@ Tim The argument you're making is that you're settled into where you feel at home. And unfortunately the problematic state of the game honestly trumps that completely. So when I mention consolidation I invest zero thought into your single player expectancy of an MMO that's outlived the need for 26 servers.
Why do we not get houseable land masses anymore? Because 90% of that landmass goes to waste across the majority of servers.
Why is RMT such a problem right now? Because farming is done on servers where not enough players exist to police the servers.
Yes, I understand very well that each server is rich with it's own history of players and communities that came to be, some of which even have unique areas dedicated to those players and communities. However the majority of those communities were at best active for a few years, before the the founding members eventually moved away from the game and the community itself died out. And yes, player monuments are special, but they can be recreated, and new communities can be formed out of players being brought together. It's time to make new histories.
And if bringing what is left of our game together can be achieved without any actual loss to the player outside of a house plot, then that's an acceptable trade. And to say it shouldn't be brought up because some people like small servers is a honestly a greedy and self involved outlook. At the end of the day, this game is supposed to be an MMO.
Why is RMT such a problem right now? Because farming is done on servers where not enough players exist to police the servers.
No, to my opinion, "policing" cannot be the solution to real money trades simply because it contributes to being a cause to this issue.... what "policing" does, is only permit the creation of a Monopoly for those few players who control those spawns and, thus, can create a Monopoly of those items and thus artificially inflate prices thus boosting inflation in the economy of the game...
If at all, Shard transfers and empty Shards have actually helped reducing the ridicolous high inflation on certain items because they permitted the increase of the "offer" for those items... first coming from Japanese Shards where Powerscrolls where being farmed and then, later on, for their being farmed on empty Shards.
Increased offer, reduces the cost and thus fights inflation and breaks Monopolies so, it is a GOOD thing, IMHO.
The "policing", instead, reduces the offer of items because it permits the creation of Monopolies from those few players who, "policing" those spawns, effectively control them and, thus, limit the offer of those items thus artificially having their prices sky rocket.
THIS, is what causes the issue of Real Money Trades.... most players do not have countless time to play a game and farm for gold needed to buy high end items necessary for gameplay whose cost is artificially high because of the "policing" of spawns that created the conditions for Monopolies....
So, what do they do if they still want to play the game and get those items ?
They resort to Real Money Trades and use their real money to purchase those high end items and gold..... and when players see that can make real money off of the game, of course that we then see also players cheating, duping, multi-boxing and AFK scripting.... the ability to make real money, to my opinion, is a hell of a good reason for that in-game behaviour which we know causes so much problems to the game and other players....
Therefore, whatever Design mechanics limit the offer of items and create the conditions for in-game Monopolies and causes players to have to spend countless of their time in the game to get a high-end item is what "promotes", to my opinion, in some players, the willingness to use their real money, rather then their limited time, to get those items and that gold.
If items where more readily obtainable, with much less time needed to get them, that is, if their offer was increased, I am of the opinion that we would hardly see any players wanting to spend their real money to purchase gold or items in the game.
So, to my opinion, "policing" spawns is NOT the answer but, rather, the cause to the issue of Real Money Trades because it creates Monopolies, limits the offer for items, and forces players to extremely time consuming grinding to put together the enormous piles of gold needed to purchase those items.
Just look at what happened with Powerscrolls before the great loss of players, where spawns were actually "policed" actively on pretty much any and all Shards.... their price, related to the UO cost of living, was outrageous as compared to what they cost now that they can be farmed on empty Shards....
Make gold and items, included high end items, more readily available, and thus have the game be much less of the "time sink" that it is, and players, I am of the opinion, will much less feel the need to have to spend their real money to purchase gold or items in the game thus taking away the real money trades which, to my point of view, is what may motivate some players for an in-game behaviour that so much hurts the game.... duping, cheating, AFK scripting, multi-boxing etc. etc.
If one can get anything in the game with a resonable and acceptable investment of time in the game, what would be the point of spending one's own real money on it ?
