(Partial rant) Why are gaming communities for multiplayer games so often filled with toxicity? Why aren't game developers doing more to stop this?
(Partial rant) Why are gaming communities for multiplayer games so often filled with toxicity? Why aren't game developers doing more to stop this?
There are plenty of multiplayer games I adore. However, it seems like every community has these "brain dead", patronizing, or out right toxic elements that are just nasty. I'd rather debate politics than make suggestions in some gaming communities because the responses are just so ... annoying.
As an example, I once dared to suggest that a game developer implement a mode to prevent crouched status from rendering on death cams so that players that are bothered by t-bagging could avoid it (after a match where a friend rage quit because someone just kept head shotting him -- possibly with cheats -- and then t-bagging). This post got tons of hate, and like -50 upvotes on reddit because of course someone should be forced to watch someone t-bag them.
Another example on a official game forum... I made a forum post suggesting Bungie use Mastodon (or really just something else being my intent)... The response I got was some positivity but mostly just "lol nobody uses that sweetie" and other patronizing comments.
Meanwhile studios themselves often seem to be filled with developers that understand this stuff is a problem, and the lack of sportsmanship (or generally civilized attitudes) does push away players. It just doesn't make sense to me that no studio is saying "get lost" to these elements or implementing anti-toxicity features. I just want to play games with nice normal people, is that really so much to ask?
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I hate to say it but many people play multiplayer games because it gives them the ability to be complete cunts to others with zero possibility of any real repercussions.
That is the draw.
Behaviours that would get you thrown out of a public space or banned from a group d&d session or punched in the face can be repeated again and again in online gaming.
The same people that like to troll spaces like this are the same people who only play multiplayer games to grief others.
It is an often repeated quote, to the point it has become trite but it is true:
Some people just want to watch the world burn
Anonymity + Audience = Assholes.
Yep. Penny arcade did a great comic on this almost 20 years ago.
The Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory
Which was:
Normal Person + Anonymity + Audience = Total Fuckwad
Normal Person - Consequences + Audience = Total Fuckwad
Which is a perfect explanation for Twitter both before and after EM took over.
Anyway, her suggestion looked like this:
Normal Person - Consequences + Audience = Total Fuckwad
which adjusts Anonymity toward its functional result. For some reason, and I don't know why, the notion of subtraction, of negation, is much more optimistic that our construction because it implies that you can add something and change it. The underlying assertion is that we can fix this with technology, which, again, you know, engineers. Our conversations tend to be interesting.
Very cool when it's put like that.
That's... depressing but I could easily see it...
Still, I find it hard to believe that's the majority. I remember days when it wasn't as bad as it's gotten. Like is it so many people that it would truly hurt profits that much vs what it could bring (there was a point where my friends and I almost entirely stopped playing online games because these people were just making it an annoying experience instead of a fun one; I can't imagine I'm in the only group of friends that experienced that/had folks that had to take a break).
I'd really love it if someone who works for one of these bigger studios (even anonymously) said why seemingly no time is spent on really trying to just expel toxic players like would be done in real life (in the various examples you gave).
Edit: My true pipedream would be that there's some next level person (senior dev, staff software engineer, product owner) at one of these studios lurking that goes "you know what you have a point" and actually does something about this 😅
It is not the majority but:
1: The angry cunts drive away the players that just want to have fun, so they can soon dominate a space and turn a game toxic is a short time.
2: People remember the bad interactions. It you play ten games in a session and only one is filled with toxic arseholes...Guess which game you will remember the next day.
3: Once the toxic shitheads find a game that is allowing their behaviour to continue and not dropping the ban hammer on them, they will keep coming back and invite their toxic mates to join the fun.
I'm not sure I even regard this as a developer studios responsibility.
What has the game to do with how it's players behave? Your teebagging example is great for this: You seek a technical solution for a behavioural problem of the player base? That's a bit too far.
I'm pretty sure I know the players you describe. I've played against them, I've played with them and talked to them. I've let them get to me and ragequit. They are clearly cunts and bullies. Not much you can do about them.
Change what is in your control: Play in a good state of mind where this stuff does not get to you (not when you're tired after work). Turn off voice comms. Don't let it get to you. Worst thing you can do to a troll is ignore them.
Not much you can do about them.
Most of the games have ignore/mute. I've learned to automatically block anyone at the first sign of mild toxicity, so I don't have to see the rest and have it ruin my experience. I'm never going to see the people again anyway, so there's no reason to give them the benefit of a doubt, and by blocking them early I can play in peace and still have fun.
That's probably the best way to do it.
I'm not sure I even regard this as a developer studios responsibility.
I mean, they're the ones running the servers and ultimately providing admittance. There always going to be "bad people" unless owners of establishments actually exclude them (or as I've suggested -- since this is an imaginary world -- just take away their ability to be a jerk in said world).
Change what is in your control: Play in a good state of mind where this stuff does not get to you (not when you're tired after work). Turn off voice comms. Don't let it get to you. Worst thing you can do to a troll is ignore them.
Definitely good advice. Part of it is genuinely just friends too though. Like this isn't "my friend", this is my friend (though that's not to say I enjoy this crap either)... and sometimes it's hard to gage their mental state, or even though they're in a bad mood, I'd really like to do something more challenging ... and of course they get t-bagged or abused on comms ... and then everybody is having a bad time.
I wish I had access to these game's source code... then the whole thing would be in my control ☺️
Bro, gaming communities are a reflection of internet communities at large.
The only common thing gaming strangers have is the game. The rest? They could be just about anybody you see on the streets. And the streets ia filled with assholes.
Yes, but the type of game and the interactions in it highly influence the way players act with each other. Look at the way Stardew Valley players and communities are, for example, and then look at the League of Legends one. Incredibly different, simply because the games focus on different things. Competition brings out the worst in people, especially online, and with young (and sometimes old) players who don't have the tools to cope with frustration, toxicity snowballs and turns everybody sour.