close to its anonymous forums. Blizzard, the organisation behind World of Warcraft, have announced that users who play the online game will, from now on, have to post their real identities on to the game when they play.
Blizzard’s game has been around for the past twelve years, and the recent announcement follows a decision by the firm to put an end to emotive and heated arguments online by gaming enthusiasts. From now on, people who use Blizzard’s online forums for the World of Warcraft game will have to undergo identity checks in order to prevent users from having heated disagreements under pseudonyms.
Gaming enthusiasts have reacted with protests, claiming that the use of real identities will only serve to create privacy issues and safety problems. Despite this, Blizzard have promised to implement the new user transparency rules within two months. Gamers online have been subjected to malicious flaming, unpleasant behaviour and trolling, and Blizzard have taken this unusual step in a bid to prevent online difficulties.
A spokesperson for the site stated: “Removing the veil of anonymity typical to online dialogue will contribute to a more positive forum environment, promote constructive conversations, and connect the Blizzard community in ways they haven’t been connected before. As the way gamers interact with one another continues to evolve, our goal is to ensure Battle.net is equipped to handle the ever-changing social-gaming experience for years to come.”
Previous attempts to implement authentication have resulted in disaster for exposed individuals. One person who used their real name to play online was subjected to a hate campaign within which other gamers obtained his address, telephone number and other personal details, and contacted him.
Over a thousand people have expressed their disappointment in Blizzard’s decision, stating that World of Warcraft should not emulate sites such as Facebook by opening forums up to social networking. Online gaming can be an emotive sphere for users, and the overall consensus is that gamers should be entitled to their anonymity online in order to fully enjoy the experience.
Related posts:
