Online gaming has become a very important form of entertainment for many people today; grossing 109.8 billion dollars in 2017. There is a problem with the industry however, as more and more online game developers lean toward competitive game types without thinking about what this is doing to the communities of these games. The competitive elements in these games are a breeding ground for toxicity. As more and more gamer look for an edge in competitive play they turn to cyber bullying as an answer. Think of sports as a frame of reference. Some sport fans are some of the most competitive people. These competitive atmospheres can be a breeding ground for violence for example; After game 7 of the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals, a riot broke out in Vancouver after the Boston Bruins Defeated the Vancouver Canucks. The resulting violence left 140 people injured, one of which was critically injured. The key difference between sports and gaming is that in online gaming you don't have that face to face interaction.
One way to look at these cyber bullies is that there interactions are like a transaction. When they interact with people online there decisions have both pros and cons. The problem when it comes to the industry is that developers don't punish or punish enough the perpetrators of these incidents leading to the unfortunate conclusion that there is little or no downside to cyber bully and trolling. Some games like to embrace the destructive nature of these online interactions like Grand Theft Auto; a game that basically requires you to mess with other players but, it has no system in place to deal with problem players. Games like Fallout 76 have many systems in place for dealing with negative players; ones that effect the perpetrators so they won't do it again. The gaming industry has a very big problem and competitive atmospheres without procedures for dealing with harassment are the cause.
I feel like the gaming industry views cyberbullying as just an inevitable part of online gaming, which is a very immature view to have...cyberbullying isn't prevalent in gaming because it's SUPPOSED to be there, it's there because no preventative measures are being taken besides MAYBE giving the option to report someone...but when you report someone, the damage has more than likely already been done.
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize how much money the gaming industry makes!! I makes me think about how there could be ethic issues within the production of video games, but they are such a large industry that maybe the game makers don't focus on the importance of the destructive nature of the games? Also, do games make people competitive? Or are people just using games as an outlet for their competitive natures? Either way, I am kind of scared to see if this problem will continue to grow, and to what extent...
ReplyDeleteI really like how you compared cyberbullying and trolling in online gaming to a transaction. I am curious as to what ethical guidelines they have put in place to protect their communities. Another aspect that I find interesting about gaming is the adictiveness to not only the game and competitive atmosphere, but also the addictiveness to the bullying and trolling. This is a concept that I don't fully understand because I have never gotten into gaming, but it so interesting!
ReplyDeleteWhen thinking about online gaming vs. sports, I've always felt that the objectives are the same, but online gaming has so many side objectives that it makes it harder to corral any rouge gamers. For instance, the goal of any "game" is to win. There is only one winner of a hockey game. But when you play online GTA, you could complete an objective or challenge but other gamer could just be messing around. The open-world concept almost encourages variation, which is where much of the trolling comes from. I'm really not sure what kind of protections can be put in place when (like Chris mentioned) that seems like it is apart of the game.
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