- cortana 5
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Posted by: Deus_Ex_Machina
Cortana 5 is a carbon-based lifeform that frequently visits these forums, currently residing in the United States. Practically every male on the site responds to her posts.
The Joyeuse IP Formula
I was going to answer so many questions, but this caught my eye and I am going to go on a freaking rampage. <3
Do you think the game community could be doing more to cut down on harassment or unsporting behavior in general?
Absolutely. A better attitude in gaming, be it causal or competitive, is going to start with the attitude of the gamers. Developers can only do so much to quell the bad behavior of the masses.
I started playing online games when I was twelve years-old. As you can imagine, I've dealt with a lot of unruly people since then just because of my gender. But my gender isn't the only targeted demographic. People are harassed because of their race, nationality, and -blam!-ity.
And how is it defended? "It's just a game!" "This is just our culture as gamers!" Bull-blam!-. I do not get online because I want numerous profanities thrown at me. I get online to play a game and to have fun.
But for some reason, a bunch of people think that it's okay to say horrible things online; things that they'd never say in person.
So, what do we actually do to discourage online harassment?
Gamers, you need to call it out as you see it. Don't stay quiet when some jerk is verbally ripping someone to shreds online. You're making that victim feel alone and helpless.
This is what happens when people don't speak up. Watch all of that footage. Watch, as Aris beats the living hell out of Super_Yan's love for games. At first, she blows it off and pretends to ignore Aris' comments. But you get to eventually see someone break. Gamers, is that okay?
Occasional trash talk is fine. Anything competitive comes with it. But when you target someone, and target their very being and insult them over a game, there's an issue. It takes a lot more maturity to have good sportsmanship than to devolve into senseless -blam!--throwing fights in games.
Developers, don't be afraid to bring down the hammer on jerks in your game.
Riot has done an excellent job of reducing harassment in their games. For instance, chat is automatically muted, the tribunal system is in place, and as I learned at PAX Dev, Riot found out that their playerbase is good at heart. The players don't like having jerks around, and are more than happy to help get rid of them.
Appeal to your player base's sense of camaraderie and respect. Because it is there, despite the jokes about the maturity level of Halo players.
And be aware that many people have stopped playing online games because of the harassment. These people won't buy DLC and can eventually stop buying games altogether. The community's attitude can make or break customers.
Want to know why my last game of Halo was a really long time ago? I'm going to bet that you can guess by now.
I want to be able to use my mic without being called a slut or fat. I love games, but I don't love being harassed. This is going to be a team effort between gamers and developers.