Should Players Buy World of Warcraft Gold? Is WoW gold worth the price?
World of Warcraft is one of my all time favorite games. I’ve lost countless hours of my life to it, leveling multiple alts and starting from scratch on new servers in order to play with new friends. Recently, after yet another server jump, I became frustrated with once again being unable to purchase training or spend time perusing the auction house because of a lack of income on my new server. It was then that I committed one of the most grievous sins in my gaming life.
I bought WoW gold.
My Experience Buying World of Warcraft Gold
Yes, I am that guy. I am the one screwing up server balance and driving up auction house prices because I was willing to part with a little bit of my real-world money in order to make my virtual existence a little easier.
I’m not the only one. A Google search for “WoW Gold” returned over eight million results. Someone is buying gold and keeping all these websites in business.
The site I ended up buying from was mmogap.com. I chose them because they had the lowest price I could find. I bought 500 gold, a paltry sum in the overall scheme of things, but enough to get my character a decent head start. The gold was delivered overnight and my payment went through without a hitch. I actually started to think that the horror stories you hear about these gold companies might actually have been exaggerated.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before I realized I’d made a huge mistake. I started to receive weekly emails in nearly-readable English about ridiculously bad deals on gold. Stuff like: get 100 more gold free, you just have to buy 10,000! I was able to unsubscribe from the email list, but I made the mistake of having the gold delivered to my main character, who was now getting almost daily spam messages via the in-game mail system.
I haven’t had any suspicious charges on my card, thank God, but I did find myself added to some kind of chain letter address list. I’m now receiving invitations to participate in pyramid schemes at my home address almost weekly.
Tips for Safe Gold Buying
So, to answer the question: No, you definitely should not buy WoW gold. The hassle far outweighs the benefit, and you run the risk of having your account permanently banned by Blizzard if they find out.
It’s not terribly difficult to take up a couple of gathering skills and make decent in-game gold on the auction house. Trust me; it’s far easier than dealing with the hassles associated with gold buying.
If you absolutely must have some quick in-game cash, however, at least follow these tips when buying it:
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Stay away from Engrish-ridden sites like mmogap.com. With tales of the horrors of Chinese gaming sweatshops all over the internet, no self-respecting gamer should knowingly support them.
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Get a pre-paid credit card and don’t use your home address. This should cut down on the spam you receive post purchase.
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Do not have the gold delivered to your main character. The best bet is to create an alt that you can immediately delete after you’ve mailed the gold off.
Please, learn from my mistakes. Don’t let the temptation of easily-acquired in-game wealth lead you into a spam-filled hell. Take it from someone who has experienced it, don’t buy WoW gold.
This post is part of the series: Guide to Buying & Selling WOW Gold
Should you buy World of Warcraft Gold? Is WoW gold worth the price? Take a look at this article series for the buying and selling of gold and accounts in the WoW Online Marketplace.
