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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsBattle.net Real ID preview and FAQ
by Robin Torres 
May 5th 2010 at 3:30PM
Real ID features
- Real names for friends Your Real ID friends' names will appear next to their characters.
- Cross-Game chat You will be able to talk to your Real ID friends cross realm and in other games like StarCraft II and Diablo III.
- Rich Presence You will be able to
snoopsee what games and modes your Real ID friends are playing. So you'll know if they are just hanging around Dalaran. And they'll know the same about you. - Broadcast You can broadcast short messages to all of your Real ID friends and view recent messages that they have broadcast.
- Friend once, see all characters Real ID friends can see all of each other's characters. All. You won't be able to pick and choose which ones can be seen, unless they are on another Battle.net account.
The complete Real ID FAQ is after the break.
Real ID FAQBattle.net's Real ID system is a new, optional layer of identity beyond the standard in-game character level of identity that keeps players connected to each other across multiple Blizzard Entertainment games. When players mutually agree to become Real ID friends, they'll have access to a wealth of additional features designed to enhance their social gaming experience. For information on these upcoming features, check out our Real ID page and read the FAQ below.
Real ID Friends
How will I become Real ID friends with another player?
Both players must first mutually agree to become Real ID friends. To send a Real ID friend request to another player, simply enter his or her Battle.net account name (an email address) using the Add Friend function in-game. The other player will see the pending request in their friends list, and if they accept, you will become Real ID friends with each other.
Who should I add to my Real ID friends list?
Real ID is a system designed to be used with people you know and trust in real life -- friends, co-workers and family -- though it's ultimately up to you to determine who you wish to interact with in this fashion. When you become Real ID friends with another player, you will be sharing your real name and opening up new communication options with that player. In addition, players who are Real ID friends with that player will be able to see your name in a "friends of friends" list, which allows people to be able to quickly send Real ID friend requests to others they may know.
What is the "friends of friends" feature of Real ID?
Similar to other social-networking platforms, when you click on one of your Real ID friends, you will be able to see the names of his or her other Real ID friends, even if you are not Real ID friends with those players yourself. If you happen to know someone on that list, you will be able to quickly send a Real ID friend request to that player. This feature is designed to make it easy to populate your Real ID friends list with people you might enjoy playing with.
How can I remove a Real ID friend from my list?
Simply right-click their Real ID name and select Remove Friend. That player will no longer be on your Real ID friends list, and you will no longer be on theirs. To stop using Real ID, simply remove all of your Real ID friends from your friends list, and do not accept any more Real ID friend requests.
Will Battle.net inform me if I enter an invalid Battle.net account name when I send a Real ID friend request?
A player who sends a Real ID friend request will only be notified if the other player accepts the request. To protect the privacy and security of all of our players, the requesting player will not be notified if the email address entered is an invalid Battle.net account name or if the other player declines the request.
What information about me will other players see when I use Real ID?
If you are using Real ID, your mutual Real ID friends, as well as their Real ID friends, will be able to see your first and last name (the name registered to the Battle.net account). You will also be able to see the first and last name of your Real ID friends and their Real ID friends. Your Battle.net account name (your email address) is not displayed to other players through the Real ID friends list. In addition, players with Real ID relationships will be able to view each other's online status, Rich Presence information, and Broadcast messages, and will be able to see which character and game their Real ID friends are playing across supported Blizzard games.
Am I able to set my status to show my Real ID friends whether I am online or away?
You are always able to set your status to show whether you are online, away, or busy. Any Real ID or character-level friend on your friends list will see your online status. Beyond simple online status information, Real ID friends will see detailed Rich Presence information (what character the Real ID friend is playing, what they are doing within that game, etc.) and will be able to view and send Broadcast messages to other Real ID friends.
How does Blizzard safeguard my information?
We respect the privacy of our players and recognize the importance of providing a secure environment for them. You can find out how Blizzard safeguards user information by reading our Online Privacy Policy.
What can I do if another player is contacting me through the service and behaving inappropriately?
If you feel that another player is behaving inappropriately when contacting you through the service, please contact a Game Master in-game or visit the in-game support contact page, and a support representative will be able to assist you. There is also an option to permanently block individuals from communicating with you in Battle.net and within the games themselves.
Will parents be able to manage whether their children are able to use Real ID?
We plan to update our Parental Controls with tools that will allow parents to manage their children's use of Real ID. We'll have more details to share in the future.
World of Warcraft Friends & StarCraft II Friends
What's a World of Warcraft friend or StarCraft II friend?
A World of Warcraft friend is any player you add to your friends list by World of Warcraft character name; this works just like adding friends works in World of Warcraft now. You will be able to add StarCraft II character names to your StarCraft II friends list in a similar fashion. If you add a character name to your friends list and are not Real ID friends with the player, you will not see the player's real name in the game, nor will they see yours. Character-level friends such as these are specific to each game (i.e. World of Warcraft character friends cannot see each other in StarCraft II or communicate cross-game) and can see online and offline status information only, not Rich Presence details or Broadcast messages. Other characters that a World of Warcraft friend creates will not automatically be added to your friends list.
What information about me will other players see in-game if I do not use Real ID?
If you are not using Real ID, only the in-game character name and online/offline status of the character you are playing will be visible to other players, and only within that game.
Can I use features such as cross-game chat, Rich Presence, or Broadcasts if I do not use Real ID?
Features such as cross-game chat, World of Warcraft cross-realm and cross-faction chat, Broadcast messages, and Rich Presence are only available if you use Real ID. For more information, visit the Real ID features page.
Can my Real ID friends see all of my World of Warcraft characters?
Real ID friends will be able to see all of each other's characters across games; there will not be an option to hide specific characters from Real ID friends or to appear offline to them when you're logged in. If you wish to communicate with someone through only a character, you can opt to use the traditional "in-game friend" system and add that player as a World of Warcraft friend.
Filed under: News items
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 6)
CaryEverett May 5th 2010 4:26PM
Perfect example of what I was talking about...
James and Darksky above these posts were talking about wanting to share their RealID with pugs they met over the random dungeon finder.
Some people have a poor understanding of what boundaries should be used in defining who you want to share information with. Ya know?
DoctorFate May 5th 2010 4:41PM
What if you and i were to become RealID friends because we get along stupendously in-game, but i know for a fact that you are also friends with people i hate and that hate me? Does that mean we shouldn't be friends, and miss out on the benefits of RealID? You COULD say "oh grow up.. etc" but i have come across some very unsavory characters that play this game, and i would not trust them with my real name. Maybe on day they'll get upset because you got a piece of loot they wanted, and just "accidentally" broadcast your name, email address, and other info on Trade chat. Sure, Blizzard could maybe take action for this but the irreversible damage has already been done.
Kylenne May 5th 2010 7:42PM
Cary, you sound like you've never been stalked online before. If you've ever gone through it, you would not be nearly so cavalier about sharing your real name with the whole internet. It's not anything I would wish on my worst enemy.
The Friends of Friends feature should be PARTICULARLY worrisome for "big girls". I would rather not have the batshit insane ex-boyfriend that stalked me online for six years be able to track me in game because he happened to friend someone I know on WoW. There are a million reasons why this feature alone is a bad idea, and I highly doubt it'll go through; if it does, I'm going to have to pass on RealID, even though it would be a godsend to be able to chat with my rl friends who play on different servers.
icepyro May 5th 2010 11:08PM
Wow.
Just WOW.
People are afraid of 'friend of friends' list? I mean. really. Let's see what that list comprises of based on this info.
Let's say I'm realID friends with Kylenne who is friends with CaryEverett. What do I see?
OH, she's friends with CaryEverett. Here's a link so I can request to be friends.
The end.
Period.
Stop.
Halt.
Could I stalk Cary? Well, that depends on how they do the link where I could be friends. If it is a link like facebook and myspace and whatnot, then well, not unless Cary accepts my friend request. The best I could do is repeatedly request every day for the rest of my life. I'm pretty sure there will be a way to prevent that or at least report it.
Now if they do it wrong and I can glisten any information about Cary other than her name, maybe the email address, then maybe, but it's not any worse than facebook does to you. If you have a problem, then don't sign up. Cary is obviously comfortable with her level of privacy and understands the risks. *shrug*
I fully intend to use the feature as it is intended myself. Just sayin.
styopa May 5th 2010 3:58PM
Sounds poorly planned.
Some of the features are "oh, that's decent", but many are "um, hell no?".
So with the current all or nothing plan, I'll take nothing, thanks.
Entropy May 5th 2010 4:04PM
I can see *some* raiding guilds requiring that you be Battle.Net friends with guildies, so that if you are say, on alts or playing Starcraft, they can inform you that its raid time.
I'm not going to use this feature at all, and I will not join a guild that requires it. If I'm playing Starcraft, I want to play it in peace without WoW interference. However, I can just see this "battle.net networking" causing drama in the future.
Endless May 5th 2010 4:04PM
"Real ID is a system designed to be used with people you know and trust in real life -- friends, co-workers and family..."
Sorry, this is just plain idiocy. Those people don't need to see my RL name, as they already know it!
Blizzard doesn't seem to realize there are two levels of trust. Trusting someone online doesn't necessary mean I trust him offline. What's over the 'net, stays over the 'net. I am perfectly okay being online friends with a murder convict or a pedophile, since I know he can't never ever put his hands on me nor on my kids... but do I want him to know my real name? I damned don't!
I may trust a fellow guildie enough to show him my other characters in Blizzard games and to enjoy the convenience of being "visible" to each other even outside our realm or faction, but not enough to give him my real name. There should be some in-between step, like "Real ID without RL info".
Blizzard, this is not enough. Go back to your room and rethink it once again!
Oregondonor May 5th 2010 5:43PM
This is the dumbest f*cking thing i have ever read.
DoctorFate May 5th 2010 4:04PM
"Cross-Game chat You will be able to talk to your Real ID friends cross realm and in other games like StarCraft II and Diablo III."
Awesome! Now gold spammers can all talk to each other and coordinate assaults on specific realms with more efficiency!
hp1 May 5th 2010 4:08PM
The visible last name, particularly in combination with Friends of Friends being able to see it, is an absolute deal breaker.
I have given out my email, my IM and even my cell phone number to select guildies but I have never ever given out my last name.
RichardCyphr May 5th 2010 4:12PM
A lot of the comments that I'm reading really show that the community is not very happy with all the features of this service. I personally, think it is a good idea, but I do wish that Blizzard would listen to the users. I do like the idea of being able to chat with some of my guildies on different servers, and I think it is nice that I'll be able to talk with all my IRL friends who play on different servers.
I would like to be able to add some of my raiding guild members to my list so that if I'm on an alt and they want to do something, they can ask if I want to go; however, like many of you people, I don't necessarily want every character I make to be contacted.
I don't think it would be that tough to add in a few extra features to give us some options to control how the Real ID works. If Blizzard can't make it appeal to the masses, then system won't catch on, and no one will count on using it.
rabidtangerines May 5th 2010 4:13PM
I really like this..except for the fact that it shows
rabidtangerines May 5th 2010 4:15PM
Your full name...x) I would love this for keeping in touch with people from my old server, but not if it means they'll see my full name.. :/
DoctorFate May 5th 2010 4:17PM
i think that's going to be the biggest issue people have with this. Real world names don't really belong in a fantasy game.
rabidtangerines May 5th 2010 4:19PM
All it would take was an option to keep your last name private to make this realid feature awesome.. Or choose *who* can see it.
GormanGhaste May 5th 2010 5:07PM
I think they should have you pick a unique battlenet use name, that all your friends could see--then you wouldn't have to worry about sharing your real name or email address.
Lios May 5th 2010 4:18PM
Hmm, this doesn't sound useful at all. I wanted to make friends with people in LFD and communicate with them cross-server, but I'm not going to give them all my characters or my real name/e-mail. I'm a guildmaster and I'd like my officers to know my Alliance alts so they can contact me if they need me, but I still want to be able to hop on a secret alt if I really don't want to be disturbed. I don't want anyone to see my real name because they are friends with my friends. I want my co-worker on my friendslist, but I don't need him to see that one special alt I use when I'm 'sick' from work. The only person I can see getting my real ID is my husband, who is sitting 3 feet away from me... Not very useful at all.
ShadowEric May 5th 2010 4:18PM
The last name is a huge deal-breaker for many, including me.
See the official thread here for the ongoing discussion: http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=24702231147
There are people with last names that are not that common or who have a certain public exposure due to their job. There shouldn't be a need for their names to be out there.
The friends of friends able to see your name is bad too.
Suppose one of your friends (or friend of friend) gets hacked. Now hackers can link real names to toon names and account names and build lists. Not only that but they can search for your name online and many many of us have our name out there for professional reasons that have no link to WoW. Blizzard is now creating that link.
Having a real name also allows for easier social engineering, allowing hackers and co. to find out your password to WoW (or worse) easily. That's for people who use personal info in their passwords, which you shouldn't do, but you know it's gonna happen.
Anyway, through no fault of our own, if a friend gets hacked, we've been compromised.
This is bad.
Eury May 5th 2010 4:19PM
I am clearly fighting a losing battle here.
I am not a closet gamer but I definitely don't tell everyone that I am GM of a casual raiding guild and spend a couple nights a week raiding. I do a fairly good job of keeping my "work circle" and "not-work circle" of association separated as well - hell I even have 2 twitter accounts for that purpose.
Is it completely wrong for me to not want everyone to know everything about me including who else I associate with?
I will say Kudos to Blizz for not making either the Real ID or FB linkage mandatory or the "default setting".
There are definite pluses to this that I actually do like - but if I opt in, I lament the thought of having to get a second account so I can have my secret ninja toons to play. How else does a GM or other Guild Officer keep their sanity aside from drinking - super secret toons of course!
Avan May 5th 2010 5:12PM
It would be great if they were to implement "Friend Groups" like Facebook and LiveJournal had. Put friends into groups, and restrict groups from being able to see who is in the other groups.