[Xerihae]

Oh I'm sure I'd feel somewhat grateful yes. Would I allow it to change the way I treated in the player in game? Not in the slightest. To do so would be to compromise what I would see as my professional work ethic, which in this case would be to ensure all players in the game are held to the same standards/rules.

Now try not to take offense at this commercial-type people, but I'm going to let you in on a personal observation of mine in regards to "free" and games, that I've noticed over the years of MUD and MMO playing:

The only people who think a game is "free" when you have to pay to access some in-game content are the people who run the games and marketing-type people. I'm talking about GAMES, not websites, not museums, but GAMES. I've literally talked to hundreds of MUD and MMO players over the last 18 years or so, and I've yet to meet one that would consider the following a "free" game:

"You can play ThisMUD for FREE!
To progress past level 10 you will need to pay a fee/donation of £50"

You may all continue to argue that your game is free to play because someone can log in and play those first ten levels without paying a penny, but I have never met a MUD or MMO player who wasn't a commercial game admin or had a career in marketing that thought this was a fair description of said type of game.

Pay-for-perks, when said perks can also be earned in-game with an equivalent amount of time, is fine. Restricting access to some of your games content to people who have paid means it is no longer free, it is only PARTLY free. Claiming it is free is a misleading and inaccurate blanket statement.

Just because business says it is so and has the money and clout to change things to their liking, doesn't make it right or even supported by the majority.