Toxic Players result in More Losses than Poor Performance

I'd been pondering posting this for quite some time, but hadn't managed the energy, mostly because I like my evening game time to be free of stress. However, after being stuck in the dreaded ELO hell for dozens of games, I think i've finally mustered the ability to get this out, and see if Riot will actually hear the plea of a player who has been around long before ranked games, draft mode, or bans were even a thing.

In my opinion, League of Legends is one of the best MOBA's on the market... in terms of its mechanics. The game's developers obviously put a lot of effort into creating unique champions, awesome looking skins, and bringing the game up to snuff in terms of art with the likes of the Summoner's Rift revamp, new music, etc. I've been playing for a long, long time, and it's kinda awesome to see how far the game has come in the years that i've been enjoying the game.

However, while all the above listed have taken great strides forward, I feel that as the game has gotten more popular, there has been an aspect that has only gotten worse with time.

The community.

And this is even with the understanding that Riot has supposedly been taking steps or strides to try to improve these things.

Let me be frank: I get put into a toxic game at least half the time. More often than not, I lose these games not because of poor performance on the team's behalf, but because the toxic player is spending more time at his keyboard trolling other players than paying attention. If you're unfortunate enough to get into a game with two? The game is practically over, because they'll spend the entire time at each other's throats. If I just so happen to win a game with a toxic player on my team? When I hit the post-game lobby, I find that it's usually because the OTHER team has a toxic player who ruined THOSE players experiences.

.. or they are AFK. Or they're complaining of lag. Or or or or or...

What i'm getting at is that: At least in the bronze ranked queue? Games very, very rarely amount to a test of skill between players. More often than not, it's who ends up holding the short straw in terms of player attitudes.

And IMO? It's absolutely obliterating what I would consider a great game.

Here's the deal. You can have the greatest game in the world. You can have the most solid mechanics. You could balance it perfectly. But if your players are in the shape they are here? And if they are not punished for it? Then it ceases to matter. ESPECIALLY in a PVP Game.

And it falls on Riot to fix it.

I know that the company is hesitant to be more punishing with their enforcement. But i'll place a wager that for every person that you don't ban or chat ban, for every game that they destroy for other players, you lose two people who don't want to be a part of it or put up with it. I'm fortunate enough to be in a field where I have to have a thick skin in order to get through the day. Even WITH that thick skin, though, i'm getting tired of it... and i'm betting that there are plenty of people who don't have that thick skin are already sick of it, or have already left.

So here's my plea...

Riot? Knuckle down on these people. The status quo is, quite frankly, unacceptable, and being you removed the Tribunal? We as your players have no recourse or no action that we can take against these people. It falls down to you, as a company, and honestly, I don't feel that much is being done about it. If the ratios of games that i'm seeing this kind of stuff happen are as high as they are, i'm betting it's no better for other people. Reading the comments and responses of your "Handling Toxic Players" posts? I can see that i'm not alone in this.

Please... More chat bans, sooner. More firm and swift enforcement of toxic players. We don't need blog posts with statistics. We, as players, will see it, because when it happens? It will be like exiting the roar of the city and entering a quiet forest. The change will be that sudden, and that obvious.

I'm betting that this post will simply get buried. Lost. Forgotten about, and nothing will change. I'm hoping that i'm wrong. As a longtime player, I want to believe that Riot really does want to see this addressed. I'm simply not seeing it happen, and that's incredibly discouraging.

~ZJ