multiple accounts

Most crimes are solved with help from tips... People report the multi and the admins look into it and then make a judgment call. Its not hard to figure. When multiple people use a computer you can easily tell the difference between them.

You wont catch all of them and maybe not most of them. But there will be fewer if its not allowed and that policy is enforced. Plus they will have to work harder to be undetected, making it less appealing.

I am well aware of the ways around IP and other detection methods. I think you would be surprised how many dont use those techniques. Plus there are other ways to catch them and in fact, basing judgment on IP alone is a bad way to enforce this. IP can be one piece of evidence though.

I have played at least 6 other games like this one. None of them allowed multiple accounts per person. They all allowed for multiple people on one computer. They all banned hundreds if not thousands of accounts for this and other forms of cheating.

It only takes one cheater who knows what he's doing to ruin the game for everyone else.  Pointing out a few idiots who manage to give themselves away by slipping details to other players or leaving an electronic trail that they could have avoided doesn't change the effect caused by the ones who are not.  Where prevention fails, you have to consider broader approaches, such as removal of the incentive to cheat.

I've played other games where the incentive to cheat was high and the developer was AWOL.  Sure, cheaters still got caught by the snooping of fellow players...some of them, that is.  Yet even the ones who were caught often enjoyed multiple years of unchecked success while they harassed small players and alliances.  And, they were still only caught because they were sloppy.  One player was a member of my own alliance and was never discovered during a very long and respected tenure in a position of leadership.  We only found out because he got bored and quit, but decided to confess all before doing so.  It was a painful stab in the back to find out that some of our most successful operations were supported by clandestine cheating.  Destroying his account and distributing the spoils to smaller players did little to lift our spirits.  Forum and datanet logs were clean...we'd have never caught him without the confession.

At the end of the day, what difference does the rule make to you?  You're allowed to run two accounts just like everyone else, so what's the problem?  Don't thumb your nose just because it's different or unusual.  In a perfect world, anything possible is legal--then cheating itself becomes possible, and everyone is on fair and equal ground.  In an imperfect world, that is still the ideal.

No doubt the developers of this game will find and ban many cheaters using more than two accounts.  But all the anti-cheater detective work in the world doesn't change the price of tea in China.

I never said I spent money on the other game...I wouldn't spend a penny for exactly your reason.  If you don't have time to manage two accounts, then you will eventually find you don't have time to manage one.  Conversely, think of all the people who won't cheat because they are allowed to invest the time they intend to invest without cheating.  It's not a crime that they have more time or attention to commit.  You're still clinging to an arbitrary mentality that there is something innately wrong or immoral with multiple accounts.  There isn't.

It's only cheating if it's against the rules.  The rules aren't designed just to limit everyone else's playing capacity to what you can or are willing to muster.  And for the record, I don't believe running two accounts would increase the effort you need to invest by more than 10%.  After all, it all about timing of attention, not duration of time given.  My 3 city account takes only 15% more of my time and attention than it did at 1 city.

The rules are designed to create a playing field at which many can enjoy the game the way they want.  Players need freedom to apply their personal talents and efforts toward competitive advantage--without so wildly succeeding in ways others cannot match that their investment is no longer worthwhile and enjoyable.  Metagaming is also a big part of browser games, and that means spy/mole accounts infiltrating other alliances.  The devs have recognized that, and it may have factored into their decision to allow two accounts per player.  After all, you have to have two accounts to properly attempt running a double life.

Finally, I have only one account.  As I believe the stats reflect, I'm not at a disadvantage.  People who are not sufficiently occupied by a single account can run a second, but that second account cannot operate in a way that just feeds the first account.  The devs know what they're doing...they're putting roadblocks against unfair competitive advantage in the places where such can actually be effectively stopped.  They're also doing it in a way that doesn't interfere with legitimate enterprise.

You are taking me too personally on that last part. I didnt say anything about you spending money. I was merely saying that I wouldnt in that situation... which is the point of creating these games.

Right now multiple accounts dont take much more time... just wait until you have a lot of villages, i dont know maybe 6, 10, 15??? in each account and the game is actually doing something... i.e. wars and such.

Later on you will be at a disadvantage when you come up against someone who has twice as many villages as you because they have two accounts. With the rules as they are now they can unload both accounts on you and have nothing to fear. At least if its against the rules they have to be more careful and try to make them look like independent accounts. Sure there are a lot of variables... alliances, friends, etc but they start off twice as strong as you given an equal amount of development.

Spying on others is not cheating... its war and this is a war game. But with our rules it would be cheating if they did it with a 3rd account.

I can see that the devs know what they are doing but they also dont. This game is in beta at best and they look for a lot of input on improvements because they arent sure (and also want to hear our opinions... hence this topic). I am not saying they are doing anything wrong and dont mean any disrespect, just that they are not infallible.

joekewl wrote: Wuzzel wrote: Why would anyone want 2 accounts? LOL, now thats funny.

Why is that funny joekewl?