Does Square intend to address Market botting?

[Angelhearth]

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support_eu_ig2@square-enix.com

1:54 PM (42 minutes ago)



to XXX







Dear XXX,

Thank you for your reply.

We understand your frustration about this situation. As players ourselves, we also see the negative impact different types of bots can have on the game.

For that reason we already have multiple measures in place to take care of them as quick as possible. However, as we are not able to actively patrol a game as big as FINAL FANTASY XIV over all maps at all times, we do appreciate the help of players reporting any sightings of possible bots to us so we can take the appropriate actions.

This being said, in order for us to handle those reports, it is important that they are sent to the correct department. While I understand that you wish for us to forward these reports, this is unfortunately something we cannot do due to our internal policies and I have to kindly ask you to report those possible bots directly to the STF as explained in our previous reply.

You may have seen our weekly publications on the Lodestone about actions taken against RMT or other illicit activities, such as bots. These numbers do show that we remove huge numbers of accounts from the game on a weekly basis that are confirmed to being involved in such activities.

While we are constantly working on finding better solutions to prevent the use of this kind of illegal third party software, we have to make sure that it does not affect normal players by being too restrictive.

If you have ideas or suggestions, I'd like to once again invite you to mention them on our official forums, so they can be reviewed by our community team and considered for future updates to the game.

Please understand that we are on the same side as it is also in our interest to prevent and remove bots as quick as possible and appreciate your support by reporting any possible bots you encounter in the game to our Special Task Force.

Thank you for your understanding and we apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Regards,

- Senior Game Master Glesipnir

[TheLoveJenovan]

Thanks Angelhearth, Let us know how the STF report goes.

As of Heavensward, the STF only had 3 people apparently. Hopefully they've added more people since then. It wouldn't be the worst if they invested some of the Billions in profit from FFXIV into more STF staff. (Maybe even have some for different regions too, like NA and Europe!)

https://www.reddit.com/r/ffxiv/comme...consists_of_3/

[TheLoveJenovan]

I was curious to see how the STF expanded in the latest expansion (Shadowbringers). It's apparently been upgraded from 3 people to 4. These STF staff are still, apparently, all in Japan. One of those is the lead, so who knows if that person looks at reports as well. Their QA department (incl Game Testers) looks to have more than 60 people, so having a few more for the STF isn't unrealistic.

https://youtu.be/ZP3LiAik_-Q?t=1282

[TheLoveJenovan]

If you're frustrated, like me, and have cancelled your FFXIV subscription, I recommend trying something else like Warframe (https://www.warframe.com/landing).

It's an excellent F2P game with an excellent story--I think better than FFXIV--and after playing for months and reaching rank 25, I never once encountered a bot. All items are achievable by playing the game, but you can pay real currency to get stuff sooner. The "Free Company" equivalent system is much more developed, and I personally think the battle system is more engaging. There are also 35 different "jobs"--or warframes to play--and a decent crafting system, but it's not as sophisticated as FFXIV. It also doesn't have a marketboard, which may be satisfying after reading all of these posts on market bots, but player-to-player trades are allowed. They're a Canadian-based company, and they're heavily engaged with the player base, which is also a nice change. It's definitely worth a check out.

[KatCnaa]

IDK if anyone has suggested this (though I know I saw something mentioned in one of the several forums I brought up)-- what if SE implemented an 'are you human?' test at rng intervals in all the areas exploited by bots? It could be 1-3 types of whatever quick test--possibly something fun for the player with a tiny reward, like xp or gil or something so as not to be onerous (it could even be cute like a moogle popping up and asking a question)--and SE updates it when they push their patches. Idk how fast they'll be broken by botters, but it might provide some reprieve for players and save SE from (perhaps some) labor-intensive fly-swatting.
I wonder if other MMOs have tried this method?

[Kes13a]

I like the moogle idea, but not sure how practical it would be for implimentation

given that SE has zero clientside checks apparently, and their tiny team is likely only focused on Japanese servers.... anything would have to be preferable. but then most dont see bots an an issue at best, at worst... are already using them and would push back

[SolidsnakeMgs5]

There is a player on my server
They have the same bot, they have been inside their apartment for days, never logging off. I told someone about this and they told me i was just jealous of their dedication. Its a bot, not a dedicated player.
They have their alts rotate and sell things. The FC "leader" is in the apartment, its impossible to sell anything.

[TheLoveJenovan]

Thank SolidsnakeMgs5.

That appears to be the same type of FC bot we've identified in other parts of the thread. It appears that every server is infested with at least one of these. When I was on Jenova (Aether datacenter), I identified the Free Folk FC (https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodes...1536389089046/) as the equivalent bot FC that you describe. I've since moved onto the Crystal datacenter, and I've identified the FC bot rings for each server on the Crystal datacenter. (I didn't do this while I was still on Aether).

The Special Task Force (STF) that handles these bots is only 4 people in Japan--3 staff and 1 lead--so we're compiling a list of bots to make their job as easy as possible. If you'd like to further contribute, a few of us are organizing these materials on a discord. Feel free to join. https://discord.gg/dZ3zEw

Also, your post may get flagged for identifying a user, but we haven't had problems so far identifying FC bot rings. (This is partly why we setup a discord to discuss specific bots)

[Jojoya]

The FC "leader" is in the apartment, its impossible to sell anything.

How is it impossible to list items to sell from an apartment if you have a Summoning Bell in it? Not to mention you can place a Company Chest in an apartment as well to easily transfer what gets crafted to other characters in the FC.

What you can't do in an apartment is buy items from the MB - easily solved through the use of other characters and the Company Chest.

[SolidsnakeMgs5]

How is it impossible to list items to sell from an apartment if you have a Summoning Bell in it? Not to mention you can place a Company Chest in an apartment as well to easily transfer what gets crafted to other characters in the FC.

What you can't do in an apartment is buy items from the MB - easily solved through the use of other characters and the Company Chest.

Because its impossible to sell anything, how can you compete with a botter?