Has Square Enix given up on countering RMT and botting?

[DigbyCaesar]

Never said that this game doesn't have bots, it's just blown way out of proportion. I've played for about 1500 hours, and I have seen a pack of bots exactly once. People in this thread have been talking about bots as if they're destroying the game, but as far as I'm concerned, I'm completely unaffected, nor can I perceive any negative effects caused by bots. If the situation is so bad, surely, I must have at least noticed something, no?

It's honestly not hard to spot bots, take some more time to look at efficient gathering spots, timed nodes, map farming parties, go into Gridania and just watch at exits + Aetheryte, go literally anywhere and take a deep look into things, because if you've only seen one pack of bots, you haven't looked hard enough.

They are single-handedly destroying the economy, the clearest example of this is crafting crystals, but look at other materials on the market board, things that are crafted in huge batches, only a small portion of these are done by players, and players can't compete anymore because there are undercutting bots that continue to dominate the MB.

It doesn't take 1500 hours to see this, only a few mins.

[Ironthorne]

It's honestly not hard to spot bots, take some more time to look at efficient gathering spots, timed nodes, map farming parties, go into Gridania and just watch at exits + Aetheryte, go literally anywhere and take a deep look into things, because if you've only seen one pack of bots, you haven't looked hard enough.

They are single-handedly destroying the economy, the clearest example of this is crafting crystals, but look at other materials on the market board, things that are crafted in huge batches, only a small portion of these are done by players, and players can't compete anymore because there are undercutting bots that continue to dominate the MB.

It doesn't take 1500 hours to see this, only a few mins.

If I have to go out of my way to look for bots then maybe, the situation is not that bad? I have done a lot of gathering before EW (haven't done much recently), and I never saw anything out of the ordinary. My friend who has been gathering and crafting a lot recently also hasn't noticed anything unusual. He still gathers, crafts stuff, and sells on the market every day without a hitch. Maybe our experiences are just different?

Again, I'm not saying bots don't exist, or they're not a problem. But considering that neither I nor people I know could perceive this "destroyed" economy in any significant way, I just don't think bots are THAT big of a problem. Could SE do a better job handling bots? Sure. But if the majority of players remain unaffected, the issue will remain low on the priority list.

[DigbyCaesar]

If I have to go out of my way to look for bots then maybe, the situation is not that bad? I have done a lot of gathering before EW (haven't done much recently), and I never saw anything out of the ordinary. My friend who has been gathering and crafting a lot recently also hasn't noticed anything unusual. He still gathers, crafts stuff, and sells on the market every day without a hitch. Maybe our experiences are just different?

Again, I'm not saying bots don't exist, or they're not a problem. But considering that neither I nor people I know could perceive this "destroyed" economy in any significant way, I just don't think bots are THAT big of a problem. Could SE do a better job handling bots? Sure. But if the majority of players remain unaffected, the issue will remain low on the priority list.

"If I have to look for cockroaches then they probably aren't there."

They aren't going to tell you that they're bots.

[Ironthorne]

"If I have to look for cockroaches then they probably aren't there."

They aren't going to tell you that they're bots.

I saw this reply coming a mile away

Never said that this game doesn't have bots

Again, I'm not saying bots don't exist, or they're not a problem.

But apparently, you'd prefer trying to sound clever than actually engaging in good faith discussion. I know you have the best intentions in mind, but good luck convincing anyone with that approach.
Like I said, this doesn't affect me in any way, so I'll just leave the fight to you. Good luck, sincerely.

[Padudu]

If I have to go out of my way to look for bots then maybe, the situation is not that bad? I have done a lot of gathering before EW (haven't done much recently), and I never saw anything out of the ordinary. My friend who has been gathering and crafting a lot recently also hasn't noticed anything unusual. He still gathers, crafts stuff, and sells on the market every day without a hitch. Maybe our experiences are just different?

Again, I'm not saying bots don't exist, or they're not a problem. But considering that neither I nor people I know could perceive this "destroyed" economy in any significant way, I just don't think bots are THAT big of a problem. Could SE do a better job handling bots? Sure. But if the majority of players remain unaffected, the issue will remain low on the priority list.

Like the poster said above you, most bots are prevalent at gathering nodes/Gridania/maps. Heck I've seen people literally use bots to hold bard concerts at the golden saucer from time to time, so not as uncommon as you might think. If you want a good population of bots, Eureka and the bunny fates. There's always just a large group of bots constantly doing bunnies over and over, it's easy to see after a while. They absolutely do tank items prices though, I'd say anything in Diadem/ARR crafted items are most susceptible to that