RMT And Virtual Currencies In Acction

April 16th, 2009

MMO virtual currency is used in virtual economies. A virtual economy is an economy that is not a real economy, and it is usually present in a virtual atmosphere, in a virtual world. Rather than being needs driven, these economies serve as a kind of recreational tool, and are basically for fun, rather than for the good of a persons survival, as a real economy is. An example of this would be that a person participating in a virtual economy does not need to buy food or water to survive, they can instead buy a shiny new car, and drive around for days with no money in their pocket.

Most virtual economies are at place in online multiplayer games, like massive multiplayer online games, or even in MUDs or in life simulation games like Second Life. In the popular game known as Second Life, players can own real estate that they can turn into a house or business. These players can even become virtual millionaires if their ventures go well, which can lead to actual money made in the real world economy, like, say, if that player sold his/her business for real money to another player. In this case, some virtual economies actually have the ability to make money for real people in the real economy.

There are many other games where virtual currency plays a huge part in real world economics, like in World of Warcraft. If you search for it, you can find Websites of companies that will not only sell you in-game gold and merchandise for real money, but you can also purchase, with real life money, a character profile of any level you want (though it may cost you!). Some companies are so extensive, that they have a vast customer service database, and offices where workers labor, in game, to build profiles, acquire money, and push the edge of virtual economy so close to the lines of our own economy that it is almost ridiculously how well the lines blend together. I heard one story about a guy who played Ultima Online, and the story was really quite incredible.

He stated the game as a blacksmith, and made money by forging steel swords and chain mail armor for his clients. In order to keep his clients coming back, he had to up his level to grandmaster so that he could make better weapons. He also made an archer character who could fetch animal skins for his blacksmith, and then a mage that would increase the archers levels, making him better. So, you see, he had a whole business operating, in this veritable virtual economy of Ultima Online. Before it was all said and done, he was the proud owner of a Tower, one of the best houses available to build in Ultima, and had a key spot on the new continent. This feat did not take mere months to achieve Years of staying up late at night, clicking and double clicking, scraping and saving, had bought him this castle. In real life, the Ultima Blacksmith was a carpenter. When asked why he would work so hard for something that wasn’t real, he said It doesn’t seem like work if you enjoy it.