As an MMO nearly old enough to vote, it is no surprise World of Warcraft has had a long and bloody battle against botting. One World of Warcraft player–a 70-year-old RPG fan who plays a Hunter named Zanegreen–was caught in the crossfire of the ongoing war, and was banned after being mistaken for a bot.
Zanegreen is a fantasy RPG fanatic who has been playing World of Warcraft since the Burning Crusade expansion’s launch. A casual player, he spends most of his time questing around, making and leveling alts, and keeping to himself.
Unfortunately, his proclivity for solo play caught the attention of World of Warcraft, who served him with a 6-month ban for alleged botting. The tale was first brought to the attention when Zanegreen’s son and guild mate posted on the WoW Reddit with a throwaway account, aptly named "Mydadwasbanned." Seeking advice or aid, he explained the situation, claiming the tickets they had sent in to Blizzard had been ignored or rejected. It seemed as if the senior World of Warcraft veteran was out of luck.
Enter Kalviery, a Blizzard representative active on r/WoW. Kalviery examined the situation on the Reddit and explained the likely reasoning as to why the ban was still active: Blizzard had not received proof Zanegreen’s story was true. To Kalviery’s testimony, bots and bot-makers will often pose as real players using similar, false sob stories to get their farming accounts unbanned.
Luckily, this tale has a happy ending. Kalviery reached out to Zanegreen’s son and had the World of Warcraft security team take a second look at the alleged botting activity. Within a day of the Reddit post, Zanegreen’s account was unbanned, and the elder World of Warcraft player was finally able to play again after weeks of exile. The original poster updated Reddit with this information, sharing Zanegreen’s elation and gratitude for the community’s help in getting him back in the game, along with an adorable picture fail.
The World of Warcraft Reddit was relieved and charmed by the heartwarming tale. Though many were initially skeptical of the story for the same reasons the Blizzard Game Masters were, those who gave him the benefit of the doubt were vindicated by Zanegreen’s success story, with over 350 comments of congratulations in less than 24 hours. Kalviery’s prompt and professional intervention in the situation also served as a reminder that there are plenty of good people working for Activision Blizzard in spite of the corruption present within its leadership.
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands is available on PC. Eternity's End is currently in development.