So Jagex came up with this idea to give us all a weekend when we could get bonus XP. The idea was to have XP start at a 2.7x multiplier and then descend gradually using an exponential-type curve to 1.1x. But they messed up and the curve was steeper than it should have been. And then the predictable complaining ensued.
I think a little perspective is in order.
First, for Jagex. I think the bug itself is pretty embarrassing—not because it is the most serious issue in the world, but because of what it shows about the much-maligned (and justifiably so) QA process in place at RuneScape.
I have repeatedly defended Jagex when I have seen people complaining about obscure bugs or expecting perfection—I’ve been writing software for 30 years and I know that when you have programs, you have bugs. With a code base as large as RuneScape’s, it’s normal and expected for problems to arise, often due to the interactions of different systems.
But this is not an obscure bug—it’s a glaring flaw that goes to the very heart of this feature. I simply cannot conceive of how this error wasn’t caught. Even a single hour of proper testing should have revealed it immediately. (Incidentally, the initial attempt to hand wave this away as “not a bug, but a small error” was rather comical, in an Orwellian sort of way).
For years I have called on Jagex to implement a beta testing program, even asking that this be done at the very highest level of the company. Every time I do, I get told that Jagex doesn’t think it is necessary, even though on a regular basis, events like this one show clearly that it is needed—desperately.
All that said, nobody is perfect and we do all make mistakes, even sometimes mistakes that seem like the sort we shouldn’t make. It’s not the end of the world.
To the whiny players hurling around insults and accusations about this, all I can say is: grow the hell up. This is not a bug that caused you to lose XP you already earned, all it did was cause a nice bonus that nobody anticipated to be not quite as nice as we thought it would be. Okay, some folks spent a bit of money on ingredients they didn’t get maximum use out of, but it’s not like anything went to waste.
Jagex didn’t owe any of us a bonus XP weekend, and we have no right to look the proverbial gift horse in the mouth.
Suppose one day the phone rings and you find it’s a long lost uncle who is dying, and as his last surviving heir, he plans to leave you a million dollars. Then a year later, he passes and his will is read, and you find out that you got “only” $750,000. Would you be grateful for that inheritance, or curse your dead uncle over the quarter million you “lost”?
The answer to that question speaks volume about your own character. Try working on that, instead of complaining about a bonus that nobody expected anyway.