A fashionable approach of incomes loot inside World of Warcraft Classic has been banned within the MMORPG’s newest season, with Blizzard listening to participant issues over how the exercise might do extra hurt than good.
The exercise in query is named a GDKP, which stands for gold dragon kill factors. It is based mostly on the DKP system of loot distribution that was extra fashionable again within the olden days of Blizzard’s MMO however remains to be utilized by some guilds as we speak. It is a system that doles out loot based mostly on how a lot DKP gamers have accrued, with guilds having completely different methods on what number of factors a participant can accumulate for attending raids, downing bosses, and taking part in numerous guild actions. Gamers can then primarily bid on uncommon objects that drop utilizing their DKP. The extra DKP a participant earns, the extra DKP they must “spend” on objects.
GDKP takes that system, and as a substitute of utilizing imaginary factors, makes use of in-game gold as a substitute. This manner of incomes loot grew to become a preferred approach for gamers with extra gold than time to earn loot, and an equally fashionable approach for prime guilds to earn gold when WoW Classic launched in 2019, because the guild internet hosting the GDKP would pocket all of the gold gamers used to “buy” objects.
Flash ahead to 2024, the place WoW Classic’s present experimental season, Season of Discovery, is in full swing, and GDKPs are nonetheless a preferred approach for some gamers to play the sport, regardless of issues from gamers that they encourage unlawful gold shopping for from third-party websites and are, in essence, a type of pay-to-win.
However that will not be the case for much longer. In a post outlining all of the modifications coming as a part of Season of Discovery’s second content material section, Blizzard states it can not permit GDKPs on the sport’s present seasonal servers as soon as Part 2 releases on February 8.
“Whereas we perceive that there are some advantages for individuals who discover this a handy approach to receive gear, we additionally acknowledge that there are issues surrounding the erosion of conventional guild and social buildings which can be part of the spirit of Season of Discovery,” Blizzard writes. “Given the experimental nature of Season of Discovery, we wish to attempt issues with out such a transaction happening on this recreation mode.”
In a discussion board post offering extra particulars on the topic, Blizzard states will probably be monitoring suggestions across the determination carefully, and calls the ban “a check,” one that may not work out and would require Blizzard to revisit the coverage for later phases of Season of Discovery. In addition to cracking down on GDKP runs, Blizzard will moreover roll out “thrilling new tech” with Part 2 that can look to fight bots and different malicious accounts. In line with Blizzard, restricted testing of the brand new know-how has seen optimistic outcomes, however Blizzard remains to be encouraging gamers to report dangerous actors because the staff continues to fight the difficulty.
Part 2 of WoW Classic: Season of Discovery will convert the sport’s Gnomeregan dungeon into a brand new 10-man raid, whereas additionally introducing a brand new free-for-all PvP occasion, the Blood Moon, and sweeping class modifications within the type of new runes and talents when it arrives February 8.