Well, so much for the idea that virtual worlds foster community spirit (according to recent research covered by eToychest). The mega online game World of Warcraft is experiencing a "hostage situation" according to this report on Kotaku. The so-called "terrorist" organisation is a group of power gamers who have achieved the highest level of success for a particular server. The next stage of their self-actualisation is intended to be an altruistic act which keeps the online community happy and aims to reduce the social division between haves and have-nots: to complete their epic ordeal, the guild must activate a "gong", which opens up new content to all players on the server. Instead of throwing open the floodgates, however, they've decided to put up the new content for ransom: for $5,000 in-game gold.
From the WoW forums:
Nobody remembers the fair and quietly intelligent people we meet in their daily lives, but everyone remembers those who ruin their day.
We'll have plenty of time to conquer this new content, but for now we see an endless novelty in holding it hostage. And this is what we will continue to do: Hold it hostage.
The traditional epithets are flying thick and fast.
Online social evolution continues to amaze players and students of virtual worlds.
