Jagex, you have been voted off the island.

Hello all,

As you probably saw in my Runewire post, I quit Runescape. Not because of money problems, not for another game, but because Runescape lost the key aspect in any relationship: Continuity.

I currently serve in the United States Air Force, making about $1,500-1,600 before taxes, and most are offset by other benefits. Hell, I could probably pay for my character to be maxed out by Bonds or Squeal of Fortune, or a mix of the 2. That is one reason why the sense of community has been lost: the sense of achievement is not diminished, it's broken. People use to be able to wear the max cape and it meant something. Now, almost everyone with a deep enough wallet can get it.

I have spent about 6 years on and off playing Runescape. I grew up with it in what many people now consider it's prime. I logged on to it and look forward to the newest updates that they put in the game, and almost always realize that the update wasn't targeted for my character at that time, like when they released Hunter. I saw it as a goal, to try out the newest content when it came out. Now when there's another update, I steer clear of it and wait to see how it's flaws stack against the ones of the previous updates. Jagex has taken a game that I looked up to and turned it into a cash cow of a game, between the Squeal of Fortune and the Bonds.

Which lead to my final point: the constantly changing rules. Use to, Jagex upheld 12 rules, rules that no one could bend or break for any reason. Compare that to now, where if your are willing to use your website to advertise for Jagex, then they'll let you type your URL in the Runescape Chat without the censor blocking it, or if you are a free player you can't block ads, but members get them removed just because they paid money. If they'll compromise on these rules, then what's to stop them from compromising on the rest?

If Jagex stops focusing on squeezing money out of us, and instead provided quality updates that truly improved the game or provided new features that will be used longer than a few weeks after release (Mobilizing Armies, anyone?) then I may come back. For the time being however, I'll keep my money in my pocket.

I suggest you watch this before jumping to those conclusions about Bonds, Squeal of Fortune, and Solomon's General Store:


The fact is that the majority of the Bonds purchased are actually used for redeeming membership. It's also important to look at where the game has been. The game has just underwent a colossal battle against bots and farmers. These accounts are normally hijacked or even worse created using fraudulent credit card info. Each one of these accounts represents a loss for Jagex. The way I see it is that we might not have a game to play if these measures had not been put in place. They saved the game. They allowed Jagex to invest in the technology to break the bots. They also fostered the simultaneous investment known as RS3.

Also the games situation and your situation could be much worse. There are MMOs out there where success is defined by the amount of money you put into the game (EvE). The RS situation is not that bad. I still stand by the point that this is the best time to be playing RuneScape.

Anyways, RSBandB will be here if you decide to reverse your decision.

Jagex is a company.. they need to make money to pay their employees, who are the ones who create the content and keep updates happening. I don't begrudge Jagex the right to make a profit. I don't work for my boss for free, either. Ads running on the free to play people don't have an impact on the game; most sites run ads to raise revenue. I happily pay my membership and one of the benefits is I don't have to see the ads... another benefit is the extra content I get. Nothing is truly free in life that is provided by someone else. Personally, I don't care how someone got their character maxed out; I am doing it my way, is to train and enjoy the game doing it. That's the beauty of Runescape; you don't need to spend extra money max out your character. If someone else wants to do it, it's their money.. no big deal. I think people are forgetting that this is a GAME; it is intended for entertainment purposes. It is not a competition and the fact that someone spends a few extra dollars to get their drygores or Nex armour does not affect any other player in the least.

As for the comment "If Jagex stops focusing on squeezing money out of us", I have never felt pressured into spending extra money other than my membership; there has been no squeezing, only offers to combat an illegal trade by third parties that are not only detrimental to the game, but also a risk to the player. They are continually updating and the new quests this year have for the most part been excellent. We have seen one new skill this year and another will arrive early next year. Bonds for the most part have been widely accepted as a good thing; I know several players who have been able to come back as members because they can pay for their membership using gp they have earned in the game. Increasing members can only be a good thing. Jagex worked hard and got rid of a vast majority of the bots in the game, which would have hurt their bottom line. However, they recognized how much these accounts hurt the long term survival of the Runescape and actively sought to get them out. I am sorry, but I cannot begrudge them wanting to take control of the game they own and find ways to return the profit to their own coffers and not have these third parties profiting from their product. It is in the best interest of the company and the player that this has happened.

I do wish you the best in your pursuit of a new game, and I do hope you will see the benefits this will have in this game. My vote, however is to keep Jagex on the island.