“Players must take care to stay away from any activity that violates the Terms of Service.”
Square Enix has banned more than 5,000 players for what it considers ‘illegal activities’ in Final Fantasy 14.
In an update to the official website, the publisher reminded players that ‘real money trading (RMT) and other illegal activities disrupt the balance of the game and as such are prohibited under the Terms of Service’.
After confirming ‘the existence of players participating in these illegal activities’, Square Enix has now terminated 5037 accounts for participation in real money trading and prohibited activities, and another 814 for real money advertising.
The ban took place between 25 February and 3 March 2021.
“Players who discover any confirmed cheats should not exploit or distribute such information under any circumstances,” the statement read (thank you, PCGN). ‘Instead we ask players to submit a report using the command in the game [System Menu] -> [Support Desk] -> [Contact Us] -> [Report Cheating].
“In addition, any evidence of RMT can be reported by right-clicking on the character’s name in the chat log and selecting the menu [Report] -> [Report RMT Activity]. The report will be processed automatically, and if it is decided to fall under RMT ads, the commentary of the report will not be restricted. ‘
Square promises that it will ‘take strict disciplinary action against any accounts with confirmed involvement in RMT / illegal activities’ and advises players to ‘get away from any activity’ which he says violates the ToS.
Square Enix recently announced Endwalker, the next expansion for MMO Final Fantasy 14. It will be offered in the fall of 2021 for PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4 and Mac.