I'm surprised, yet not surprised by the differences in responses here.
On one hand, in another thread, a pirate got 700 ACs and told others to, "Get over it. Poor you.", while flashing his free 700 AC. On the other hand, anyone who did not receive anything whatsoever has a valid complaint surrounding this issue. (This is a main concern I've sorta been seeing)
There is no communication on Rare's end. If I were part of its marketing team, this isn't the way to "surprise" your community. As you can see, we're just in a cesspool of disagreement. We certainly do not know if ACs are going to "roll out" from the 23rd to the 31st. There isn't even word on that either. It's completely normal for fans/people of the community to raise concern.
To those saying people who obtained nothing aren't entitled, I'm going with some of the latter. You have loyal fans out there who feel kicked in the teeth when their buddy they introduced to the game a week ago, who doesn't even play it, got 750 ACs. The loyal player got nothing. There is nothing, stat-wise or commendation-wise, to calculate your coins. Rare just threw you in a hat, and choose randoms to give a currency you'd otherwise need to spend money on.
Also, this free AC can complete an entire Collector's set for you, if you add it in to your left over ACs, free of charge, for example.
I'm going to get sacked for my opinion on this, I know it. But, coming from a PR & Advertising background, this is not only harmful to the community, but there has been little-to-no communication from Rare on this as well as utter confusion surrounding this giveaway. To back it up, it's also the holiday season. I also consume myself in World of Warcraft, and I pay for that service every month. During the holidays, each and every player gets the same new gifts; all on an equal front. No one gets an insane, exclusive gift, and no one gets nothing. That game already has enough RNG in it, but even some of that can be justified. In WoW, if a boss didn't drop a helmet you need, that's RNG. Although, you can try again at a different level on the same boss, or simply wait until next week. There may even be a better alternative helmet instead. Thing is, you just play the game. They wouldn't just give away 1-million gold to random players... so much backlash in the community would arise. Bad business.
In this situation, Rare gave out, (to some a more generous amount than others), their new currency you'd need to pay real life money for. Doesn't matter if you played for 5 hours, or since Beta to this very day; you're all in the same hat with no regard or connection whatsoever. There is already an uneven field at work in the community, and I can completely understand the confusion and frustration of those who got nothing.
Now, what about me? I'm more concerned about the confusion behind this fiasco, honestly. I'm sitting here without a gift, and I'm ultimately okay with it, but can't help but be a little discouraged at the same time. I'm happy for those who got AC coins; especially to those who snagged 700-750 ACs. But, remember there are also those who got nothing while the friends they sail with got something. To some it is not a feel-good moment.
