Originally Posted by Kayu Ishida

What was supposed to be a simple solution to an alleged problem has now evolved into something much more sever. For over the past 24 hours I’ve been hearing near to nothing, save hate and garbage, being spewed all across this thread, and any sort of light that is shone upon the masses has been beaten down by ignorance and insults. Enough is enough, and this is all I can take before exploding into a wave of frustration, disappointment, and utter distress.

Seams like there is 4 types of people here. First, our moderators. Second, the Anet developers. Thirds, people that want an explanation and justice. Fourth, people that just want to flame and troll those seeking answers and justice.

I cannot stress enough how ludicrous it is to think that all the infamous 117 are greedy, evil, unforgivable hackers whose sole purpose was to exploit a programming error until all their selfish needs were satisfied while all other members of the Guild Wars gaming community were abandoned in the depths of an economic crash. Does that description sound over exaggerated and harsh? Well, anyone who knows the truth will be forced to agree on the fact that it is an inaccurate perception of the real situation, a situation that only Arena Net and the 117 know the truth behind. I ask you, why are the 117 being accused of such atrocities when there was never any hard, solid proof presented to the public that they were really guilty of the crimes they supposedly committed?

More bad publicity perhaps?

A veil of imprecision shrouds the definitions of “exploiting” and “cheating”, and now should we add “hacking”? I have had the honor of personally knowing a handful of the 117, and I will not be the first to admit that they are not hackers. In fact, they are so far from hackers, one of them can’t even set up Outlook. Does that sound like a hacker to you? None of them know what .dat files are. Are they still hackers? It is despicable when someone is wrongfully accused of being something they are not, and then the majority of the community exiles the accused and kicks them when they are down and stone then until they bleed. When did we all become liable judges? What justification exists that gives us the right to insult and spell out the fate of the defendants?

Everyone is losing out here. However it does shake Anet's foundation of trust. It also shows that they are a company that is unwilling to admit mistakes or show compassion to any involved, including testers.

The definite lines between justice and discrimination are now blurred. Who is wrong? Who is right? The people that are not members of the two parties will never know the real truth, so let’s stop fooling each other. Arena Net is not telling the truth, and the 117 are not telling the truth… so where will this arguing get us?

Probably nowhere. However, Anet developers are reading this. So if they are willing to ignore support tickets, then maybe they wont ignore this. You cant honestly say they give careful consideration and extensive research to act appropriately when it takes them 5 minutes to respond. In addition, send the exact same message to everyone that sent in a support ticket. A copy and paste message off of their FAQ.

The greatest lose that every single one of us will suffer from is trust. Those who were banned will never trust Arena Net again. Those who befriended the 117 will never trust Arena Net again. Those who felt they were cheated by the 117 will never trust the players Arena Net shuns from Guild Wars again. Those who stumble across future glitches will never feel comfortable reporting the instance, because can you truly invest a full amount of trust in the fact that you won’t be banned for accidently exploiting a glitch? Will you ever trust someone who says to you “Let’s go farm so-and-so! There’s an easy way to do it” without fearing you’re exploiting the game? Where does your trust waver now, or better yet has your trust in anything even faltered? If not, then leave the emotions to those who have felt the impact behind the bans.

I don't expect those that were banned, nor those that support those banned, will invest in any further Anet products. Further, it does instill a doubt in the rest of the community. Is Anet acting justly?

I am sorry, Miss Grey, that you were the messenger who was selected to be the bearer of bad news. Being the face of Arena Net, your task was to retell the story the developers and the suits instructed you to relate to the public. I hope you will be able to sleep at night knowing that it’s your job to say what you are supposed to say, while knowing the truth is behind closed doors. No one will believe my friends because of the label you and your co-workers have placed on them. The perfect word was already used to describe the feeling that your accusations have wrought: demoralizing. It really is the perfect word, agreed?

Truely demoralizing. I have lost sleep, study time and friends over this. When I received an Error45, I just wanted to vomit. Even more so, I have lost a product I love and am emphatically addicted to.. Guild Wars.

I’ve grown tired of all of this. I want my friends back. I want them to have their dignity back. What right do you have to deny them of that? So you think they cheated you in a game? Big deal. Their reputation is ruined because of this nonsense, and that is much harder to fix than an imagined economy. My friends have been nothing but kind, helpful, and generous to countless gamers, and this is how they are repaid? Would you like to know a fact, a truth behind the handful of the 117 I know? They are great friends and have shown great amounts of character in this dark and unjust situation. That is more than I can say about several of the people who have posted here. Be ashamed, be very ashamed that you can judge people you don’t know and feel completely comfortable with yourselves...

Now I am ashamed of myself for ranting when I am completely tired and not in the best state of mind. Most sorry to those who has nothing to do with my peeves, and to all gamers out there, good luck to you.