It looks like Final Fantasy XIV has seen quite a bit of real-money trading and some other “illicit” activities in the past week, which has resulted in a wave of bans from the game. Developer Square Enix has just posted news of some actions taken against players who’ve fallen foul of its rules, and account terminations are into the thousands.
In the post on the Final Fantasy XIV website covering “actions taken against in-game RMT and other illicit activities,” the studio lists the actions its taken against players on these between July 25 and 31. For “participation in RMT/prohibited activities” 9,626 accounts have been terminated, with 19 temporarily suspended. For RMT advertising 782 accounts have been terminated.
“Botting activity (using any number of third party tools that allow for automation)” was represented to a far lesser extent, but some players were still confirmed engaging in the activity, with three accounts terminated, and 25 temporarily suspended.
RMT, which is an activity where players use real money to obtain digital content or services, is against the game’s terms of service and the studio says in the post that it, and other prohibited activities, “upset the balance” of Final Fantasy XIV.
Previous examples of RMT resulting in bans in an MMORPG include “actions against” some World of Warcraft players who were said to be “actively participating in and/or advertising the sale of in-game raid or dungeon clears in exchange for real-world currency.”
Square Enix makes clear in the post that it will continue to take “stringent disciplinary action” against players who engage in RMT or other disallowed activities, and offers advice on how to report any that come up.