Thoughts on the Villagers trading scheme (it is a scheme)

[Boccages]

I have been following the Villager trading plaza for a while now because I first wanted to find a good home for Gruff that left my village. And then, this week, Jambette left my village without warning me first so I couldn't make her change her mind but, fortunately, I offered her on the Villager trading Plaza and she found someone that was more than eager to adopt her (which wasn't the case for Gruff). I also got Roald given to me by a very fine woman who was sad to see him go and wanted to make sure he would end up in a good village.

I have to say though that this plaza isn't without its quirks.

If you are looking for desperate people turning their New Leaf cartridges into villagers generators, here's the place. Every day of the week you can find people selling these villagers for ridiculous prices (anywhere between 1 and 50 million bells and even more). It gets even more ridiculous when you think that to get to these prices, people more than certainly will cheat (time travelling for starters and money duplicating tricks for the even less morally challenged). It feels like puppy mills...

• Julian
• Ankha
• Lucky
• Merengue
• Bob
• Rosie
• Fauna
• Marshal
• Stitches
• Fang
• Wolfgang
• Marina
• Octavian
• Fuschia
• Diana
• Whitney

If you are looking for other villagers (because trophy villagers ain't your thing), well you are out of luck or you should just be there at the exact right time with someone that wants to give away these because they are worried of the characters continues existence (as I was). I don't advocate suppressing villager trading or selling. But think really hard before you give an animal to adoption or you are ready to pay millions of bells (virtual money for virtual characters). There is something broken in participating in this sort of behaviour.

 

[TheResult]

If so many people didn't want them so badly, they wouldn't be worth that much.

Make sure, while you're busy shaming all the people who sell villagers, that you shame the people buying them just as much- if not more. Because those are the people who make them so expensive. Those are the people who bid outrageous amounts of bells because they want the villager more than somebody else.

Like you said, it's virtual money for virtual characters. It's pretty harmless, no matter how you look at it.

 

[Boccages]

Oh both are too shame. The ones that are turning their games into villagers generators and the ones who are using money duplicating tricks to outbid the others...

Moreover, there is nothing more depressing than to see 4 Julian listings and 2 Ankha ones on the Plaza when you are browsing it.

And sometimes some sellers will announce there villager as a bid (starting at 1 million bells) enticing players to duplicate money. I've even seen one who said he would rather send his villager to the void then giving it away...

REALLY ?

I have characters that I'd wish were in my town. But I would never pay for them.

 

[Punchyleaf]

WHO CARES. Let people play THEIR games the way they feel like it. And shame on you for trying to shame those who WANT to sell their characters and those who WANT to buy them for such ridiculous prices.

 

[TheResult]

Why do you assume they're using money duplicating tricks?

I'll be honest, I've gotten most of my Dream Villagers without spending much. Merengue, Chadder and Anabelle moved into town naturally, Eugene and Avery were given to me for free, I traded Stitches for Zucker, and all I had to do for Coco was draw somebody a picture. Maybe I'm just lucky, but it seems to me you can get your Dreamies without dumping all that money onto them as long as you're diligent without being impatient.

 

[moonbunny]

Well, I'll give you credit for being unique with your offensive comparison. Usually I see people say it's "slave trading" or "like human trafficking," not puppy mills. +1 for you, I guess.

 

[Boccages]

Relativism is never an answer.

A good part of the players are there to help others get some of their favourite characters in a genuine, selfless fashion. I know, I've talked to them, picked a villager from them, gave them ne of my villager that was moving.

I guess I might be too idealist in thinking that this wouldn't get diluted to a morbid commerce with people extorting money from other players by essentially cheating...

It's not because it's possible to do something that it should be done. There is the game (with its coding flaws and workaround tricks) and the spirit behind the game as devised by its creators.

 

[TheResult]

It's a market. Supply, demand-- and people who can't afford what they want. C'est la vie.

 

[Punchyleaf]

It's a market. Supply, demand-- and people who can't afford what they want. C'est la vie.

This just needs to be quoted and reiterated over and over.

 

[oath2order]

WHO CARES. Let people play THEIR games the way they feel like it. And shame on you for trying to shame those who WANT to sell their characters and those who WANT to buy them for such ridiculous prices.

Excuse me, but that's really kind of rude.

It is like a puppy mill. People turn their villages into a generator for a certain villager. Very much like how people breed two dogs together to generate a certain breed of dog.

I don't see how this is a bad comparison.

 

[Jordandelion]

For Tortimer's sake, just let people do what they want to do... There are so many of these moral rants lately. It's nuts.

 

[Kaiaa]

We shouldn't be shaming anyone for selling or buying villagers. That's what the board is there for. As to how they got their money, most of them play the stock market or sell villagers. There is nothing wrong with many people wanting the same villagers but it's supply and demand. If there is a low supply and a high demand, then people will sell for ridiculously high prices.

 

[moonbunny]

But how do you know they're cheating? It's possible to make lots of money in this game, especially if you've had it for a while. Bell Boom ordinance, beetle hunting, turnips... yesterday I made 460,000 bells from beetle hunting for half an hour. I could have made a million if I had just put in 40 more minutes.

- - - Post Merge - - -

Excuse me, but that's really kind of rude.

It is like a puppy mill. People turn their villages into a generator for a certain villager. Very much like how people breed two dogs together to generate a certain breed of dog.

I don't see how this is a bad comparison.

Puppy mills actually have a negative real world effect, since they're real dogs living in substandard conditions because the breeders value profit more. Villager trading/selling is trading little bits of... programmed data.

It is, in fact, a bad comparison

 

[Zanessa]

I don't like selling my villagers or paying millions for them, so I won't get involved with auctions or anything.
Plus, the most popular villager that I have is Maple and she's with me forever.

 

[TeddysMama711]

Well, I'll give you credit for being unique with your offensive comparison. Usually I see people say it's "slave trading" or "like human trafficking," not puppy mills. +1 for you, I guess.

Lmfao so much this

 

[Amneal]

People! This is a game! Data and memory on a card! It's not like people are selling actual people on the black market! You have got to be kidding me! If you dupe and tt to get bells for a villager then that's your own choice! If you sell your villagers for bells, that's your own choice! Please stop beating a dead horse with this topic!

 

[SliceAndDice]

People! This is a game! Data and memory on a card! It's not like people are selling actual people on the black market! You have got to be kidding me! If you dupe and tt to get bells for a villager then that's your own choice! If you sell your villagers for bells, that's your own choice! Please stop beating a dead horse with this topic!

This, so much.
Please don't compare a Game and something horrible like Puppy Mills or Slave Trading (WTF, really?!). I'm pretty sure the Villagers that get sold don't care. There is way too much reasons why this is a stupid comparison and you should know that! Let people sell and trade. If you don't like it, don't participate.

 

[Boccages]

Just don't try to censor people by saying their opinion is offensive, please.

 

[SockHead]

WHO CARES. Let people play THEIR games the way they feel like it. And shame on you for trying to shame those who WANT to sell their characters and those who WANT to buy them for such ridiculous prices.

There's a lot of hypocrisy in this one. Shaming people for shaming, y'know bcuz.. Well I hope you're smart enough to figure this one out. Like you said it's their choice, so let them make it.

 

[idiotcurl]

Oh for the love of god.

I don't like the whole villager trading thing, myself. It turns the game into something of a popularity contest. But guess what? Its their game. If someone wants to run in a certain way, then they run it a certain way. It's not up to anyone or their bullcrap rants to pass judgement on how people play their game. It's not up to anyone but the player.

While there may be some similarities between human trafficking or puppy mills, it's really unfair to make that comparision. The villagers that are given/sold/traded to other people don't suffer like humans or animals would. They don't feel anything at all. They're not subject to real abuse or mental or physical defects.

All in all, if you don't like it, then don't pay attention to it. If it ticks you off that much, then leave the community in which its going on. Simple as that.