Blizzard: Active players and gold farmers are similar

Active players and gold farmers do the “same activity”, according to Diablo 3 executive producer Rob Pardo.

Blizzard recently revealed that Diablo 3 will include real currency auction houses which allow players to buy better gear with real world money, as reported by PCGamer.

Speaking on the topic of whether this feature will encourage gold farming, Pardo explained: “What’s the difference between a player that plays the game a lot and a gold farmer? They’re really doing the same activity.

“If you are doing an activity where all you’re trying to do is generate items for the auction house, you’re not making someone else’s game experience poorer. If anything you’re making the game better, because you’re generating items for the auction house that people want to purchase.”

The studio behind Rift has a different take on the significance of gold farmers. Recently Trion Worlds general manager Scott Hartsman said gold farming-based credit card fraud happens “a sh*tload”.

“…You go buy gold from a disreputable gold site, and they say ‘thank you’ and deliver your gold, and sell your credit card number, or start registering accounts with your credit card.

“It’s those kinds of things where people laugh and go, ‘Oh, that never happens.’ No. It happens. It happens a sh*tload. To the point where, over the last three or four years, I would dare anybody to ask an exec at a gaming company how much they’ve had to pay in MasterCard and Visa fines, because of fraud. It happens a lot.”

Diablo 3 is still without a firm release date.