RuneScape is fighting the ever frustrating fight against gold sellers.  This week's Dev Diary is RuneScape vs Real-world Trading!

Of course, gold-sellers have to earn this RuneScape gold somehow. They overcrowd in-game resources with their bots, exploit bugs and scam legitimate players out of items and their accounts. They are the cause of the majority of rule-breaking in RuneScape, and they must be stopped. RuneScape's creator, Andrew Gower, sums it up perfectly: "There has been a significant increase in the amount of real-world trading this year. If we don't find a solution to RWT now, it will ruin RuneScape."

Real-world trading leads to all sorts of problems. We see the negatives falling into two categories: those that affect the game and those that affect our business. On the game side, the legitimate players who don't buy gold feel their efforts are going to waste - why take the time to level skills the proper way if you can just buy some gold? It cheapens the game. Also, the players who do buy gold find it becomes so easy for them to get ahead, they get bored and leave. Mod Hobagoly, Head of RuneScape Content, says, "That's the case with all cheating, whether it's buying gold or cheating your way through a console game - it's fun for a while, but the challenge goes and things quickly get boring."

Find out how RuneScape is fighting this battle, and how you can help!