The Life of the Chinese Gold Farmer

World of Warcraft, produced by Blizzard Entertainment, is one of the most profitable massively-multiplayer-online (MMO) games in history. Players collect currency to buy weapons and other gear to fight monsters, by looting or selling items to other players. At a normal playing rate, the process of collecting currency, known as “the grind,” takes about four months to complete. However, Chinese businesses, known as gold farms, take over the grind from impatient players. The Chinese gamers rarely play, and instead engage in the monotonous preliminary task of collecting currency, which is then passed on to distributors who sell to players, most in Europe or North America. Many gamers describe the shortcut as cheating, because beginners find it hard to match the productivity levels of the Chinese gold farmers. Some US players filed a lawsuit against IGE, an online World of Warcraft gold retailer. However, the gold farmers – who work long shifts and earn about 30 cents per hour – are the players who have the most at stake. –YaleGlobal