Polygon article "Neopets is reckoning with black market pet trading"

[Ice]

Link: (you need an account to see links)

Full transcript:

Please log in to view spoilers.

I mean, there's really nothing in there that most of us don't know off the top of our heads, but I'm surprised an article with this many statements from current players was written at all. It's not like Neopets is really referred to in much of a positive light in this article (what with the constant jabs at its terrible security lmao) so I wonder if TNT was expecting this kind of publicity over the issue at all.

Please log in to view spoilers.

[Bat]

The Neopets team is doing the same thing that they've always done: freeze first and ask questions later. They're finally exhausting the patience and good will of their players enough for them to take their outcry to platforms where the Neopets team can't erase their posts, and it's gotten enough attention that they feel compelled to respond in their usual way. Naturally, the Neopets team spins this as a problem with the black market instead of problems with:

• The credibility of the claims players make against other players
  
  
• The amount of research the Neopets team does into those claims
  
  
• The blatant preferential treatment they give to documented-and-proven cheaters who "out" other players
  
  
• The heavy-handed retaliatory action taken against accused players
  
  
• The borderline sadistic treatment of accused players when they attempt to contest actions taken against them
  
  
• The complete ineffectiveness of cooperating with their support system

I hope that you're lurking around here and reading this, Polygon. This isn't some happy-go-lucky digital pet site that is getting torn apart by the criminal underworld. Their employees are actively sabotaging their own game by cruelly punishing players without justification or due process. And if those players try to reach out to the employees for help, they're subjected to deranged interrogation tactics and often given ultimatums to fess up, hand over co-conspirators or walk away entirely. Better games than this have fallen to pieces over behavior like this from their support teams.

The problems that the Neopets team are dealing with are not the fault of this, or any other Neopets cheating community on the internet today. This is what you get when you let your misguided players burn your game to the ground while your employees dance around the bonfire.

[Aero]

Polygon has also reached out to Neopets for more information.

Why hasn't Polygon reached out to CK is the real question??

Also colour me shocked to see a longform article on Polygon that isn't complete shit, after their stupid Animal Crossing articles with incorrect information for new players when they were trying to ride the hype of AC New Horizons.
- Signed, a salty, longtime AC fan

PS. There was a similar "article" I read a while back either on a personal blog or a Reddit post talking about the black market and the Neopets economy in general, from a past player. I wish I could find it again.

--

Another interesting article I'm in the process of reading. Found it while looking for the post I mentioned above:
(you need an account to see links)

Excerpt from How Neopets Predicted the Future of the Social Internet

Please log in to view spoilers.

[kittyray]

Why hasn't Polygon reached out to CK is the real question??

I would love to see an article that covers the UC Black Market and actually reaches out to users here or other places. I'd want to see it for a game I'm not familiar with, too, but honestly, as somebody who merely dabbles in UCs, would love to see what everybody here has to say. idk, I just feel like there's a lot of interesting content in that as well as a good deal of information.

[motherfucker]

Is the information she is referencing specific to the recent incident?
I haven't really been around on Neopets because:

Please log in to view spoilers.

[Kohana]

Is the information she is referencing specific to the recent incident?
I haven't really been around on Neopets because:

Please log in to view spoilers.

Yes it is referencing a very recent incident where that pet mentioned basically was traded through shuffles and hundreds of people were affected. I kept seeing posts about it in the Pound Chat. Reversals have happened before but this was probably the biggest one because so many people were affected.

[Buizel]

I hope that you're lurking around here and reading this, Polygon. This isn't some happy-go-lucky digital pet site that is getting torn apart by the criminal underworld. Their employees are actively sabotaging their own game by cruelly punishing players without justification or due process. And if those players try to reach out to the employees for help, they're subjected to deranged interrogation tactics and often given ultimatums to fess up, hand over co-conspirators or walk away entirely. Better games than this have fallen to pieces over behavior like this from their support teams.

The problems that the Neopets team are dealing with are not the fault of this, or any other Neopets cheating community on the internet today. This is what you get when you let your misguided players burn your game to the ground while your employees dance around the bonfire.

Gonna go ahead and re-post this. This is how TNT treats its userbase, guilty or not. It's a lot more disgusting than this big ol' scary black market can ever be.

Edit: Apologies @(you need an account to see links) since I'm about to stretch your board lol but I feel like these screenshots shouldn't be hidden to most so I'm taking away the spoiler so everyone can see the screenshots. but if mods want to add it back I completely understand as well haha

[Aldrif]

Tony P is such a piece of poo

[motherfucker]

Gonna go ahead and re-post this. This is how TNT treats its userbase, guilty or not. It's a lot more disgusting than this big ol' scary black market can ever be.

Edit: Apologies @(you need an account to see links) since I'm about to stretch your board lol but I feel like these screenshots shouldn't be hidden to most so I'm taking away the spoiler so everyone can see the screenshots. but if mods want to add it back I completely understand as well haha

I’ll be honest, I’m disappointed this situation kinda just disappeared.
It’s apparent TNT plays favorites just by these screenshots. I’d assume Jumpstart wouldn’t love staff treating users of their “kids site” like trash.

[Ice]

If only some kind of somewhat mainstream online media reporting platform could do an expose on THAT user's absolutely shitty experience with Neopets' horrifying customer support.

Maybe someone could tell that person to reach out to Klyko's owner on how to contact Polygon or something =/