The Gold Star Rewards Pin

[Valkyrie]

Wow, just what we need. Thanks Amy. Brilliant implementation. BRING OUT THE TEACHER'S PETS.

We all know TRUE good deeds go unnoticed, because they don't get flaunt. Also, this is a form of favoritism and based on being subjective as every staff judges differently.

I'd actually have to agree with this. But I'm really hoping it's not used in that way.

 

[Bug]

i dont like this gold star thing
if someone does something nice now everyone is going to think its for a gold star, not because they want to do it.

 

[Ranch]

Our build team in VMK called it the "Star Fish" pin, dedicated to hardcore butt kissers.

This time around, it's different. We all as a whole, are far closer than the community back then. Probably because we number in hundreds (active) and not thousands.. yet. That, and we weren't so personal with staff like this time around. Back then, only CL's were "personal" with staff for the most part.. now, just about all of feel we know staff on a personal level.

 

[Goddess]

ok, but back to my original question: dies anyone know if this will extend to the forums?

I would just like to know more information about this program in general, because I don't know what to make of it, due to the insufficient amount of info on the newsletter

As far as it's known on my end, it's inconclusive to what bounds the range of requirement extends to. If it extends outside the confines of the game and to the forums, I should hope they've be kind enough to clarify. Perhaps an announcement on the front page and forums explaining the pin in its entirety would be possible?

Such as an outline of what requirements you must meet to be eligible for the pin (i.e. what deeds, where specifically - forums, game - etc). If past known deeds count towards you getting the pin - like how the bugs that were reported by Lost in the past earned him one.

In essence, some clarity would be excellent.

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i dont like this gold star thing
if someone does something nice now everyone is going to think its for a gold star, not because they want to do it.

As regrettable as that is true, I personally wish this would have been kept a secret. Rather than be announced right off the bat, just award the pins at random without explanation.

 

[savvy.max]

The three people who received the pin so far noticed something extremely dangerous to the entire ingame economy and reported it to Amy. I know others who believed something fishy was going on and instead of reporting it told their friends to get in on the action. If anyone deserves a reward it is Amy for fixing the issue. It is extremely rare for a player to have an effect on the entire game but I know for sure that this game is a better place when people do the right thing. I firmly believe that a Nontradeable reward pin will only encourage users to report bugs and exploits instead of ignoring them. When you report a bug to Google you can receive a "bug bounty" and this is sort of the same thing. I also know users who have spent countless hours running player-events that have entertained the entire server with games and such, who should also qualify for this kind of a reward as well. (*cough* Ranch). As a member of the testing team I am not staff nor do I donate my time helping to test the server for a reward, I do so because I love this game and the community. I firmly believe that it will eventually lead to a stronger community as a whole and will hopefully prevent some users from exploiting the entire community. This reward should be embraced by the community and celebrated not hated for selfish reasons.

 

[Jason]

I wish these forums and game weren't so much of a popularity contest... It saddens me... :|

(Before anyone jumps on me, I'm not suggesting we take away anything from people who got this honor, I'm just saying if you give one person something everyone is going to want it and then make the ones who don't have it feel awful)

 

[Goddess]

Personally, I felt the pin was supposed to be awarded to players going above and beyond to help other players feel welcomed, get acquainted with the interface of the game and genuinely contribute to the community in a positive way such as welcoming new players, giving new players items of value for free (essentially spreading the wealth), being friendly and personable to everyone, etc. But not necessarily just reporting bugs and such. I thought that was the role of the beta testers and the purpose of their program was to do these such things.

The pin shouldn't be to honor just people that report major bugs and such, it's supposed to go to positive influences on the community.