RMT + Cash Shop = Not as bad as one might believe?

[Aegis]

If you've got some compelling arguments on why RMT would actually be really bad in this case,

One argument is that there is now a $/gil exchange rate.

Say a pair of wedding bands costs $40 or 20 mill gil (for argument's sake). If RMT can offer 20 mill gil for less than $40, it makes more sense to buy the gil from RMT directly (fears of account compromise/banning etc notwithstanding) than to buy the bands from SE. There's no real moral argument against it as SE are ok with you effectively buying gil as long as it is from them.

Thriving illicit RMT causes economy hyperinflation. Anyone who played XI circa 2005-2008/9 knows all about this. Scorpion Harnesses went from 1 mill to 25 mill+ in the space of months. At that point you had to grind for months to get that much gil or, (as many people did) bot your own gil or buy from RMT otherwise you would be left behind.

Now there are some big differences that could mitigate this: There are no 'must have' pieces in XIV that are available through gil only. Sure, the min-maxers use penta-melded crafted i110s, but they are optimal, not necessary.

One thing this game does have though, that XI didn't is a housing crisis. On Balmung I believe (someone can correct me if I am wrong) there are no medium houses available, only large. There are no plans to introduce new housing wards or plots until after 3.0. Right now it's a race to get the gil for a large house before they are all gone too. Now someone can get that gil indirectly through the cash shop. A regular player has little to now chance to get a house now on Balmung for at least 6 mo+. That's an impact.

[AdamFyi]

Honestly, I'm not really sure why people are flipping out about people being able to sell promise wristlets for gil.

I'm honestly curious as to why this whole thing is being blown out of proportion too. It's a fight of who has the loudest opinion and who can throw the most number of insults cramped into a single post at this point and it pretty much prevents actual discussion from taking place. Either people care too much, or care too little, or maybe just don't care. At this point, I can't be bothered anymore. I find it pretty interesting that the players are selling the Bracelets well below what the actual RMT are offering for the same amount. lol

[coldreactive]

I'm honestly curious as to why this whole thing is being blown out of proportion. It's a fight of who has the loudest opinion and who can throw the most number of insults cramped into a single post at this point and it pretty much prevents actual discussion from taking place. Either people care too much, or care too little, or maybe just don't care. At this point, I can't be bothered anymore. I find it pretty interesting that the players are selling the Bracelets well below what the actual RMT are offering for the same amount. lol

Probably to sell them as fast as possible before Devs add "Untradable" flag to it.

[AdamFyi]

Probably to sell them as fast as possible before Devs add "Untradable" flag to it.

Nah, it isn't that. Players have been selling them below RMT prices for a while now, even before we got an official response on the matter.

[Taliph]

Nah, it isn't that. Players have been selling them below RMT prices for a while now, even before we got an official response on the matter.*depending on your server

Fixed that for ya.

[Fuma]

The OP's point hits it right on the nail, beautifully written. My only question now is if I were to go sell the eternal bond item would I then get banned later by them just cause they asked we not do this?

As you know, the promise wristlets were designed to be tradable so that one person would be able to purchase a pair of wristlets and gift one to their partner.

While the trading and selling of these items for gil is not against the terms of service, in the event this type of trend continues and topics continue to arise regarding whether or not this is considered real-money trading, we will have no choice but to change the design of this system. Therefore we would like players to stop selling and trading the bracelets for gil so that they can continue to be used for their intended purpose.

[dice137]

I'm mostly baffled by the hypocrisy in this whole debacle if anything.

RMTs sell gil illegitimately? "It's expected", "you see it in every game, just ignore it", "evil, but not the end of the world".

SE has one tiny cash shop item that can legitimately be traded for gil? An item they anticipated would end up getting sold by people? "Outrageous", "P2W", "Coil is ruined FOREVER", "the economy is done for", "DOWN WITH THE CASH SHOP".

(And yes, I'm aware that there's plenty of people equally sickened by both.)

[MomomiMomi]

I'm mostly baffled by the hypocrisy in this whole debacle if anything.

RMTs sell gil illegitimately? "It's expected", "you see it in every game, just ignore it", "evil, but not the end of the world".

SE has one tiny cash shop item that can legitimately be traded for gil? An item they anticipated would end up getting sold by people? "Outrageous", "P2W", "Coil is ruined FOREVER", "the economy is done for", "DOWN WITH THE CASH SHOP".

(And yes, I'm aware that there's plenty of people equally sickened by both.)

SE has complete control over one, and very limited control over the other. RMT is a fact of life you simply have to deal with, no matter how hard SE tries.

[ChibiChan_Hyperion]

The OP's point hits it right on the nail, beautifully written. My only question now is if I were to go sell the eternal bond item would I then get banned later by them just cause they asked we not do this?

A better question would be; why you would entertain the idea of doing so after being explicitly asked not to...? To answer though, probably best not to just in case. You never know...

snippity snipple snips

1 bad thing + 1 bad thing = 2 bad things. Not still 1 bad thing.

One thing this game does have though, that XI didn't is a housing crisis. ...

This right here was my main issue, because it is related directly to how quickly you can obtain enough gil and is a one time purchase that locks others out.

[HakuroDK]

OP brings up a rather fascinating point. I didn't actually think of that. I mean, the items on the cash shop should all absolutely still be 100% cosmetic options of course, but transforming the cash shop into a marketplace so that wealthy in-game players can buy cash shop items without paying a cent and giving that gil to people who can afford cash shop items IRL, but are short on cash? I mean, it sounds worth experimentation. Not direct money-to-gil-to-money or anything like that, this isn't EVE Online. But... it's something to ponder.