As I commented in my previous post, (here) World of Warcraft’s new BattleNet RealID system allows for players to communicate with their fellow gamers all across the spectrum of “realms/servers”.  All you have to do is log in to your BattleNet account, and all of your virtual friends will know that you are online.

The purpose of this is to turn World of Warcraft into a type of game-based social network. If players create a single RealID username for themselves, they don’t have to remember several different character names for each of their friends. Much like Facebook or Friendster or MySpace, your identity is strictly that; it’s who you ARE.  You could even include your RealID on your business card if you don’t mind having your business associates find you in the PvP arenas! ;)

Image stolen from worldofwarcraft.com screenshot gallery. (then modified by me)

Many World of Warcraft players were greatly pleased by this new ID system.  It allowed players to keep track of their friends online, and provided a way for characters to communicate across servers.  There are, a few unfortunate consequences to having this kind of immediate accessibility.

At first, it was Blizzard’s plan to require the player to sign-in with their RealID on the Official World of Warcraft forums. This would allow people to recognize each other as they posted on the message boards.  This was generally accepted as a BAD idea.  Although many people are very civil and well-intentioned on the official forums, many others enjoy venting their grievances with great passion and reckless abandon. Having a RealID that could be used to trace the commenter back to the player, could have very negative consequences for some.  The anonymity in WoW is what allows some players to express themselves in a more unrestrained fashion.

From Penny Arcade, 7/9/10

So while some argue that the RealID system is a useful tool for preventing abuse on the forums, still others have argued that this is a privacy issue.  Some users can even discern issues related to the Freedom of Speech and the expectation of privacy in this system.  Shouldn’t players be free to speak what’s on their mind, regardless of the content? While we all hate trolls (no no, not this kind) and griefers, but don’t they have the right to spew their venom online too?

As it turns out, this a moot point. Not only has Blizzard kindly capitulated to the message board trolls, (your RealID name is not shown on the Forums now) they’ve also taken steps to ensure that the player is reasonably safeguarded from their personal information.

From the BattleNet FAQ: http://us.battle.net/realid/faq.html

Only the people that you add to your RealID friends list can see your name, and they ONLY see your name. They can’t track you down in that magical land we call “Real Life” unless you personally give them the information that they’d need to do that. Parents are also able to safeguard their children’s identities by using the BattleNet parental controls to lock their wee ones out of this feature. (as well as control the amount of time the kidlings spend on online, and other such things.

So while there was a brief blizzar– … er, snowstorm, of controversy surrounding the RealID system, it turns out to be much ado about little. Of course, the potential for drama is still there. There are doubtlessly still players who secretly play characters of an opposite faction from their regular Guild for a little good-natured competitive ganking, right?

... or does that kind of thing just happen in fictional web series?

… and of course, there are certainly those who can probably track down their fellow gamers no matter how carefully you cover your tracks.  But the question is, where do we draw the line between privacy and socialization.  Do we necessarily want anyone else to be able to put a real-life name to our virtual identities? Does anyone really NEED to know that the sexy warlock Lachrymae of the Lordaeron Undercity is really just some pathetic librarian in a lame fedora? Am I personally willing to sacrifice privacy just to be able to find my friends online?

Perhaps World of Warcraft is a safe haven.  Maybe the protections and security there are solid.  But what about the other social media? Are we TOO connected? Can someone trace my Nintendo Mii back to … Me?  How much of my identity is my virtual identity? Am I more Craig, or more Lachrymae, or more whatever you’d call my XBox Live avatar? It’s been said that privacy is dead in our modern culture. That young people are not concerned with privacy, they want the spotlight. Thousands of self-indulgent YouTube videos would seem to bear this out, but the truth is more complicated, isn’t it?

Are we too involved? Have social media completely ensnared us in a web of connections that we can’t escape? How much of you is online for anyone to see? I’m looking for answers from YOU, faithful reader. Could I track you down in real life from your Facebook profile like some creepy stalker guy?  What is YOUR Real ID? ;)