Your Opinion About Donation Servers

[Warock]

Excessive donation also ruins the server according to me

[vengence]

It depends on the server how the GMs are and how many players play...if the server has invested in host, website, etc then donating would be fine but if its a free domain and a lagging server sick website then no ways i would donate to a server of that kind...

[MafiaEscaflowne666]

Well there are a few RO servers that make the "Donation" not balanced, some of them even make you "GM" if you donate. Some servers just put on some Donation headgirs that look good, which i think is fine. Some just put on customized cards that can make things imbalanced.

You just have to chose the right RO server for you that fits the "balanced" category for donators and its players. If you want to try aeRO you are welcome to check things out.

[aleksia]

For me Donation is going to help a server, like for rent, but there are some admins whose really after the money of the players, so its up to the players, i suggest do go overboard on donating into a server, but make sure when u donate your helping the server to be alive. but watch out to those greedy admins! good luck

[Nyub]

More like "Purchase In-Game Items" than "Donations". Donations get no refund supposedly. You don't give a penny to a homeless or organization or streeties then say "pay me back" right. Purchases can have refunds.

"Donation"-based servers... basically money to fuel your desire for RO gaming. Whatever the admin's (or even staff members) list for what they use the money for is up to them, it's their business. "Admin needs beer money"? Players who can live by making the most purchases or even premium services will have the most ego. Free players (considering they can't do much without donating) will just have to choke it up. But never expect the word "balanced donations" because these 2 can't mix unless those so-called donates doesn't give any bonuses but "looks".

Donations never harm a server. It's your own risk on how far and how much you're willing to donate for a simple pixel-based item. But once the server reaches a peak of problem that can wipe everything and everyone out, then your money's worth just went down to nothing. Just memories.

It's like buying Steve Job's iPod but still functions entirely the same like ordinary Mp3 Players.

[Leamee]

True. People who spend money on pixels make me cry seriously. Like unless you're going to lose that money (cellphone is pre-paid and you're about to lose your minutes) I don't understand.
I think that some of the players who buy stuff IG lack self-esteem and possibly money IRL (or power or w/e).
Granted, not all of them are self-hating kids but unless you do it in moderation and can get over the fact that you're wasting money, don't do it. Just my opinion. I'm not swearing or anything or saying stuff about people, I'm just saying what a lot of people think.

[Scribbles]

Well, getting the upper hand in a game is always something someone is willing to pay for. Even if it is as ridiculous as a hat that no one else has.

[Leamee]

And that's extremely sad, and part of the reason why video games have a bad reputation. I play a lot sometimes but I would never ever shell out real money or join a guild just because I want to be more powerful. I couldn't care less about what people think of me IG, however I do want to get better to enjoy the game more. I know some people who have variant+proxy+ whatever s*** they can get through donation/ bloody branches/ cheating and that can't even get a ratio of 1 in PVP. PVP doesn't matter but these are the same kids that get everything from their parents and will never know how to fend for themselves IRL. I'm also against the fact that guilds give out top equipment to average players who just entered the guild because spoon-feeding someone is never good.
Luckily enough us anti-guilds prove them wrong by killing them in BG/ PVP but IRL it's the same thing as I said. Someone never took me by the hand so that I could learn languages and now I teach English from time to time and I'm about to pass my finals hopefully.

So yeah, money can only help someone so much...

[Myteriouss]

I agree and disagree with Donation Servers.

Yes, okay, servers need money to be kept running by hosters as well as the servers domains they use for their sites etc.

However, some server admins do not care about players and just want to "set up" items for donate that are made exclusive or OP so that players can buy them (as said above, hungry for power) and then the admins will pocket the money rather then putting it aside to pay the hosting fees.

Also, it's extremely hard (so I find) to find server admins who actually care about players and actually balance out their donation items so that donators aren't OP in PvP etc..

Most donations items are found exclusive to only donators which give tremendous amount of status/effects and then "normal" players are left in the dust.

Pretty rare to find a server that actually gives donation items to be questable for normal players as well but also giving exclusive items not OP tremendous amount of effects either.

[Leamee]

Yeah basically you're getting ripped off to strut around with a virtual hat on.
Win.
Seriously though, even if they made the quests hard I'd be okay with donations. It's just that those kind of admins just want to rip people off. Then again, I don't mind that - if players are stupid enough to fall into traps just like that, well let them waste their money.
The best part is that it's "sort of" legal, not really punishable anyway, so it's the perfect scheme.
Why don't we all do it huh?

[Gene]

I'm a proud member of check the purchase button before even playing, lulz.

[xyuki]

I also dislike wasting money on online games, but if the server is in need of a donation - not out of money greed but out of serious lack of money I can understand it.
Years ago on the 2nd RO server I ever played they didn't have any donations or cash shop or so. The community was willing to donate though and the admin declined taking any money, also after the admin had problems financing the server he didn't let his players send him money, since he has sworn to himself not to open up a "donation" shop.
In such cases though I think it's okay to donate. I wouldn't though, just out of the reason that I don't want to pay any money for pixels as Leamee already said. :3

Donations have to be balanced though and must not cause a great impact on the game, e.g. too big of a difference between donators and non-donators.

[Leamee]

I agree with you, even though people can lie to get you to feel obligated to donate and then be like "nah I'm super poor but don't give me money, oh wait my dog/dragon/dinosaur is dying and I need money for the serv and the vet but that's fine". You can't trust people IG (or IRL) when it comes to money so yeah. You never know which criminal activity you might be financing, I've heard crazy stories before.

[Myteriouss]

I would understand helping out a server by donating if I know the admin puts the donation money to good use by buying new site integrations, a better VPS, Vent server, etc..

Other then that, I wouldn't put in any money. However, I do find giving money for a game a little "weird" in a context form if I would say. But, people pay for actual video games for PS3, Wii, Xbox 360, so why not spend it on an online game?

[Evercraft]

It's definitely necessary to keep a lot of servers alive, especially considering good advertising isn't usually free...