I am so very upset the paint boards were erased. Punish the bad people not, good and loyal customers. I had so many memories and scenes on those boards and now ALL LOST over a 10 year period. I have cancelled my VIP membership. I think we should have been warned. Very sad ... considering leaving.

This is so wrong BVG. You finally killed the game for so many. I'm furious!!! Years of memories, memorials, birthdays, etc. gone over night. So much deco, etc. You didnt even give any warning so we could have saved with screen shots what we've done. Tons of paint boards gone. You didnt even give a valid reason. If some were using them against rules then why punish all? I think were educated to know that if some were violating then you would have banned them so were left to wonder what the real reason is. To me and many you now really destroyed this game as if it wasnt getting bad enough. I found tonight I had no interest in this game. Your answers always seem to be....in the near future meaning, never. In years you couldnt even change a mystery chest. You can't even fix bugs in the game. You really messed this game up for so many today. You brought the game down so badly doing this. In fact BVG it's not even a game anymore it's a mere money maker to fill your pockets. VIP? What a joke!!! Very important people huh? You took the meaning out of that for so many today. It's a disgrace what you did. You'll never get another dime from me. VIP cancelled as well. I hope you plan on compensating everyone's coins and yc but then again that really can't replace what you took from us. Some things you just can't replace. Thanks for destroying what was ONCE a long time ago....a really good game. I'm certain you'll be losing so many good players now.

Rootbeer (186380136) wrote:This just ruined my best house and others as well. I worked for months decorating that place and having artwork done for it. All my years of art collection gone. The frames being broken were bad enough but this....I'm canceling my VIP and finally stop buying YC. Actually, I'm on the verge of quitting. I've stayed all these years no matter how much I didn't like some changes but I'm tired now. I started in 09 but lost my original FB account and started over with this one. All these years of loving this game.....I can't believe I'm about done with it. I really just want to know if y'all are trying to destroy the game on purpose.

I'm not just upset about my homes/towns. I used to host sales and relied heavily on boards, and I was just planning on doing it again lately after years of sales hiatus so I could get rid of extra inventory. I guess nevermind. BVG, what you did affects selling and buying in the game and so much more, but I'm sure that you know this. So why? You've deleted people's memories (Irreplaceable!) What a spit in the face to everyone. We spend real money buying YC and coins are hard to earn. Those boards cost either/both! It's so wrong to just take them away. I'm upset for everyone. This is so wrong.

All the hand-drawn art I created in my teens with my dad are now gone! YOU COULD HAVE AT LEAST WARNED US FIRST. I would have liked to have taken screenshots.

I'm incredibly devastated for all my fellow Yo's that have had their precious art demolished. This is a very, very bad decision to punish the majority for the actions of a small minority. If this action is reversible, BVG needs to make it happen ASAP. I don't think they realize the fallout from their decision. I can't even wrap my mind around the concept that someone thought this would be the right way to deal with this issue.

Viking Andrew wrote:Dear YoFans,

We have an unfortunate but important update to provide regarding the Paint Boards. Due to unforeseen issues that saw players abusing these boards in ways that were never intended and are in direct violation of our TOS, we have had to make the difficult decision to disable these items and erase all existing content. This means that, effective immediately, Paint Boards will no longer allow you to save images in game.

We understand that this is not an ideal solution, and we sincerely wish there were alternatives.

We acknowledge that many of you have invested in and used these boards extensively. We know that sharing art and creating spaces to communicate in fun and memorable ways are a core part of YoWorld. While we’re forced to disable this feature, please know that we are currently working on a compensation plan to address this inconvenience. Additionally, our team is diligently exploring solutions to restore and improve functionality or provide suitable replacements for these items in the future.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support.

Sincerely,

The YoWorld Team

WARNING: Wall of text Incoming

RE: BVG's decision to disable, erase, and remove Paint Boards.
As an '08 OG player and a professional Project Manager, here's my two cents:

Theories for Removal (Incomplete) -
*Trolls, often wielding newly made alts, using PB's to dox other players, posting their intimate information and pics.
*Trolls using them to display truly unspeakable horrors such as animal cruelty, etc.
*Trolls taking over other players PB's to delete and write over them. Often with inappropriate images ranging from impish to offensive.
*Players that have appointed themselves the morality police and report any PB's they find offensive due to their sexual, yet harmless, nature.

Since their inception, Paint Boards have been used by some as a weapon to shame or offend others, be harmlessly annoying, and everything in between. Both Zynga and then BVG historically handled complaints on an as-reported basis.

The legacy code for the Paint Boards is a Zynga/Flash vestige that somehow survived migration to HTML5 intact.

When it was designed, a single safeguard to dissuade abuse was put in place. If the board is locked then only the owner can use it. If left unlocked, then... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

As we all know, BVG has only recently undertaken an earnest effort to enforce the ToS. Mass banning coins sellers, as an example. BVG had 10 years to get ahead of this ever growing problem. It's Y2K all over again but without the fix and now the planes are falling from the sky (iykyk). It would seem BVG made no effort to consider and enact additional layers of protection.

And now, they've suddenly, and without warning, shut them down. Their kneejerk reaction was to erase all boards in addition to disabling them.
It says to me that this sweeping decision was made without fully considering the impact to their player base.

If an immediate action was needed, it should have been the reverse. Disable the boards but DO NOT erase them. At least until a more reasonable and workable solution could be rolled out. Perhaps a message suggesting users move potentially ToS violating PB's to a locked room or Inventory. So much hard work, so many memories suddenly lost. It beggars belief that anyone can be so offhandedly cruel. Yet here we are.

The Project Manager in me has thoughts on how BVG could have better handled PB abuse prevention.

Disclaimer: I'm not a programmer and I know nothing of how the old Zynga code is integrated into the current format so my suggestions may, or may not, be implementable.

*Player ID Tracking - Any time a change is made to a PB, the YW ID# and time and date stamp is attached, thus making it much easier to police abuse. This information would be listed in the Owners Log so they may use it to submit a report as needed. Trolls would no longer be able to change a PB to something offensive and then report the owner for a ToS Violation.

*New Permissions Setting - Create a new setting that would allow a player to disallow any other player whose accounts are younger that a specified amount of time to access and make changes to their PB's. An suggestion is 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, or Never. This would go a long way to curb troll alts.

In fact, this new setting would enable a player the option to allow or deny any new account (potential alts) access to a multitude of actions:
*Joining the player (following)
*Joining an event
*Visiting certain homes (locking prevents everyone from visiting)
*Making changes to an unlocked PB
*TBD as other players add suggestions

The mechanics of this new setting would include the aforementioned date range options as well a pop-up message to the other player informing them they do not have permission to complete that action.

As a further note, players ages (under 18) and account age limits could be used to automatically disallow them from accessing certain functions. There are already established actions that new accounts can't use until they meet specific requirements, e.g., leaving apartment messages or trading.

That's all for now. Additional thoughts may follow.

Please BVG, tell me you've backed up everyone's boards from before you deleted them, and that you can restore them once you've found the pedos and trolls and scammers, and banned them forever.
I'm sure you've seen by now, just how DEVASTATING this has been. Almost all of us depend on those boards, for decoration, games, hosting events, sales. So much has been lost, and with no warning.
It's been a very sad day in yo.

Maybe to many yo's used paintboards to push back against the woke, dei, lgbtqxyz ++ culture that yo workers have been promoting. I don't have problem with that culture, I just haven't bought the offerings. BUT HAVE BOUGHT A LOT OF PAINT BOARDS,modular rooms, and avenues, to make travels easier in my over 2000 homes, aves and modular rooms ( road signs, billboards, connection homes, and homes created by me). This is an extream reaction if I got this right. I'll give is a bit of time to see how this plays out, been on yo since '09... but his might be the end of the road.

All my work is gone (most very dear to my heart)

tommy (146736020) wrote:Maybe to many yo's used paintboards to push back against the woke, dei, lgbtqxyz ++ culture that yo workers have been promoting. I don't have problem with that culture, I just haven't bought the offerings. BUT HAVE BOUGHT A LOT OF PAINT BOARDS,modular rooms, and avenues, to make travels easier in my over 2000 homes, aves and modular rooms ( road signs, billboards, connection homes, and homes created by me). This is an extream reaction if I got this right. I'll give is a bit of time to see how this plays out, been on yo since '09... but his might be the end of the road.

Ya know tommy, there was no reason to bring up you're obvious distain for a whole section of human beings other than to tell us you're a bigot. It's not relevant to the issue at hand - BVG's decision to disable, erase, and remove Paint Boards.

Not every thing in this world is about you or even for you, Snowflake.

Every Home i had was wb art and nothing nasty just words from songs and jokester pics.i've been playing since game started and had tens of millions of coins invested in those boards thats how good the art was was.no nudes or cuss words at all.They will lose me if they don't give them back like they are already losing so many.This game is whitewashed porn but they refuse to do anything about that

I have a proposition. Let's most of us to delete our accounts. To no longer buy nothing and to let them out of money. This is an abuse. We invested money and creativity, some of us made rooms using the boards. We still playing and paying for this game, despite of its permanent errors and glitches, just to hang out with friends and dear persons and to make beautiful art, to decorate our rooms and to gift our friends. First ruined the brass frames, now the boards. This game is now a non-sense. What to do? To buy more and more expensive pixels and to cover them in money? What a horrible end, after I was here starting from 2009.

Viking Andrew wrote:Dear YoFans,

We have an unfortunate but important update to provide regarding the Paint Boards. Due to unforeseen issues that saw players abusing these boards in ways that were never intended and are in direct violation of our TOS, we have had to make the difficult decision to disable these items and erase all existing content. This means that, effective immediately, Paint Boards will no longer allow you to save images in game.

We understand that this is not an ideal solution, and we sincerely wish there were alternatives.

We acknowledge that many of you have invested in and used these boards extensively. We know that sharing art and creating spaces to communicate in fun and memorable ways are a core part of YoWorld. While we’re forced to disable this feature, please know that we are currently working on a compensation plan to address this inconvenience. Additionally, our team is diligently exploring solutions to restore and improve functionality or provide suitable replacements for these items in the future.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support.

Sincerely,

The YoWorld Team

Dear YoWorld Team,

I am writing to express my disagreement with the recent decision to disable the Paint Boards and erase all existing content. While I understand the need to address the misuse of these boards, this action significantly impacts the creative community within YoWorld.

The Paint Boards have been a vital tool for many of us to express our creativity, share art, and enhance our in-game experiences. By disabling this feature, you risk losing a large number of very creative artists who contribute significantly to the vibrancy and uniqueness of YoWorld. These artists have invested considerable time and effort into creating memorable and engaging content that benefits the entire community.

If certain players are violating the Terms of Service (TOS), they should be banned from the game. Given that you provide guidelines and a reporting feature, it is puzzling why these measures cannot be used to address the issue more effectively. Stricter moderation or improved reporting mechanisms could be implemented to prevent violations while preserving the functionality of the Paint Boards for those who use them responsibly.

I also want to highlight the history and dedication of long-time players. Many of us have been part of the community since 2008 or the old YoVille days, utilizing platforms like yovilleart.com. Back then, Zynga allowed us to use this feature, and many players enjoyed it immensely, patiently spending 15 to 30 minutes to complete each Paint Board. Since Viking released the new Paint Boards, they have become even more popular. The legacy of creativity and community from the past should not be disregarded or hindered by the actions of a few.

I strongly urge you to reconsider this decision and explore alternative solutions that do not penalize the entire player base. The creative artists who make YoWorld such a special place deserve to continue expressing themselves without being affected by the actions of a few.

Please do not view this message as a boycott but as a heartfelt request from a dedicated community member who wants to see YoWorld thrive.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I hope that a more balanced solution can be found to support and retain the creative artists within our community.

Sincerely,

Like a thief in the night BVG came on everyone account and stole everyone's art. I have spent countless hours making paint boards. I have 5 pages of multiple boards. All art from years of hard work. Who ever made this decision needs to be fired. You don't steal art. The reason was because of trolls destroying the policy. You are not better than them. You had no right to my paint boards. All my rooms are destroyed. Not to mention the countless gift of art I sent to others. All my time and love was dismissed by poor management. Shame on you. I am heart broken.

Wow this is terrible
given that this is SO sudden, I really hope this is a 'temporary' fix and you will return them back soon. I'm really glad I have good screenshots of I think most of my rooms with paintboards, mostly custom signs and small visual tweaks that I couldn't achieve with other items. This also puts many ideas I've been working on on indefinite hiatus.

This game needs MORE customization options, not less.

Here's a sad example of a room before and after paintboards were disabled

OMG BVG!! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE? Please, give us some hope, dont keep ignoring us, our hearts are broken, please say something

AddYxXxJB (104278153) wrote:I have a proposition. Let's most of us to delete our accounts. To no longer buy nothing and to let them out of money. This is an abuse. We invested money and creativity, some of us made rooms using the boards. We still playing and paying for this game, despite of its permanent errors and glitches, just to hang out with friends and dear persons and to make beautiful art, to decorate our rooms and to gift our friends. First ruined the brass frames, now the boards. This game is now a non-sense. What to do? To buy more and more expensive pixels and to cover them in money? What a horrible end, after I was here starting from 2009.

No, don't delete your account. Just leave it alone, stop logging into the game and don't spend any money on the game are enough. You have a lot of valuable things in your account I believe. You can still access it when you want to come back to the game, or when BVG fix all of these mess, if possible.

I've already cancelled my VIP subscription. I hope BVG will aware in this month, they earn much less than May due to the decision they made today as the WARNING and CONDEMNATION from us -- dedicated customers to the game!