Man I'm really upset about this. So not only did they not do anything long term, THEY GET A 5* Vader! I've been playing straight for a month and a half every day P2P and I am still 20 shards away from 5* and atleast another month away based on the length of the achievements. This is absolute CRAP. So they get a 5* Vader while legitimate players have a 4*. HOW IS THIS RIGHT?
Dude take away their vaders, they knew what they were doing.
Same. I've spent quite a bit of money of the game and it seems so unfair others can exploit and get away with it....
Did y'all miss the part where devs very clearly stated that this is just the first part of a several-step response? Reducing the effectiveness of everybody's Vader is a way to take action today to make sure these cheaters don't get any extra unfair advantage while GC are looking into the matter and pinpointing each cheater. This is a good thing. If they know that they need to take a week or two to make sure they don't miss anything, this is how they make sure that these players aren't having too much fun in the meantime.
Simple solution. Reset everyone's VADER to 5* and shards to 0. This applies to exploiters and non-exploiters
That unfortunately is not a viable solution. The people who exploited this could do so without ever legitly obtaining enough shards for a 4* Vader, let alone a 5*.
As a minimal punishment, they should remove the 6-7* Vaders and give the players back shards for what Achievements they have completed.
Personally I would rather they removed the 6-7* Vaders completely and marked all of their achievements as completed without giving the rewards out so that they could never obtain the hero.
1.
Some people keep referring to the bugged hero abilities as a reason not to ban these violators. They claim it is the same. But as others have phrased it better than how I have, it is not: Players who own bugged heroes such as Leia cannot make her attack 3/4 times. On the other hand, exploiting the achivement "glitch" to get a 6/7* Vader is a deliberate act. You intentionally abused the system to obtain an asset that is not even possible within the current boundary as the current max for Vader is a 5-star.
2.
Down-grading/Removing Vader from their roster and marking all of their achievements as completed is not enough. As Terriorize and Pindasauskanon pointed out, they reaped the benefits of having a 6/7* Vader with a) extra resources from "completing" the achievement, and b) gaining higher PvP ranks and completing GW and/or other missions - which they would have then used those resources to advance heroes or obtain new ones.
3.
If this violation had impacted CG/EA's bottom line, would they have only removed Vader, plus some additional penalities?
4.
Why should CG go through the extra effort of creating a ring-fenced "solution" for those who violated? CG would probably have to make some tweaks tailored to those people to make such happen. It is better for CG to spend that time - no matter how insignificant - on better things such as fixing bugs and improving the gameplay.
Banning them is a simple, yet elegant solution rather than trying to weed through what they have gained from cheating and imposing some restrictions on them - i.e. if a cheater pulled an Old Ben from Bronzium using the ally points he/she gained from the achievement, how is CG going to track that in the first place and will they remove Obi-Wan? If a cheater used the crystals to level up heroes or buy Chronium packs, is CG going to reduce the hero levels and/or take away new heroes as well? It's just too much headache.
5.
Most importantly, this isn't just about Vader. This is about the integrity of the game. If you tolerate people who break rules, it is only a matter of time before everyone is doing it and CG won't have the justification to police it because they set a wrong precedent.
Did y'all miss the part where devs very clearly stated that this is just the first part of a several-step response? Reducing the effectiveness of everybody's Vader is a way to take action today to make sure these cheaters don't get any extra unfair advantage while GC are looking into the matter and pinpointing each cheater. This is a good thing. If they know that they need to take a week or two to make sure they don't miss anything, this is how they make sure that these players aren't having too much fun in the meantime.
Sure. Also, the devs must be busy preparing the update now.
@obiwan1011 Who said anything about "us" tolerating cheaters. Vader issue is clearly obvious and should be taken action against. This is just step 1. The glitch discussion which got derailed but clearly needs attention too, is the GW force close one. Thats a glitch people also abuse (including myself times before I hit 60). There's also a topic about it where people wanna know if you get banned or not. That's also beneficial like some other things going on. Let's not turn this into a witch hunt is all I'm saying.
439-259-888 I have a bad habit of editing my typo's after posting
@obiwan1011 Who said anything about "us" tolerating cheaters. Vader issue is clearly obvious and should be taken action against. This is just step 1. The glitch discussion which got derailed but clearly needs attention too, is the GW force close one. Thats a glitch people also abuse (including myself times before I hit 60). There's also a topic about it where people wanna know if you get banned or not. That's also beneficial like some other things going on. Let's not turn this into a witch hunt is all I'm saying.
1. Not worth for CG to investigate and determine what further punishment the cheaters will get. It's too much hassle and they already got better things to do
2. Integrity is at stake. Don't set a wrong precedent
3. Who said anything about a witch hunt?
Instead of banning player accounts they could disable their arena for a set period of time or cap their arena rank to make up for the cheating because that's clearly cheating. If an advantage was gained it would be fair to take away whatever the potential gains were. This would send a message that cheating is taken seriously in a fair way minus the harshness of an outright ban.
Did y'all miss the part where devs very clearly stated that this is just the first part of a several-step response? Reducing the effectiveness of everybody's Vader is a way to take action today to make sure these cheaters don't get any extra unfair advantage while GC are looking into the matter and pinpointing each cheater. This is a good thing. If they know that they need to take a week or two to make sure they don't miss anything, this is how they make sure that these players aren't having too much fun in the meantime.
Nonemo, The first step in the process was leaving them with a STILL MORE POWERFUL HERO than all soft launch legitimate players get, HOW IS THAT OK IN YOUR MIND?
Lets see CG, I've played everyday since hard launch, working on achievements everyday. I'm 20 shards away from a 5* vader, How long will that take.
12 more completed GW campaigns (12 days)
90 more arena shipments (45 days IF 1st)
230 more arena fight wins (46 more days without crystals spent if you won every fight)
60 million more credits (~100 days?)
1k more shipments from the store (62 days if you buy shipments 4 times a day every 6 hours.)
EA never punished cheaters. Hackers and cheaters get a pass. Other games ban cheaters or at least try but hackers always find a loop hole around the fix. Just look at Injustice they ban accounts cheaters just create new accounts. They should ban the device ID so they can't play on that device anymore.
EA never punished cheaters. Hackers and cheaters get a pass. Other games ban cheaters or at least try but hackers always find a loop hole around the fix. Just look at Injustice they ban accounts cheaters just create new accounts. They should ban the device ID so they can't play on that device anymore.
I don't think there's any way to ban a device ID, the closest you can get is banning IP addresses, but that is easily fixed by resetting your modem if on WiFi or clearing your cookies if on data. So whatever you do it will be useless.
My name is cosmicturtle333, aka CT-333, aka Threes.
@Nonemo
Side topic:
My cat's name is Nemo and whenever I read your name in posts I read it in the voice of me telling off my cat, "No Nemo! Vader shards blah blah blah . . ."
My name is cosmicturtle333, aka CT-333, aka Threes.
EA never punished cheaters. Hackers and cheaters get a pass. Other games ban cheaters or at least try but hackers always find a loop hole around the fix. Just look at Injustice they ban accounts cheaters just create new accounts. They should ban the device ID so they can't play on that device anymore.
I don't think there's any way to ban a device ID, the closest you can get is banning IP addresses, but that is easily fixed by resetting your modem if on WiFi or clearing your cookies if on data. So whatever you do it will be useless.
Having worked with mobile social games before, yes you can ban device ID.
It looks like they really did fix the exploit and not just give us lip service. This is not my experience with other EA games. Other EA games usually don't address hackers. Thanks CG!!
The dev actions here seem appropriate to me. As they said, it's a temporary/first action. And it might be that because of the nature of the exploit it's possible that some players might have gotten a significant number of extra shards without deliberately intending to do so?
I don't know what the exploit was so I don't know. I'd make the comparison, if someone deliberately used bluestacks to get the Samsung bonus some would argue that's an exploit (I don't want to accuse anyone so I'm using moderate language); but even if it is, if someone used bluestacks simply because they wanted to play the game on their PC or they forgot their phone elsewhere or whatever and as a result they got the Samsung bonus that's not a deliberate exploit even though the end result is the same. I wouldn't mind trying the game on my PC and if I do and end up getting a pack that would not have been my intention.
If you don't alter the game then its a glitch. Cheating is modding it, that was not done in this case.
That is a really loose interpretation of cheating. My personal belief is that using a "glitch" to accelerate your progress in a game is a cheat. You are cheating the intended behavior.
Than everyone using Leia right now is cheating... As well as the 5 or 10 other characters doing/not doing things that are intended. Leia is biggest example I can think of.
The dev actions here seem appropriate to me. As they said, it's a temporary/first action. And it might be that because of the nature of the exploit it's possible that some players might have gotten a significant number of extra shards without deliberately intending to do so?
I don't know what the exploit was so I don't know. I'd make the comparison, if someone deliberately used bluestacks to get the Samsung bonus some would argue that's an exploit (I don't want to accuse anyone so I'm using moderate language); but even if it is, if someone used bluestacks simply because they wanted to play the game on their PC or they forgot their phone elsewhere or whatever and as a result they got the Samsung bonus that's not a deliberate exploit even though the end result is the same. I wouldn't mind trying the game on my PC and if I do and end up getting a pack that would not have been my intention.
Without giving to much detail. The exploit allowed them to repeat one of the achievements repeatedly until they hard 100 shards for a 7* Vader. They have fixed this and I assume many others that use this same exploit.
Than everyone using Leia right now is cheating... As well as the 5 or 10 other characters doing/not doing things that are intended. Leia is biggest example I can think of.
As some of you have noticed, there have been a number of players with a 6 or 7 star Darth Vader. This raised some flags with us since the highest star Darth Vader a player could obtain currently is 5, and that is only if all achievements are completed that are in the game.
There was an exploit that players were using to obtain extra Darth Vader shards, thus allowing them to Promote him to 6 or 7 stars. This exploit has already been fixed and will no longer allow extra Darth Vader shards to be obtained through the method that was used.
We have decided to not ban these players, but will be taking additional action in the near future with these accounts.
As a temporary solution, all 6 and 7 star Darth Vader characters will be lowered in power for all players so that they are the same as a 5 star version. So if you come across a 6 or 7 star Darth Vader in Arena or Galactic War, know that they only have the stats of a 5 star version. Once we are able to take the additional action referenced above, we will back out this temporary change to the 6 and 7 star versions of Vader.
We take cheating and abuse of exploits very seriously because it upsets the balance of the game and can give certain players an unfair advantage against the rest of the community who are playing by the rules.
As some of you have noticed, there have been a number of players with a 6 or 7 star Darth Vader. This raised some flags with us since the highest star Darth Vader a player could obtain currently is 5, and that is only if all achievements are completed that are in the game.
There was an exploit that players were using to obtain extra Darth Vader shards, thus allowing them to Promote him to 6 or 7 stars. This exploit has already been fixed and will no longer allow extra Darth Vader shards to be obtained through the method that was used.
We have decided to not ban these players, but will be taking additional action in the near future with these accounts.
As a temporary solution, all 6 and 7 star Darth Vader characters will be lowered in power for all players so that they are the same as a 5 star version. So if you come across a 6 or 7 star Darth Vader in Arena or Galactic War, know that they only have the stats of a 5 star version. Once we are able to take the additional action referenced above, we will back out this temporary change to the 6 and 7 star versions of Vader.
We take cheating and abuse of exploits very seriously because it upsets the balance of the game and can give certain players an unfair advantage against the rest of the community who are playing by the rules.
Thanks.
Lmao I was so curiously thinking about how the heck people had 7 star vaders and never thought to report it. Mainly becuase i could easily beat them with Eldar and take out the debuffs. If we see something really fishy were do we report it?
I think that simply putting these exploited Vaders back to 4* would serve well as a penalty, adding a warning of a simple removal of this character from their accounts(if possible) would end the issue, if they exploit a second time.
Personally, it would put my mind at ease about exploits. Yes, the fault lies in the programming itself, but hey, it's not a perfect world: does that mean we have to agree and nourish imperfection? There is no real, lasting joy in that: it simply kills the spirit of fair play.
After all, if EA and CG truly wish benifit $ wise, the safest way to that end would be to satisfy the community as a whole. That securs income!
Having the 7*Vader, plus all those rewards, should be dealt with severely. They aren't about to give everyone 100 Vader shards, much less the crystals and other rewards to all. No matter how some people want to sugar coat this, it's a serious offense, and it is cheating. Comparing this to using characters who have broken abilities is absurd. However, we should wait to see what action is taken against these players before complaining that the punishment doesn't match the crime. I believe this to be what was stated: an immediate action to hinder the advantage of a 7* Vader. They do need to roll back the accounts of those involved, IMO.
When there is literally no other way to get a 6*+ Vader and you can easily see if someone had completed every single achievement to get a 5* and they have one and they didn't do either of those things the solution is simple... on the surface. Ban them.
That is the 100% right thing to do.
Unfortunately, we live in a world based around liability. From a business perspective, people have invested in the game (many of them the Vader cheaters). The ToS will not protect CG or EA from lawsuits whose cost would be excessive. They would rather have cheaters they can control than cheaters who are suing them (whether they win or not doesn't matter).
It's usually a minimum of $5-10k just to defend yourself.
There's no way they can ban them.
I saw a similar thing in Guild Wars 2 with a guildmate who had spent $2k+ on the game. They tried to ban him for something (can't remember what, tbh, it was so trivial). He had his lawyer call them and his account was immediately reinstated AND they gave him more free stuff.
Business is about money. Not about fair. Well, at least the ones with shareholders to report to...
Replies
Same. I've spent quite a bit of money of the game and it seems so unfair others can exploit and get away with it....
1.
Some people keep referring to the bugged hero abilities as a reason not to ban these violators. They claim it is the same. But as others have phrased it better than how I have, it is not: Players who own bugged heroes such as Leia cannot make her attack 3/4 times. On the other hand, exploiting the achivement "glitch" to get a 6/7* Vader is a deliberate act. You intentionally abused the system to obtain an asset that is not even possible within the current boundary as the current max for Vader is a 5-star.
2.
Down-grading/Removing Vader from their roster and marking all of their achievements as completed is not enough. As Terriorize and Pindasauskanon pointed out, they reaped the benefits of having a 6/7* Vader with a) extra resources from "completing" the achievement, and b) gaining higher PvP ranks and completing GW and/or other missions - which they would have then used those resources to advance heroes or obtain new ones.
3.
If this violation had impacted CG/EA's bottom line, would they have only removed Vader, plus some additional penalities?
4.
Why should CG go through the extra effort of creating a ring-fenced "solution" for those who violated? CG would probably have to make some tweaks tailored to those people to make such happen. It is better for CG to spend that time - no matter how insignificant - on better things such as fixing bugs and improving the gameplay.
Banning them is a simple, yet elegant solution rather than trying to weed through what they have gained from cheating and imposing some restrictions on them - i.e. if a cheater pulled an Old Ben from Bronzium using the ally points he/she gained from the achievement, how is CG going to track that in the first place and will they remove Obi-Wan? If a cheater used the crystals to level up heroes or buy Chronium packs, is CG going to reduce the hero levels and/or take away new heroes as well? It's just too much headache.
5.
Most importantly, this isn't just about Vader. This is about the integrity of the game. If you tolerate people who break rules, it is only a matter of time before everyone is doing it and CG won't have the justification to police it because they set a wrong precedent.
Sure. Also, the devs must be busy preparing the update now.
1. Not worth for CG to investigate and determine what further punishment the cheaters will get. It's too much hassle and they already got better things to do
2. Integrity is at stake. Don't set a wrong precedent
3. Who said anything about a witch hunt?
Nonemo, The first step in the process was leaving them with a STILL MORE POWERFUL HERO than all soft launch legitimate players get, HOW IS THAT OK IN YOUR MIND?
Lets see CG, I've played everyday since hard launch, working on achievements everyday. I'm 20 shards away from a 5* vader, How long will that take.
12 more completed GW campaigns (12 days)
90 more arena shipments (45 days IF 1st)
230 more arena fight wins (46 more days without crystals spent if you won every fight)
60 million more credits (~100 days?)
1k more shipments from the store (62 days if you buy shipments 4 times a day every 6 hours.)
Thats 20 shards. HAH.
I don't think there's any way to ban a device ID, the closest you can get is banning IP addresses, but that is easily fixed by resetting your modem if on WiFi or clearing your cookies if on data. So whatever you do it will be useless.
Side topic:
My cat's name is Nemo and whenever I read your name in posts I read it in the voice of me telling off my cat, "No Nemo! Vader shards blah blah blah . . ."
I don't know what the exploit was so I don't know. I'd make the comparison, if someone deliberately used bluestacks to get the Samsung bonus some would argue that's an exploit (I don't want to accuse anyone so I'm using moderate language); but even if it is, if someone used bluestacks simply because they wanted to play the game on their PC or they forgot their phone elsewhere or whatever and as a result they got the Samsung bonus that's not a deliberate exploit even though the end result is the same. I wouldn't mind trying the game on my PC and if I do and end up getting a pack that would not have been my intention.
Without giving to much detail. The exploit allowed them to repeat one of the achievements repeatedly until they hard 100 shards for a 7* Vader. They have fixed this and I assume many others that use this same exploit.
Help me Leia, you are my only hope.
Gives CG flexibility to deal with the cheaters, and appease everyone else honest enough not to intentionally cheat.
They can deal with the rest of the filth in another way.
lower then to 1*.
that and what about 2400 bronze pulls
Lmao I was so curiously thinking about how the heck people had 7 star vaders and never thought to report it. Mainly becuase i could easily beat them with Eldar and take out the debuffs. If we see something really fishy were do we report it?
I think that simply putting these exploited Vaders back to 4* would serve well as a penalty, adding a warning of a simple removal of this character from their accounts(if possible) would end the issue, if they exploit a second time.
Personally, it would put my mind at ease about exploits. Yes, the fault lies in the programming itself, but hey, it's not a perfect world: does that mean we have to agree and nourish imperfection? There is no real, lasting joy in that: it simply kills the spirit of fair play.
After all, if EA and CG truly wish benifit $ wise, the safest way to that end would be to satisfy the community as a whole. That securs income!
Keep it up!
Bronze!!! How about 2 8x chrome packs!
I thought people had gotten lucky through buying chrome packs, i was so naive.
That is the 100% right thing to do.
Unfortunately, we live in a world based around liability. From a business perspective, people have invested in the game (many of them the Vader cheaters). The ToS will not protect CG or EA from lawsuits whose cost would be excessive. They would rather have cheaters they can control than cheaters who are suing them (whether they win or not doesn't matter).
It's usually a minimum of $5-10k just to defend yourself.
There's no way they can ban them.
I saw a similar thing in Guild Wars 2 with a guildmate who had spent $2k+ on the game. They tried to ban him for something (can't remember what, tbh, it was so trivial). He had his lawyer call them and his account was immediately reinstated AND they gave him more free stuff.
Business is about money. Not about fair. Well, at least the ones with shareholders to report to...