WE ARE SORRY. ANYTHING ELSE FOR YOU TODAY?

(I originally saw this post 2 days ago over at the Codemasters forum before they decided to throw up registration. But because they did do that, it's off to MMORPG.com we go.)

RF Online, known these days in equal amounts for its grind fest and marriage of elves and mechs, recently had 150 of its players banned for engaging in RMT/botting. As with everything else on the Internet these days, a video was made. Paris, however, is not involved. At least, as far as I know.

Dear fellow players,

a wave hit Novus today, spreading blood all over the planet. A week long investigation finally came to the point where i could reveal a specially hidden gift towards my good friends.

Xie Xie, for the time we spent together - good that it was so short.

When you read this message, more than 150 people are cursing at us, expressing their feelings when retuning to their bot running pcs to find their accounts banned.

In the next few days, following the 150 RMT accounts, we will be visiting YOU, atleast if You bought things from RMT traders. If You had to re-read the last sentence twice you might want to contact us via PM before we reach you. If you reveal the delivery guy, the price you paid including the RMT site and the date you recieved the money we can most likely work something out.

Yes, its easter - so you might want to get a little extra, atleast Ulric and myself thought so.

GM Ulric and GM Terablo after returning from the Ether Pub got into a bit of an argument

GM Ulric: My mau is sooo pimp, much pimper than your ride
GM Terablo: Hell no... my bmau is da bomb!!
GM Ulric, well guess what, my bmau is geting pimped out with a new gold plated bodykit with Alloy Joints
GM Terablo: no way, where wil you get enough gold for that??
GM Ulric, i found this cool group that wil sell me all the gold i need for only $300
GM Terablo : Cool, can i meet them
GM Ulric: Sure grab your bmau and lets go

... a few minutes later ...
http://deathmatch.de/RFOnline-Farmwars.avi
(right click and save link as)

I would like to thank Ulric for his ideas regarding the musical background, his lyrics and the story board.

In the making of this movie no players where hurt - atleast none with active accounts.

Yours,
GM Terablo

I can't decide whether it was Codemasters sensing an opportunity to grab some headlines for their fledgling Western market share through the use of some good ‘ol fashioned public gold farmer humilation, or whether it was a couple of frat boy GMs deciding over a beer bong that it would be funny to slap together a home-made video of themselves killing some of the gold farmers before they were banned, but in either case the desired result has occured.

The bannings have been noticed, RF Online has been noticed (unfortunately for its tectonic-plates-slamming-into-one-another-over-a-million-years gameplay rather than for anything else), RF Online players believe something is being done about the gold farmers, and half the playerbase is recalling in fear if they ever bought anything from a gold farmer.

At least it beats running around in a cornfield.

And I’ve got to admit; props go to Bluesky for kiting the two GMs around for half the video and then ultimately turning around to fight them.

Now there’s a gold farmer that children everywhere can look up to.