Our friends at Manchester University have published another study looking at developing nations where the poor earn money by gold farming or powerlevelling in MMOs. The estimate is half a million people do the work for pay, a supermajority of them in China. Of the online toilers, 400,000 are involved in gold farming, the rest powerlevelling and other services.
The study’s author admits that precise estimates are not possible because of the underground nature of the activity. But it’s at least a $US 500 million global industry as of now, with organised crime snaking its tendrils into the business.
The growth is entirely predictable and not really a new phenomenon, when you think about it. “When you get people with more money than time and time than money the two will find a way to meet”, said Stephen Davis, of game security firm Secure Play. Quoted for truth.
In case you missed them… Pros and Cons of WoW Powerlevelling, Part 1 Pros and Cons of WoW Powerlevelling, Part 2
Here it is, the last chunk of our epic powerlevelling story. I’ve been assured by the anonymous writer who sent this mammoth literary extravaganza in that everything is true.
Well, no need for me to waffle on about this one, you know the story – or should I say, you will know.
Ah, watch out – a disclaimer!
Disclaimer: Kotaku AU does not advocate the use of powerlevelling services, or the use of any service that violates the Terms of Use or End User License Agreements (EULA) of any game. If you decide to indulge in any such service, you do so at your own risk. More »
Pros and Cons of Powerlevelling, Part 1 Pros and Cons of WoW Powerlevelling, Part 3
Here’s the second part to the World of Warcraft powerlevelling story that was posted last week. I know quite a few people have been desperate to read the next part, so here it is. Like last time, this story has been edited to add clarity and spice.
I should also note that this was originally to be the last of it. Unfortunately, it was still way too large to post, so the third (and last part, I swear) will be put up next week.
Now some disclaimer-related action.
Disclaimer: Kotaku AU does not advocate the use of powerlevelling services, or the use of any service that violates the Terms of Use or End User License Agreements (EULA) of any game. If you decide to indulge in any such service, you do so at your own risk. More »
It seems there’s a genuine interest in powerlevelling – even if it’s purely theoretical. Or emotional.
The original piece on powerlevelling in World of Warcraft was actually quite large. After reading over the whole thing, I thought it best to break it into two parts, the first of which was posted yesterday. Going by the cliffhanger ending, I actually think that was the intention.
Part 2 will go up next week, so keep your eyes peeled for it. As always, if you think you have a compelling story to tell on anything gaming-related, don’t hesitate to send it in and I can guarantee it’ll be read.
Oh, the artwork for the story was sourced from a press kit from Vivendi, if you were wondering.
Pros And Cons Of WoW Powerlevelling, Part 1 [Kotaku AU] More »
