Theft and Personal Integrity In WoW

Recently I had a discussion with a guild master who’s guild bank had been plundered. This got me thinking, why on earth would someone diminish their personal integrity for a video game, for pretend gold?

The answers I’ve received when posing these questions to people range from:

• They don’t see it as real so how can it diminish their personal integrity.
• Are you telling me you didn’t know most people were assholes?
• Revenge on people they hate.
• The game matters to them more than other people and more than their integrity.

I am personally of the belief that MMOs by their very nature transcend the traditional notion of a “video game”. Truly, they are much more in that communities of people build friendships, anonymities, etc.

WoW, at least in my guild has functioned much like a local pub. People get together, shoot the shit, and play darts (well WoW, instead of darts). But the social functionality is identical. With the exception that you don’t end up going home with the fat/ugly person (who’s name you desperately try and remember when you’re staring at this stranger in the morning) and/or you don’t wind up with some nasty STD the next day.

Anyway, the point is this-stealing is stealing. Regardless of the motivation its wrong. So why then do so many people do such things? In some ways it is similar to folks who steal MP3s off the net, or download movies without paying for them. This is also stealing and wrong, we all know it.

However, with WoW there is another component. Often, in order to get access to a guild bank, you’ve had to get to know people and become part of the guild. You have had to have some sort of personal interaction. So now, not only are you stealing pretend pixilated loot in exchange for your personal integrity, you’re also screwing over real people that you know personally.

Has the modern culture and electronic media/property made us rethink whether stealing is wrong, simply by virtue of being easy to do?

Have people just given up on trying to even maintain a monicom of moral character and integrity all together?

Why do you guys think they do it? Do you think it’s wrong, or is it just stupid to even care? Are you of the mindset “LOL, your guild got pwned, suck it up n00b”?

I’m interested to hear the community’s thoughts on the issue and whether they think it really reflects a person’s morals and integrity?