Do developers troll their fans?

"Everyday we take the Massive daily posts and bring them to Dragoon discussions. We would like to thank Massively for their original content."

Sometimes I honestly wonder what goes on in the minds of the decision-makers at Sony Online Entertainment.

Case in point is the recent decision to add wings to EverQuest II's cash shop. I'm not opposed to cash shops per se, and I'm not opposed to flying mounts or the formerly nifty race-specific quest that allowed Arasai players to earn a pair of functional wings at high level.

Now, though, any old ratonga, iksar, or troll can fork over 20 bucks and take to the skies with angel's wings on his back, and while the EverQuest universe has fairly inconsistent lore on occasion, I can only conclude that someone at SOE thought it would be funny to mess with franchise fans a little bit. If not, surely there are more fan-friendly ways to go about designing cash shop items or new means of transportation.

This isn't the first time SOE has indulged its baser shark-jumping instincts, either. Ask a Star Wars Galaxies vet about the infamous Ewok-themed Valentine's Day if you need another example. And therein lies today's Daily Grind. Do you think that developers troll their fans?

TH