Jun 10, 2010

Update on Tagged Glitch Rollbacks

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I noticed a lot of complaints in my news feeds today.  The mass account roll back that Zynga felt was necessary and so important has affected many users who didn't even use the code to get the Tagged compensation package.  I predicted this would happen and should feel smart about it.  Since Zynga is too easy to predict (just go with the option that will upset the greatest number of players), I feel mad instead.







I went to The Forum Boards to see if anybody else was complaining and found the thread listed below.  Zynga is aware of this problem and they want you to comment on this thread if your account was rolled back in error.  All comments will be hidden and they also suggest that you start a Zynga Customer Support Ticket.  If you don't know how do this, click HERE for.  Not sure any of this will help you but it's worth a try.  I'm sure those who did use the code can accept the rollback and move on.  It's very unfair to punish the innocent players because Zynga was unable to properly implement this rollback.  We are always the ones to pay for Zyngas mistakes.  I'm sorry if my blog is turning into a anti-Zynga blog.  I'm not intentionally trying to do this.  They are providing me with too much material for me to not comment on their inadequacies.  Zynga please give us the game we fell in love with back.  I'm losing so many of my favorite mafia members.  My mafia family is who keeps me coming back to this game.  Without them I would have gone back to Full Tilt Poker or Pogo a long time ago.

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From the The Zynga Forum Board
"Hey guys feel free to post if you were rolled back in error today. There was an exploit that some took advantage of, and those accounts have been rolled back.

If you were rolled back, and you believe it is in error, post about it in here. Please include your Facebook User ID Number, so we can have your account investigated.

*Edit* All posts in this thread are hidden, to protect User's Personal Information, so if you can post it, we see it.

Also, it is also a great idea to contact Customer Service using the Link below:
http://zynga.custhelp.com/app/ask

One more thing, would you please let me know if you tried the code, and failed in doing so, or whether you had no contact with it whatsoever and got rolled back. Just trying to help figure out the cause of the Rollbacks that were in error.
Thanks
__________________
Having issues with MW's, use the User Based Issue Solutions Thread to help solve them from a user level

Links to all Zynga Games and Support can be found here.

This is a response from one of my smart computer friends, Tom Huges, taken right off my post about this article.  It's very well said and I wanted to share it with you.
I know your blog isn't an anti-Zynga blog, but you're right! You can pick from a vast array of their issues and write pages on any of them. I keep seeing posts such as these in my news feed (regarding the unwarranted rollbacks):

"Email from Zynga.
'This rollback will not be reversed.'
Enough is enough, time to say goodbye."... See More

This person who wrote this was unaware of the glitch, never received word of how to exploit it, and doesn't even SWEAR for Christ's sake! She's one of the sweetest ladies in my mafia and has never done a thing to Zynga. Yet they said they will not help her...

Zynga's active monthly users on Mafia Wars has fallen 20% in the past month. I suspect the trend will accelerate as a result of their recent actions, and continue to accelerate so long as their rectal cranial inversion remains.

I use scripts, and I admit I did use the exploit (and benefitted from the rollback, too - note on my profile for details) - but Zynga pretty much asked for it. They allowed their sloppy code to exist in the public eye, which is unacceptable. They do not beta test their code or even validate it, it seems. People will be people, and whenever they can gain an advantage they will take it.

Simply punishing them (and others who didn't do it) because of a mistake they made is ludicrous. They are spending time and money to punish these users, instead of fixing the glitches and bugs which said users have been exploiting. The quicker they fix all the bugs, the less they will have to worry about those annoying cheating users.

I have a programming language under my belt, and so I am qualified to say that it is NOT HARD to prevent these glitches from occurring in the first place. If I can examine Zynga's code and point out all the exploitable parts of it without their code even being in my native programming language, then all that means is they're wasting all the money they're being given by their players.

It is Zynga's obligation and duty to all its users to provide solid, non-exploitable code. Error correction is not difficult to implement and there are numerous ways they can check for bugs and exploits - even scripts, if they wanted to!

Furthermore, hackers and exploiters work for free, and they are ubiquitous. Zynga does not have nearly unlimited money, time, or manpower, unlike said hackers/exploiters. This is another reason they should be focusing on error correction and not punishing hackers; hackers and exploiters will always exist, no matter where one looks.

Fighting them is like fighting the wind. The wind will always win in the end. Building things to prevent the wind from acting oneself is the only way to make it stop affecting you./
Tom Huges

4 comments:

  1. Fighting them is like fighting the wind. The wind will always win in the end. Building things to prevent the wind from acting oneself is the only way to make it stop affecting you./Tom Huges
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    As we also use the wind to generate energy, we can also benefit from the Zynga rollbacks.
    As soon as rumors arise about a massive rollback due to glitches that one exploited, store ALL your good loot and collection items in a clean mw account. Wait for the storm to pass and your account to be rolled back (and restore your loot status to that of the date they used to restore it to) and send all the loot back from your clean account.
    It's the quickest way to max out on Hunters, Mugs, whatever, AND have a load of them to share with your family if you originally had more than 250 of each..............
    Thanx Zynga! with the Tagged rollback, you made a lot of people in my family VERY happy hahahahaha

    ReplyDelete
  2. Many took advantage of the code and never knew they were exploiting anything. I, myself, have spent money on GF points but will never do so again.

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  3. I completely agree with your friend Tom Huges; Zynga is very very sloppy with code. I don't completely place the blame on the devs though; it's probably the greedy suits who insist on instantaneous results and eschew spending time on anything that does not create new features, however buggy.

    And this is why I never spend money on them.

    On a more positive note, I think their graphic artists are superb and should be commended for putting out such a high volume of good quality graphics.

    ReplyDelete
  4. ha ha..many took advantage of the code but didnt know they were exploiting anything?really?common sense maybe??????

    ReplyDelete

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