Blizzard to Take "Aggressive Action" Against Mei Ice Wall Exploiters in Overwatch

[zidine100]

I dont understand why people are saying that you shouldn't be banned for this, i mean come on, this pretty much makes you invincible and lets you shoot people through the map. Im sure they arent going to ban people for just doing it once or twice by "accident" but people who are constantly exploiting it intentionally (like they did with lucioball). I think thats pretty clear cut game breaking right there. Its nothing like a rocket jump or roadhogs hook, this is plain invincibility.

 

[MHR]

Oh, phew. I thought for a moment they'd nerfed permanent icewall Mei. It's great fun on Hanamura first point keeping the gate permanently walled with 2 or more Meis and playing Border Patrol chasing down all the illegals that jump the wall.

Other games punish exploiting all the time. When it's completely obvious there's no excuse. The same types of people always show up saying it's completely intended/fair if it's possible, but this is faulty logic.

And Dark souls is not a singleplayer game. You get invaded, it's become a multiplayer game by design. Those using trainers then are cheating.

 

[Shadefyre]

Ah, the old FPS argument of "If I can get away with playing dirty, then it's totally ok to do so". Which I guess is just videogames reflecting reality.

 

[Buizel91]

Speaking as a game programmer I philosophically disagree with punishing exploiters. Hackers yes, as they're modifying the game - but if you create a mistake in game and people exploit it, that's entirely on the company that created the exploit.

The people are playing the game within the programmatic rules set forth. If you didn't want them to do something, it shouldn't be doable end of story. I simply don't see it as an "abuse of game mechanics". If your mechanics can be abused, you made bad mechanics.

I highly doubt you're a game programmer on the same scale as online multiplayer games (maybe a cutesy mobile game, but that is it). Your opinion is...wrong. Because for as long as there have been multiplayer online games, there have been bans for exploiting game code that wasn't intended.

Building a game such as Overwatch takes 10,000's of hours with hundreds of people to make millions of lines of code. There might be a thing missed in the code that players find later down the line. But the EULA strictly says if it doesn't look like proper gameplay and is exploiting the base mechanics, DO NOT USE THAT EXPLOIT. I'm pretty sure it is obvious that going outside the map to shot players inside the map but not be able to get shot is an exploit. It is entirely on them for 1) not reading or abiding by the EULA [yes, people DO read those] and 2) using what is clearly unintended advantage to win at the game.


BAN AWAY!

Rocket jumping and bunny hopping are exploits, remember.

Those "Exploits" don't make you invincible and still being able to shoot at other players...

 

[Buizel91]

Oh, phew. I thought for a moment they'd nerfed permanent icewall Mei. It's great fun on Hanamura first point keeping the gate permanently walled with 2 or more Meis and playing Border Patrol chasing down all the illegals that jump the wall.

Other games punish exploiting all the time. When it's completely obvious there's no excuse. The same types of people always show up saying it's completely intended/fair if it's possible, but this is faulty logic.

And Dark souls is not a singleplayer game. You get invaded, it's become a multiplayer game by design. Those using trainers then are cheating.

It can be played solo though without the Multiplayer features...

Apart from the Tutorial and Bot games, Overwatch can't...

 

[Fox12]

Blizzard could just not fuck up...

 

[Captain Marvelous_v1legacy]

Good on ya' Blizzard. Don't let cheaters get away with their bullshit.

Saying "code better" is not what I'm saying. It *is* impossible to catch all bugs and make a perfect game. That's entirely my point. You have to know that players are going to find things you aren't. Punishing them for finding these is not the solution, fixing the problem is.

But they aren't being punished for finding it. They're being punished for exploiting it. Frankly, taking advantage of exploits in a multiplayer match is cheating. Using any exploit ruins the experience for everyone involved, except for the exploiter. Doing it accidentally is one thing. Intentionally and maliciously doing it over and over again is another.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

Speaking as a game programmer I philosophically disagree with punishing exploiters. Hackers yes, as they're modifying the game - but if you create a mistake in game and people exploit it, that's entirely on the company that created the exploit.

The people are playing the game within the programmatic rules set forth. If you didn't want them to do something, it shouldn't be doable end of story. I simply don't see it as an "abuse of game mechanics". If your mechanics can be abused, you made bad mechanics.

haha oh...I hope you never step foot into a casino and find an exploit, you will be pummeled to death in every mental/physical/financial way with this logic.

This isn't some exploit that is easy to accidentally have happen, it's something people are intentionally doing to fuck everyone else up.

If someone found a exploit that left soldier 76's ult going the entire match and proceeded to mow everyone down ez pz, I hope you'd hold this exact same attitude.

 

[fractal_butterfly]

Because as a programmer it is my job to make the game rules. If I fail at that and people find ways to abuse what I wrote, it's on me for not finding the flaw to begin with. I see it as the job of the players to maximize their effectiveness at the game within the rules of what i wrote. If I made a mistake and they capitalize on my error or carelessness, i see it as fair game.

At my company it's not up to me to deal with the players, we have the community people who do that.

If you are a programmer of anything significantly complex, you should know that making it airtight and bugless is impossible as you make continuous changes to the code. If you find a bug like this, you essentially have two choices, either shut the game down on every server until the problem is fixed, or keep the game up but warn people that exploiting the game in ways that make it impossible for other players to play it as intended will have consequences. In the case of Overwatch, your playing affects not only you but everyone around you, so there is more responsibility on the player to do things that don't negatively affect other people's play.

It may not be "hacking" and using external programs, but the intent is the same as hacking, and should be punished. There are people who defend hacking as well on the premise that if they can do something they should be able to. Simply saying "code better" makes me question how much you actually know about coding in a game like this.

Saying "code better" is not what I'm saying. It *is* impossible to catch all bugs and make a perfect game. That's entirely my point. You have to know that players are going to find things you aren't. Punishing them for finding these is not the solution, fixing the problem is.

You would be right, if a video game was like any other piece of software. But it isn't. A game is more than code and artworks. It is a game, and therefore has to adhere to a certain set of rules. Normally these rules are enforced by the programming. But if this fails, it is in my opinion legitimate to enforce the rules by moderators. Blizzard announced that using this broken mechanic in this way is against the rules, and players will be punished for it. It is therefore legitimate for them to (at least temporary) ban exploiters.
Let's look at it like this: if you are playing a game of chess in real life, you *could* physically move the pawns in any way you like and thus defeat your opponent. But the rules say that you are not allowed to do that, and they will not be enforced by the game itself, but by other players or referees.
I think banning players for exploiting without warning is false, since, as you said, you can't create the perfect, bug free game. But in this case they were warned. So banning or other forms of punishment is a legitimate option to keep the game fun for everyone.

 

[TechNoFear]

This bug moved the player outside the world, where other players could not see or harm the player.

At that point the player had the choice to exploit by shooting other players who could not shoot them back.

All FPS players know that situation is an exploit.

As a player you must take some responsibility for your actions.

Because as a programmer it is my job to make the game rules.

I am a software / solutions architect.

A programmers job is to convert the functional requirements (the PG 11 in PRINCE2) into working code.

A programmers job is not to make / design the 'rules', that is the Business Analysts job (in any software of non trivial complexity).

If I fail at that and people find ways to abuse what I wrote, it's on me for not finding the flaw to begin with.

Programmers are only responsible for UT (Unit Testing) to ensure a given discrete portion of the code works (ie the methods / functions / procedures return the correct values for given input).

Testers are responsible for ensuring the new code passes SIT (System Integration Testing) (ie that the code works as a whole).

 

[distortedreality]

I remember a similar glitch in the early days of TF2 - there was a particular map which had an area where you could fall through a gap between a wall and the floor and end up below the map. Was great fun to get a team half full of engineers down there with turrets. Valve patched it reasonably quickly and didn't take any action against those who had used the glitch.

I think common sense should prevail here really. If someone is caught using it in a competitive match, then obviously the other team should report the offender in whatever fashion the competition allows. But I don't see any real need for any serious action for those who have used it in public games. Blizzard should just take it as a lesson learned and move on.

 

[MHR]

I remember a similar glitch in the early days of TF2 - there was a particular map which had an area where you could fall through a gap between a wall and the floor and end up below the map. Was great fun to get a team half full of engineers down there with turrets. Valve patched it reasonably quickly and didn't take any action against those who had used the glitch.

I think common sense should prevail here really. If someone is caught using it in a competitive match, then obviously the other team should report the offender in whatever fashion the competition allows. But I don't see any real need for any serious action for those who have used it in public games. Blizzard should just take it as a lesson learned and move on.

People can be kicked and banned in TF2 and don't have to agree to any rules before stepping onto privately hosted servers. That's what even happens with hackers. Sophisticated communities even share a master ban-list so people hacking don't show up on the servers with admins that are paying attention.

People are stuck with whatever exploiter, hacker, or griefer there is in Overwatch. It's Blizzard's job to police it. They get to use every means at their disposal.

 

[klaynexas3]

I'd say this discussion is why I'm not a fan of Overwatch not having private servers. If there were private servers, as well as Blizzard run servers, then maybe there could be servers that people could go to that would allow them to use these kinds of exploits just for fun, and if a player did get banned from Blizzard servers, they could still play the game. I'm in the middle ground where I think finding these little things that break the game can be half the fun, but I understand on official servers that it's unfair to other players. Hell, it's half the reason the people that play SSB Melee play it over the current title, because there are these things you can do that the game developers count as exploits. Yes, wave dashing and doing wall tech are completely different from going outside the map and becoming invincible, but the fact that people do it means that people are having fun doing that, and it's not like the other team couldn't do it themselves as well. With private servers, the players and the community get to make more rules and allow for more freeform play. With only Blizzard servers, it means you only get to play by Blizzards rules, and even if they might still be fun to play under, almost everyone always prefers extra options. I just hope that no one gets permabanned for this, even if they do get some sort of punishment.

 

[Elijin]

This topic is a fascinating reflection of the escapist community as many voices speak up with the message "players who repeatedly used a bug to make themselves invincible in a competitive shooter don't deserve punishment".

A game where the point is to kill each other, players who abused an obviously unintended bug to become unkillable are....not the problem?

No one is saying blizzard didn't fumble the ball in a significant bug existing, but to imply the abusers (abusers, not "I did it one time by accident/to see if I could") are without guilt because 'it could be done' is a indicator of why online gaming is so toxic and awful these days.
You guys have reached such heights of "anti big studio" sentiment that you've become parodies.

 

[TheScorpion]

Why not just nerf Mei?

 

[AddictedToSTDs]

I can't believe you guys who are bashing Blizzard over this. Of course they have to take action against this. You are probably using this glitch yourself and are mad because you won't be able to use it anymore, aren't you? Obviously Blizzard have made a mistake when coding and yes, their main priority should of course be to patch this and have it resolved as soon as possible. With that being said, until they have they of course would have to punish this as this would be worse than using aim-bot. You have to consider that this games has a ranked ladder that gets completely screwed by this, as well as is one of many competitive eSport games [http://www.ebetfinder.com/esport-games]. Sure, this could probably be regulated in the rules of each tournament, but still, what message would it send allowing this? I could however agree with Klaynexas3 that private servers would be great.

 

[Cap'nPipsqueak]

I can't believe you guys who are bashing Blizzard over this. Of course they have to take action against this. You are probably using this glitch yourself and are mad because you won't be able to use it anymore, aren't you? Obviously Blizzard have made a mistake when coding and yes, their main priority should of course be to patch this and have it resolved as soon as possible. With that being said, until they have they of course would have to punish this as this would be worse than using aim-bot. You have to consider that this games has a ranked ladder that gets completely screwed by this, as well as is one of many competitive eSport games [http://www.ebetfinder.com/esport-games]. Sure, this could probably be regulated in the rules of each tournament, but still, what message would it send allowing this? I could however agree with Klaynexas3 that private servers would be great.

Because it's not the players' fault the glitch is there. Nobody's hacking, using bots or camping, it's Blizzard who's to blame and anything they do to players will just be them covering their asses. Simply fix the bug and be done with it.

 

[AddictedToSTDs]

I can't believe you guys who are bashing Blizzard over this. Of course they have to take action against this. You are probably using this glitch yourself and are mad because you won't be able to use it anymore, aren't you? Obviously Blizzard have made a mistake when coding and yes, their main priority should of course be to patch this and have it resolved as soon as possible. With that being said, until they have they of course would have to punish this as this would be worse than using aim-bot. You have to consider that this games has a ranked ladder that gets completely screwed by this, as well as is one of many competitive eSport games [http://www.ebetfinder.com/esport-games]. Sure, this could probably be regulated in the rules of each tournament, but still, what message would it send allowing this? I could however agree with Klaynexas3 that private servers would be great.

Because it's not the players' fault the glitch is there. Nobody's hacking, using bots or camping, it's Blizzard who's to blame and anything they do to players will just be them covering their asses. Simply fix the bug and be done with it.

I'm not saying it is either. As I mentioned in my post Blizzard did indeed screw up and I agree that they should of course try to patch this as soon as possible. I'm no coder myself so I can't tell, but I would imagine that this might not be the easiest thing to do. So until this is resolved, I believe the best solution is to punish any exploiting.