Ravagers Exploit Action Update

[EricMusco]

Hey folks,

 

Let’s talk a bit about the Ravager’s exploit. There are two stages to the process of removing an exploit and handling actions for players who participated. Stage 1 – fix the issue and ensure players can no longer partake in the exploit. That change is out as of today in patch 3.0.2.

 

Stage 2 – With the exploit removed, we can work towards finalizing our data review and assigning appropriate actions. We have a lot of information! We know who used it, who they invited, how many times they exploited, when they participated, credits gained, and whether they gained a crafting pattern from reverse-engineering. We are still reviewing the data and determining the appropriate action for those who took undue advantage of the exploit. We won’t be taking action today, but we’ll wrap it up in the next week or so.

 

On the plus side, most players didn't partake in the exploit at all allowing us to focus on the few who did. It may seem silly to thank you for not using an exploit, but we really appreciate you taking the time to raise our awareness of the issue through a variety of channels. It demonstrates your commitment to the game and to keeping the game fun, and fair for everyone. So thank you for not using the exploit.

 

-eric

[Suromir]

Good to hear. Frankly you should outright ban the worst offenders. And if you really have all that data then there's no reason you can't take each and every bit of a reward those that did use it got.

[Darth_Wicked]

That noose... lovely.

[TheSeventhJedi]

Mmmm... tears of the banned...

[emeraldon]

Thanks a lot for the update. I hope you deal with the most severe exploiters in a proper way.

 

 

(If someone tries to argue that it's bioware's fault.. just, don't.)

[OddballEasyEight]

My guess is that they'll simply rollback the credits/schematics gained on the "normal" offenders and maby slap a one week ban on the worst.

[Nothematic]

I appreciate the action, but I have to say I find it somewhat disheartening that you evidently didn't go to nearly as thorough depths for abuse of the ranked seasons system. Blatant win trading, people /stucking and throwing games and all kinds of that stuff went completely ignored.

 

Heck, you could look at the ranked leaderboard right now and see who blatantly win traded just by who has the minimum required rating for the highest tier, and yet they had no action taken against them whatsoever.

Edited January 13, 2015 by Nothematic

[Alec_Fortescue]

Please let me drown in the tears of banned exploiters. please, please, stop being so lenient like you've been in the last 3 years.

[Telanis]

We are still reviewing the data and determining the appropriate action for those who took undue advantage of the exploit.

 

So anyone who took advantage of it, but not *too* much advantage, is in the clear? Classy. Once again the honest folks are encouraged to join in the next exploit that rolls around so that they aren't the only ones who get nothing.

[bluecheesebandit]

We have a lot of information! We know who used it, who they invited, how many times they exploited, when they participated, credits gained, and whether they gained a crafting pattern from reverse-engineering.

 

-eric

 

Hoooookay Santa.

[ZiggyTank]

Please let me drown in the tears of banned exploiters. please, please, stop being so lenient like you've been in the last 3 years.

 

Jesus get a room

[Drockter]

Thank you Eric.

[znihilist]

Please let me drown in the tears of banned exploiters. please, please, stop being so lenient like you've been in the last 3 years.

 

I am waiting for the posts on Reddit!

[Quraswren]

I am waiting for the posts on Reddit!

 

You got that right.

 

Now to just wait around and see who gets taken off your guild and friend rosters.

 

It was easy enough to build a list of exploiters for the last week. Each having various usages of the exploit. Gamers talked so openly about it and abusing it. Now to see who disappears, who sticks around and what happens to them.

 

It should be an interesting week.

[Missandei]

Thanks a lot for the update. I hope you deal with the most severe exploiters in a proper way.

 

 

(If someone tries to argue that it's bioware's fault.. just, don't.)

 

 

Considering the all time swtor-devs experience, all they can do is to reward the exploiters with an ugly cartel market item.

[Darth_Mallek]

Hey folks,

 

Let’s talk a bit about the Ravager’s exploit. There are two stages to the process of removing an exploit and handling actions for players who participated. Stage 1 – fix the issue and ensure players can no longer partake in the exploit. That change is out as of today in patch 3.0.2.

 

Stage 2 – With the exploit removed, we can work towards finalizing our data review and assigning appropriate actions. We have a lot of information! We know who used it, who they invited, how many times they exploited, when they participated, credits gained, and whether they gained a crafting pattern from reverse-engineering. We are still reviewing the data and determining the appropriate action for those who took undue advantage of the exploit. We won’t be taking action today, but we’ll wrap it up in the next week or so.

 

On the plus side, most players didn't partake in the exploit at all allowing us to focus on the few who did. It may seem silly to thank you for not using an exploit, but we really appreciate you taking the time to raise our awareness of the issue through a variety of channels. It demonstrates your commitment to the game and to keeping the game fun, and fair for everyone. So thank you for not using the exploit.

 

-eric

 

With all due respect Bioware, if someone need to get punished for this exploit is your team who lauched a broken expansion and went out on vacation.

[Darth_Wicked]

With all due respect Bioware, if someone need to get punished for this exploit is your team who lauched a broken expansion and went out on vacation.

 

I don't remember Bioware giving a pass to people so they could take advantage of the exploit, weeks on end. This includes people who transferred from one server to another, to further profit from the exploit.

 

Stop making up excuses, please.

Edited January 13, 2015 by Darth_Wicked

[znihilist]

[...]Each having various usages of the exploit[...]

 

I am a bit worried about that personally, because before the exploit got widespread I actually tested it myself for documentation, which was used to write a ticket and send a PM to Tait (EDIT: What I mean here is that I didn't know what the exploit was, I was trying to have something to report hence why I was testing).

However, Eric did say this in the previous thread:

 

Do not “test” the exploit yourself. Even a single occurrence of using an exploit can lead to action being taken against your account.

 

Can't really blame them though :/

Next time just report without testing I guess.

Edited January 13, 2015 by znihilist

[Daniel_Caparros]

With all due respect Bioware, if someone need to get punished for this exploit is your team who lauched a broken expansion and went out on vacation.

 

agreed! Don't ban your players, give the ones that do not exploit something...

Edited January 13, 2015 by Daniel_Caparros

[Jerba]

Thanks for listening to us! This renews my confidence in the game and the developers and I'm looking forward to hearing of exploiters being banned.

Though I hope you won't just ban the HM exploiters, there were a few guilds on my server exploiting it on only SM. Not as severe, but also an exploit and they got an advantage over players who did not exploit.

Edited January 13, 2015 by Jerba

[Darth_Mallek]

I don't remember Bioware giving a pass to people so they could take advantage of the exploit, weeks on end. This includes people who transferred from one server to another, to further profit from the exploit.

 

Stop making up excuses, please.

 

I am not making excuses just stating facts of an incompetent team, you just dont lauch an expansion and your team dont do nothing for weeks without some real testing.

[TUXs]

We have a lot of information! We know who used it, who they invited, how many times they exploited, when they participated, credits gained, and whether they gained a crafting pattern from reverse-engineering. We are still reviewing the data and determining the appropriate action for those who took undue advantage of the exploit.

 

-eric

You can look through the logs of thousands of players to determine this, yet you can't even slow the credit spammers who recite the exact same phrase daily...?!

[shikox]

Instead of blaming people with the exploit you should go and learn how to make real MMO game as this is not the 1st time to happen i find that this game have no right to blame any one for doing exploit if the game developer cant fix it then he or she should be replaced with real skilled developers that know how to make normal MMO game without exploit and if SWTOR even ban one person i will stop playing this game as it have rubbish game developers that blame people for there mistakes... Edited January 13, 2015 by shikox

[Darth_Wicked]

I am not making excuses just stating facts of an incompetent team, you just dont lauch an expansion and your team dont do nothing for weeks without some real testing.

 

Said it before, will say it again: 99% of the people who took advantage of this EXPLOIT knew beforehand what it was.

 

Its existence is regrettable but Bioware didn't exactly hand out free passes for people to exploit it, weeks on end. Once more, stop making excuses, please.

 

agreed! Don't plan your players, give the ones that do not exploit something...

 

You're not supposed to get anything at all, just because you did what was right by the ToS.

[MorgenBlue]

With all due respect Bioware, if someone need to get punished for this exploit is your team who lauched a broken expansion and went out on vacation.

 

While the response wasn't great, players shouldn't exploit. MMOs will always have bugs and exploits, players that find them should be aware that if they use the exploits they risk losing their account. Everyone used this because they expected Bioware to do nothing and that needs to change.