What is up with all these baal games...

[CursedYew]

I remeber that there were some paladin botters but now every baal game there is atleast 1... Wtf is that program and when does the mass ban for it comes?

[ProfessionalBerg]

People make bots all the time - banning will be only a temporary solution. The very code for the game is imperfect, so new botting programs will appear again and again. I say suck up and ignore botgames, or play singleplayer.

[Voorhees]

It's not so much the code of the game that allows for botting but the dilemma of exactly how invasive you are prepared or legally allowed to get with your anti-botting detection methods. Sending yourself information about what other programs a person might be running without their consent is a fine line to walk, EULA or no EULA.
Ofcourse one part time live moderator could work 2 hours a day and get rid of 95%+ of the bots. At least the ones botting in public games. But that's too much bother I guess. Hell, I'd do it for free if Blizzard would give me the ban stick.

[Wowomg]

To be honest I really dont care if there are bots doing baal. I know I can get in a game and know that its going to go well and there will always be a game up. I hate having to join games over and over to find one thats actually going to keep running, or you join the games and no one wants to run. This is when the bot games come in handy. They run, there are always a game going, the only thing I really see them pick up is gold. So all in all a good thing for people leveling 90+

just my 2cents

[skald]

The problem as I see it is the bots being all over the paladin ladder, and thus the overall ladder.

Takes away from the allure of ladder at least somewhat...

[Michael Nuggets]

who cares if somebody else is botting it doesnt hurt you if anything it probably helps you so dont worry about it

[braincrasher]

Unfortunately Baalruns which are run by bot are usually much faster exp than human´s running. I´ve ran couple of Baalruns with my lite sorc and I´ve been called noob for not teleing to Throne in under 30 seconds like those bots do.

[carnivore]

who cares if somebody else is botting it doesnt hurt you if anything it probably helps you so dont worry about it

botting:

- destroys the trade economy (fast grabber, can make more runs in fast succession than humanly possible)
- destroys the trade economy even more (provide items for item-shops)
- did already lead to harder rules for temp bans (game openening time, max games per hour)
- gives an unfair advantage in leveling (today a bot, tomorrow a duelist for example)
- ladder (as skalk said)
- it IS cheating

and there are probably many more reasons...

[lukefojut]

The rise in Baal botting is worrying, as it makes it very hard to get on the ladder as a Paladin. Then again, very few of us make it onto the ladder anyway.

I suspect the folk selling this program on eBay are largely to blame for the marked increase that has been noticed recently..

[Crowd Control]

I recently got back up Hell again and joined a Baalrun. This was the first time I encountered a bot. And one side of me tells me: "Hey, it's actually a pretty good service. It tells me which runs comes up, it doesn't take much time and it left a Skullder's to boot :cool: !

But as mentioned this is just one of those things that ruined the game alltogether. Getting to the very end of the game, the final and last battle possible in D2 (ignoring Utrist), in under 15 seconds. It could never have been the way it's supposed to.

[Voorhees]

I couldn't actually care less about most off the reasons bots suck. The ones that bother me are stricter limitations and temp bans and cluttering up my heel games list with empty baal games. That's total rubbish.

[skald]

Oh that's another good point...the sheer number (ever-increasing now, it would seem) of bot games is really clogging up the hell list. :(

[BobCox]

It's not so much the code of the game that allows for botting but the dilemma of exactly how invasive you are prepared or legally allowed to get with your anti-botting detection methods. Sending yourself information about what other programs a person might be running without their consent is a fine line to walk, EULA or no EULA.
Ofcourse one part time live moderator could work 2 hours a day and get rid of 95%+ of the bots. At least the ones botting in public games. But that's too much bother I guess. Hell, I'd do it for free if Blizzard would give me the ban stick.

Quoted for Truth.

[Bob The Barbarian]

Unfortunately, cheating is rampant on the internet/Bnet. Whether it's someone perming runes or items, players running third party programs, players buying high end items from suppliers or as this point of discussion - botting.

In my mind there is little point in cheating in a game. After all, it is a game, right? We play it for enjoyment and diversion, right? If I cheat on the game and get high end stuff, when I quit playing and rejoin the real world I am no better off, right? This is not to say that you can't play aggressively if that is your style. But if someone has to cheat to win, then they hasn't won at all.

There is little one can do about the cheaters. As long as there is a demand for quick item purchases, the third party vendors will be there ... and subsequentally the bots will be there. Blizzard could end this, of course, but let's get real. BattleNet is a free service provided by Blizzard for it's customers. Other than the sale of the game disks, they get no remuneration from running the service. It is not reasonable to expect them to spend additional $$ to clean up our mess. If this were WOW and they collected a monthly fee for its use and ppl stopped playing because of cheating, then you can bet they would be on this in a heartbeat.

If the game were run as intended -- that is, no one cheating by rushing, buying items or duping them, etc (yeah, right!) -- then trading would be more robust since players would turn to each other for needed items. We would each also work our way up thru the levels and find most of what we need along the way. Of course, this is fantasy, natch. It's an ego boost to some to be the top dog on the ladder, or a dueling master; and they will do anything to get there in a hurry. You can tell these ppl in a moment. They are the ones who call everyone else "noob". It's laughable really because they are the noob and probably couldn't get their current status on their own (by playing the game lvl by lvl w/o a lot of assistance) if they had to.

I just ignore them and play the game. You don't need their grief or to fan their ego by either arguing with them or letting them goad you into a one-sided duel. There are plenty of decent folk who play the game as well. Start a "friends list" and stick with those ppl. They'll help you in a pinch and won't charge you for it. Bots are a fact of life, either use their Baal runs to your advantage or stay away from those games if they bother you.

"When you take away Superman's powers, he is less than a man"

[Voorhees]

Blizzard could end this, of course, but let's get real. BattleNet is a free service provided by Blizzard for it's customers. Other than the sale of the game disks, they get no remuneration from running the service.
Well, judging by the steady in flow of newbies and the fact the battlechest still sells for about $40 I'd say that the sale of game disks is bringing in a little something.
It is not reasonable to expect them to spend additional $$ to clean up our mess. If this were WOW and they collected a monthly fee for its use and ppl stopped playing because of cheating, then you can bet they would be on this in a heartbeat.
It is not reasonable to expect that if someone is going to do something that they are going to do it right?
Unfortunately it's clear to see their attitude in your example. Since monthly charges will stop if a player stops playing they care. Since Diablo relies on initial sales for income, it seems they couldn't care less whether a player quits or not, as they've already got the money from that guy.

[Bob The Barbarian]

Well, judging by the steady in flow of newbies and the fact the battlechest still sells for about $40 I'd say that the sale of game disks is bringing in a little something.

You are correct. Years later they are still able to sell the game. This speaks volumes for the excellent title(s) they have produced --- and what probably keeps Bnet free for all of us. There is certainly a cost to Blizzard to maintain the 150 servers per realm to run public games. If they did not have the sales to support it, Bnet would certainly go away - or become a fee for service item. Blizzard is, after all, a business.

It is not reasonable to expect that if someone is going to do something that they are going to do it right?
Unfortunately it's clear to see their attitude in your example. Since monthly charges will stop if a player stops playing they care. Since Diablo relies on initial sales for income, it seems they couldn't care less whether a player quits or not, as they've already got the money from that guy.

Again, Blizzard is a business. The Bnet is there for our use. How much are you willing to pay (as a monthly fee) to have a dedicated support staff to monitor the games, ban cheaters, etc, etc. Yes, I'm sure they don't give a hoot (as a business) if someone who buys their game and never uses Bnet. Let's say you buy a car from me (off the lot, not personally). The auto-dealer and myself make money from that sale. Whether you maintain the car or not is not our worry since the car is sold and not licensed. If you want the auto dealer to care, you purchase a maintenance agreement with them or lease the car. Then they will care.

It's all the same. Don't expect a business to provide services that we are not willing/expected to pay for.

I agree with you that a thing done should be done right - within its limits. Bnet provides an excellent opportunity for the Diablo community to meet and enjoy the game together. That was its intention and has probably helped keep the game going as long as it has. This has been done right. To take service to the next level would involve us paying a fee for the service. Again, how much is the community willing to pay for the added service? I like "free" and am willing to put up with some of the negitive impacts that has.

[Voorhees]

Again, Blizzard is a business. The Bnet is there for our use. How much are you willing to pay (as a monthly fee) to have a dedicated support staff to monitor the games, ban cheaters, etc, etc. Yes, I'm sure they don't give a hoot (as a business) if someone who buys their game and never uses Bnet. Let's say you buy a car from me (off the lot, not personally). The auto-dealer and myself make money from that sale. Whether you maintain the car or not is not our worry since the car is sold and not licensed. If you want the auto dealer to care, you purchase a maintenance agreement with them or lease the car. Then they will care.


Yeah, yeah. I see similar arguments on this topic often. This particular comparison fails as the dealer isn't selling you a car under the pretense that you'll have a free place to park it, only to offer you a somehow inadequate parking space claiming a better spot would cost more money. That's called a bait and switch where I come from.

[Bob The Barbarian]

The difference being that Blizzard never guaranteed us a service free of cheaters and bots. This runs under the assumption that everyone will play the game as designed .. which we all know is fantasy.