Last week, fellow MMO blogger Belghast wrote a blog post that sent a shot of panic through my own heart: He tells the tale of forgetting to log into Final Fantasy XIV for a few months and having his character’s house be repossessed by the game while he wasn’t paying it any mind.
Now, the thought of losing my houses in games where housing matters a lot – like Star Wars Galaxies and Ultima Online – worried and worries me so much that I set alarms on my phone and calendar to make sure I don’t forget to log in and refresh and pay things up. I used to do that for LOTRO, too, though I guess I no longer have to with a premium home. But losing a house in SWG or UO would devastate my account, taking out my resources and collectibles and livelihoods. I’d cry, and I’d probably quit rather than start over, at least for a good long while.
Bel wasn’t that bummed about it, though, partly because his ‘hood wasn’t hopping anyway and partly because there was a reason he hadn’t been logging in – he was kind of over the game. Instead, he wished the next person to buy his plot a happier experience than he had, which is frankly a comforting way to think about it.
Not comforting enough to make me abandon my alarms, though.
Have you ever lost a house in an MMO?