I agree to Pyromelter, actually
a) The free mount is part of a promo-thing, supposed to get players back into the game. It would be kind of silly to go "Hey, if you invite someone back into the game, you get a mount. The same reward our vets get. Yeah. Oh, youre a vet yourself? Well... I dunno".
b) I have gotten that mount because I actually knew a lot of people I wanted to get back into the game, and my invitation actually was accepted. I have been playing ever since 2006, so I know a lot of people who left, so contacting them and finding one to take the scroll wasnt hard
c) I agree SO MUCH to Pyromelter. Maybe its because Im not really a moutn collector, but... yes, I am proud I have been a paying customer for 6 years, but that doesnt entitle me to free giveaways, really. FOr my money, I get a game I love, and thats what I pay for.
d) Someone mentioned "retaining customers". I doubt that suddenly handing out a load of free mounts to vets will really keep them in game much longer if they dont enjoy it anymore.
e) Where to draw the line? Do only people who have been here since 2004 get a reward? Then everyone who joined later will complain even louder! 5 years? 4 years?
What if your sub lapsed for even only one month... no reward anymore? What if you set up an account years ago, have played like 1-2 months at a time, with an overall of, I dunno, 6 months, but an account that is 8 years old. Do you get a reward then too? Would that be fair?
f) There are games with vet rewards, but wouldnt it be a bit too late to introduce that now? What if they say "For each year you have been a customer (without lapses), you get a reward". What if you retired your accout in between? (see above)
g) Why do people get upset about this mount.. what about the RAF mount? Thats been around for quite some time, and it was similar...get someone into the game (or have someone make another account), and once that person pays a few times, you get a mount. I am sure SOMEONE complained, but did people react the same way?
h) I frankly dont understand why people feel so very entitled and upset about this promo thing. After all, getting players back into the game, to me, benefits other players too, as sub numbers have been declining.
Compare it to real life... there are promo actions like that in clubs too. When you sub to a magazine, and then see that, if someone else gets a friend to subscribe, that guy gets a free headphone or whatever you get for those "Sign up a friend" things... do you call up the mag and tell them "I want a free gift too, I have been a loyal customer!"
i) FInally, and this brings me back to the beginning:
You have been a loyal customer, you have played the game for a long time. And what did you get out of it? Hopefully, a lot of awesome times in game, a lot of "Ingame memories". You most likely have feat of strengths that returning players will not get (launch events, anniversaries), and you have seen events and phases of WOW they will never get to experience.
You know the game inside out, and if you stayed this long, you probably did because the game was and is fun and gave you enjoyment. And still, when they try to give people an incentive to invite former players back, you feel entitled to get that too?
So even though this will be downrated into oblivion, I frankly dont understand what the outrage is about, and why people make it sound as if they feel totally betrayed, when the game apparently gave them plenty of enjoyment and made them stay all this time.