If you want to ruin a game for players, it is pretty easy, incentivise multiple account creation and automated play. Sure, it boosts numbers and can get some early funding into the pocket, but ultimately, it becomes a problem that drives real players away, and leaves whatever game it was, a shell of what it could have been. While there might be reasons to have a couple accounts, ultimately, there should be a net loss on any kind of multi-account farming activity.
A loss, not just less gain.
If there is just less gain, it just means more bots are needed. There needs to be disincentive, not only a lower incentive. A punishment. But the problem with all of these blockchain games, is that the value proposition is to earn, and the most effective way for most isn't to actually play the game, it is to farm accounts. That is just stupid, isn't it? Why have a game at all - It could just be an interface with resource allocations, groups of accounts, scripts running - set and forget.
Similarly, one of my complaints about Splinterlands is that the Leader board is not actually a leaderboard. I don't know all the numbers, but the majority of the top 50 accounts that win DEC are played by scholars, who are playing multiple accounts. So, who is the winner each season? Where is the fanfare directed, what does the podium look like?
Pathetic.
I get it that the owner of the horse isn't likely to be the jockey riding the horse, but a jockey can still only ride one horse at a time in a race. There can't be a trifecta with three different horses and a single jockey. Again, it just makes it another mining operation, not a game. At least for me, it take the fun out of playing games, when playing against bots or people who don't actually care about playing.
I think that especially in the current world of artificial intelligence sweeping through and doing everything for everyone, better than they can do for themselves, you'd think gaming would be for humans. But this is the problem with incentivizing multi-account and repetitive behaviours for financial gain, because that is what people will do. It might seem like a good way to bad the stats, but ultimately, this behaviour leads to the destruction of the game.
Maybe the creators don't care?
They are just in it for some profit. I guess that is okay, but perhaps they should just be upfront about it and say, this is just like nearly every other crypto project, meaningless. And no, I don't think the games themselves have meaning, but I do think there is value for people to build communities around games and interact based on strategy and development. But, that is not what it is about anymore, is it? Do the non-playing leader board owners even know what is happening in the game, can they use their sets, do they have any skills, or have they outsourced it all to the scholar?
Remember when people used to LAN game?
Imagine a LAN gaming session with the top 20 Splinterlands accounts on the leader board, and there are only five people there. Maybe, there should be a limit in the terms and conditions about how many accounts scholars can play, and the scholars have to be registered.
It is a pity.
Maybe it is a reflection on culture these days, where people are looking to win, but they will try to avoid actually playing the game. It happens in many domains too, where people seem more open to cheating to get what they want these days. Or people want to have the benefits of a loving relationship, but aren't actually willing to do what it takes to build one. There is no commitment, just desire.
Maybe, I am just getting too old for these games. I am old school. 1:1. Personal. Skin on skin.
There seems to be a lot of singles out there in love with a drawer full of dildos, fucking themselves into irrelevance.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
Well written and absolutely correct. The theme is only a dressing but the core goal is the same. Mine tokens.
As a matter of interest, @risingstar bans people using more than one account or using bots.
Hope you and your family are well and your thriving in your new work/life balance :-)
And this would be okay if the mechanics of the game are there to still make it a game, rather than an automated, set and forget platform. It isn't even about the banning of the accounts. The "ules" should be built into the code and supported by incentives/disincentives, as there will always be some who will look to take advantage.
And cheers! Family is doing pretty well, though I am struggling to find my balance still :)
Enjoy the fruits of your consistency. Chop in the Hive, buy HBD, live off the interest :-)
I would not say that scholarship is an entirely bad thing. The account owners does not have time to play or was not good enough at the game so they delegate the task on someone that is more capable. Scholarship becomes a problem when the scholar seems to not want to graduate from being a scholar and they take all their earnings instead of allocating some to build their assets.
Scholars are good in many ways, but I don't think a scholar should be playing many accounts and as you said...
.. They should have a growing personal account that they should be incentivised to play. It is an extraction program now.
Mistakes are fixable, if the people fixing them really want to get the problems fixed.
But, does anyone want to fix them?
They really need to bring some value back to the past cards. It's pretty shameful now how you can only be effective in the matches if you have Rebellion cards. They have effective said that they don't care about the investment people have made from the beginning. I still enjoy playing brawls though.
The problem I think came with trying to make the early investors too happy in the past, and it made a large divide to get in and compete, especially since those early investors are also those running bots, collecting all the reward cards, dumping on the market etc. Not all of the early investors of course :)
A game from the start should encourage one account with more than words.
This is an incredible post. You've said a lot of things that many of us are thinking. Splinterlands doesnt feel like a game anymore. I wouldn't call that old school. I keep having this question go through my head over and over. You've captured it perfectly here.
"When is a game not a game anymore?"
"When the ONLY way to win is to NOT play"
💀
These questions need to be answered from a business perspective, don't they?
Completely, because it drives real players away. I think that's a hard thing to actually pin down so it gets overlooked. But yes, the fact that a handful of folks we don't know and who put no skin in the game and who (at most) post a random gif on discord once in while, take all the prize money in modern every single season. It's demoralizing and why I went back to using a bot. Sad but true. I'd rather spend time writing on hive! Although could never be as epic as you 💪
I am not a gamer, which is why I don't play any of these games like Splinterlands. However, after reading what you and others say about them with all the bots and stuff, I wouldn't want to even try them.
I think they are using the wrong economic model for creating a good game.
Sounds like it.
PS The CEO of Splinterlands owner, Steemmonster Inc. was listed as being paid $120,000 a year until 2023 when it was temporarily reduced to $96,000 a year. It's big business.
Yeah it is. It is a company though, so they need to get paid. But, how they get paid and what they get paid for. They have to manage the business, right?
They also 'have to manage the business right'!
This really hits the problems with multi-account farming in games like Splinterlands and Axie Infinity. It's disheartening to see the focus shift from genuine gameplay and community building to maximizing profits through exploitative tactics.
The leaderboard in Splinterlands, dominated by scholars playing multiple accounts, feels hollow. It's like a popularity contest rigged by bots, not a true reflection of skill or dedication. Where's the fun in competing against algorithms and exploited labor? It's not a game anymore; it's an algorithmic race to the bottom.
You're right, it's a reflection of a broader societal issue. We're obsessed with winning at all costs, even if it means sacrificing the integrity of the game or the well-being of others. This "win-at-all-costs" mentality permeates many aspects of our lives, from politics to relationships.
It's a shame that games, which should be a source of joy and entertainment, have become just another avenue for exploitation. I miss the days of LAN parties (playing counter strike, DOTA and etc.), where genuine human interaction and competition were at the heart of the experience.
Ultimately, the solution lies in creating a more sustainable and ethical gaming ecosystem. This requires a shift in mindset, both from developers and players. We need to prioritize genuine gameplay, community building, and ethical practices over short-term profits.
It's a real shame that this kind of thing is happening to game users and ruining so much of what has been created.
Maybe there is an opportunity for some to start a new game
There are two reasons for this.
The owners of the game want everyone to be able to act as they wish.
Having more players in numbers means more profit.
Discord Server.This post has been manually curated by @steemflow from Indiaunited community. Join us on our
Do you know that you can earn a passive income by delegating to @indiaunited. We share more than 100 % of the curation rewards with the delegators in the form of IUC tokens. HP delegators and IUC token holders also get upto 20% additional vote weight.
Here are some handy links for delegations: 100HP, 250HP, 500HP, 1000HP.
100% of the rewards from this comment goes to the curator for their manual curation efforts. Please encourage the curator @steemflow by upvoting this comment and support the community by voting the posts made by @indiaunited.
Delegate Tokens and HP to Fallen Angels to earn weekly rewards!
Delegate | Join to the guildThis post has been supported by @fallen.angels guild!
My game is limited to saying to a girl that I think she is hot. She responded with facepalm emoji so I guess my game was not good enough...
Not having fun anymore?
Playing a game needs spare time, and the more we get older the less time we have for such stuffs. I want to play some arcade games of 90s, but couldn't for 8 years :)
This kind of practice ends up diluting the very essence of gaming: the joy of playing, the strategy, and human interaction. That’s why I love Pixel, the game. The creators run it with an iron fist and do everything they can to minimize bots. There are some, but their lifespan is never very long. What’s unfortunate is seeing games that, instead of building strong and immersive communities, turn into profit-driven tools where the human aspect takes a back seat.