I’ve had a lot of people tell me Blizzard stands to make tons of money off its progressing Real ID policy. You know what I think? I think they actually stand to lose money off this proposition.

As it stands, there are millions of casual players who don’t have the same attachment to WoW as those of us who have played the game seriously for months or years. They may have guilds, but they only play maybe a few hours each week: casually leveling, running five-mans, doing a few BG’s, etc. Some of these players already split their time between WoW and other MMOs, which is why they’re casual in the first place. These players can easily move on to other MMOs or put more emphasis on the other games they already play.

As far as hardcore players go, we may be more reluctant to move on. We’re “entrenched,” so-to-speak. We have developed a lot of friendships. We have put a lot of time into the game. So it’s more difficult for us to just cancel our accounts and move on, as that demands leaving behind the communities we’ve joined or helped develop. We’re also aware of communities like Elitist Jerks, which will be a safe haven for those of us who still wish to speak about WoW on a forum without revealing our identities.

But that doesn’t mean we can’t make an impact. How many of you pre-ordered Starcraft 2 or Diablo 3? How many of you were planning on at least trying Blizzard’s next generation MMO? How many of you have second accounts?

I say: consider canceling your pre-orders and state your intention to boycott the next-gen MMO if this policy does not change.

What Do I Plan to Do?

I’m personally well-entrenched in WoW. I’ve been a part of the guild I’m in for over three years (longer, if you consider its first iteration). I made promises to people in the guild that we’d be doing hardcore battleground in Cataclysm. I’m developing a web site that will have WoW-based video content (I’m in the middle of filming the second episode that consists of 128 scenes). So I’m not going to outright quit or drop any projects I’ve already put a lot of time into.

But I will cancel my Starcraft 2 pre-order if the policy remains unchanged a week before its scheduled release. And I’m personally planning to boycott the next-gen MMO if the policy remains in place.

I’m also considering protesting at Blizzcon. I’m not willing to outright sell my ticket to someone else, because I’m still planning to meet with guildies and some other people I raid with. But the video site will be up-and-running before Blizzcon, and it’s a nice place for a soapbox. I’d like to cover the convention objectively, but how can you? I’m developing this site because I want to have an impact on MMO design and decisions. It would be criminal not to speak my mind about a policy that is so reviled by a large part of the Battle.net community.

And I should note moving on from WoW is not out of the question. Once the hardcore battleground portion of the guild is up and running, there’s no reason I can’t toss leadership to one of the experienced BGers that I’ve already invited. There’s no reason I and the person I’ve been working with on designing the new site can’t transfer our framework to other games. I’m greatly looking forward to The Old Republic and The Secret World, as it is. If they meet my expectations, I wouldn’t mind shifting my focus to one or both of them if the Real ID forum policy is still in place. Or even a traditional video game with a hardcore multiplayer experience that warrants extensive hardcore coverage.

Does Blizzard Know This?

Whether or not Blizzard knows they stand to lose money is not of issue. It’s a bad business decision either way.

If Blizzard knows, that means the company is willing to sacrifice profits for a personal belief that people in a video game community should not be afraid to reveal their real identities. Which, in turn, shows they don’t understand just how important forum communities are to the video game experience. It goes to show whoever is behind this policy doesn’t understand some of the stigmas when it comes to playing video games (especially MMOs) still exist and are actually true. As a result, this is not something a player should have to opt-out of if they simply want to protect their identities.

And, let’s face it, there are persons of questionable stature in every community. There are even some in my neighborhood, which is quite well-to-do. But gaming communities are of particular concern. It can get very passionate. It’s a competitive environment, afterall. While people have to reveal their names if they post on the forums, if they don’t post on the forums, you still never know if you’re playing with someone with a history of violence. But they can easily find your names, if you’ve decided you want to ask a question on the technical support forums. Or if you’ve decided you need to recruit using the Blizzard forums. These people can then discover your name. And, if they’re persistent, or you have an extremely unique name, they can find you.

So what do people do to protect themselves? They stop posting on the forums, even if they are upstanding citizens of the gaming community. This, in turn, removes valuable contributions to the community. So all you’re doing is trading one problem (anonymous trolls), for others (the reluctance of contribution from upstanding members of the community, and the dangers that come with revealing your identity).

And if we consider the other possibility, meaning Blizzard doesn’t know, it goes to show their lack of foresight when it comes to running a business. Which does not bode well for their profitability and the future decisions they make. Which would make people like me feel as though we could potentially be on a sinking ship, where the company’s executives and decision-makers don’t have a clue.

Either way, my confidence has been shaken. The hiring of Greg Canessa, who was CEO of PopCap Games before becoming the guy in charge of developing Battle.net, really made me wonder what they were thinking. What the hell would someone involved in a mini-games company know about developing a networking and community system for traditional games? Games that have vastly different stigmas and players than those who play something like Peggle? Very little. And given how Battle.net 2.0 is actually more like Battle.net 1.2 with additional flaws in design and policies, my suspicion is only reinforced. Either these ideas were his, or he didn’t push back against pressure from people higher up. And let’s not forget the merger with Activision. Two words: Bobby Kotick.

Going forward, my faith is a lot less solid. No matter the outcome of this whole Real ID debacle.