Honestly, I don't really understand why people demand that the Platinum rank be removed.
You no longer have the top rank? Well that's hardly a justification to remove a yet-unreleased rank altogether. If you make a big deal out of having a higher rank than everyone else, that's your problem; in that case, this is actually a good thing because it's one higher rank to gain.
You were told it wasn't going to happen? For those of you who were at the Owner Q&A, Chad also said that he didn't think MCSG would have lasted two entire years; we can all be wrong, and that it won't necessarily be a bad thing. Plus, for those of you who want to support the community the most, here's your chance.
You think it'll be too expensive? In comparison to other communities, our ranks are on the affordable side. The Platinum rank is supposed to be rare and exclusive, and as such it's supposed to be expensive. It's a top-tier rank, just like everyone else offers.
You don't like what it does? You don't even know what it does! It hasn't been released yet.
Here's all I can say to put some peoples' minds to rest:
- There will likely be an upgrade path for Diamond ranked players. So people who have Diamond now will be able to upgrade at the price difference between the two ranks. You will not need to pay full price.
- The Perth group was given the rank as Beta testers
because free labor! as a show of appreciation for having people take the time and effort to go down and attend a meet-up like that. One dude traveled over two hours to get there, and we thought that was pretty cool. Really, the Perth giveaway was no different than regular giveaway safe for a nefty new rank.
- The platinum rank will be the new top Premium rank, but it will not override Friend, VIP, or staff member. Those ranks are not user-purchasable, and as such are not considered Premium ranks.
Questions? Concerns? Save them for the actual release.