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Riot, we need to talk about this thing called "toxicity."

Alacor·2/23/2014, 9:36:09 PM·1 votes·1,551 views

Original post: http://forums.na.leagueoflegends.com/board/showthread.php?t=4310436

Read it all, there will be no TL;DR.

So, I just got out of a game where I was branded a "dick" because I told our Cait that she needed to work on her positioning a little so she wouldn't get caught so much. Maybe it's just my perception of the situation but is it REALLY that much of a dick move to say "Hey, you've got to step it up a bit. We can't afford for you to keep getting caught alone."?

That's not exactly what I said, but you get the idea. (Edit: To clarify, I mean "I don't recall my exact words, but I said it in a way like this.")

Now, I'm not the perfect player who is always polite. I want to win and sometimes bad strings of events in-game regarding intentional feeders/leavers/straight up dumb stuff that shouldn't happen at the elos I tend to play in can get to me a little bit. I have been playing this game for a bit over 3 years now, I believe, and I've only been warned by the Tribunal once. That was around October or so of last year if I remember correctly. Some of the most frustrating things I've dealt with happened around that time. Anyway..

I like that you guys are taking initiatives to clean up to cess pool that is most gaming communities, but somewhere something went wrong. What's happening is it is breeding oversensitivity to the point where any sort of criticism is labeled as toxic.

The funny thing about my specific situation is that after Cait got defensive because of my criticism, suggestion, critique -- whatever you want to call it, she tried to turn the tables on me to the point where I "haven't done anything all game." What boiled down to an uneventful lane where no one did anything but farm(because both nidalee and ez need a bit of farm as mid laners in order to do anything), I was told that I did nothing to help the situation. I was also told that I was at fault because I didn't make it there in time for Caitlyn to get caught by Leona, Nunu, and their ADC in a situation where it was completely avoidable.

Don't get me wrong, I know I played well and I know we could've won. The fact that my attempt to get someone's head back into the game unnerved them so much to the point that it completely destroyed our chances of winning because "this ezreal is a dick and doesn't deserve to win" is what gets me. It even went as far as to make our Renekton believe all was lost and that we had no chance of winning which made him not give a damn about being out of position.

How many of you played sports in high school? I played football. When someone on the team wasn't doing well and messed up plays you'd usually tell them to get their head out of their ass and in the game. Usually worked. Telling someone they need to step it up is not an insult to who they are and is not an insult to their character. Take it as fuel for improving yourself.

I also get that there ARE situations where people are genuinely being assholes or people who start attacking someone on a personal level. That is not what this is about. It's about "toxicity" being such a buzz word that people just jump on the chance to use it as defense for their own poor play. The worst thing about this whole situation? Not only do people use it in that way, but I feel like most people aren't even consciously aware of it. I could tell this Caitlyn legitimately believed I was being a dick.

That is sad.

Posted this over in GD. Thought I may be able to get the attention of a red easier here. Anyway, should check out the posts in the original thread if this topic interests you.

4 Comments

Erdrik2/24/2014, 2:36:53 AM2 votes

I think the core of what your saying is correct, in that there is a problem of people over-reacting to advice. But I don't think the Tribunal and its anti-toxicity efforts are to blame.

You compared LoL to real world sports which I think is an error. In real world sports, telling them to "get their head out of their ass" works because they know you. They have trained with you, and expect to train with you for the foreseeable future. Also they can see and hear your intent, because you are standing right there. This is not the case in LoL. Your team doesn't know you. They haven't trained with you. They don't expect to train or even play with you ever again. They can't see or hear you. The only interaction they have with you is a champion and a bunch of emotionless text on a screen.

The difference is the environment. And Riot just can't do anything about that. Its the nature of being an online video game. And its why a negative calling out of your teams mistakes just won't work. Don't say: "Don't do X". Say: "Try to do Y". Never direct insulting or antagonistic language at other players. Be positive.

If they don't respond in kind? Then mute them. Trying to force the issue in an environment that prevents you from properly conveying it will always result in retaliation and hostility.

SaintCrazy2/23/2014, 9:44:24 PM1 votes

If you really are being positive and helpful in your game, then you have to understand that not everybody will listen to you. What often happens when someone is doing poorly is that they are already in a bad mood, and having someone tell them something that they probably already know only makes them feel worse.

Some people can't take criticism. That's true, and its kinda dumb. But that's not something Riot is responsible for. I would rather have people be over-sensitive than have the game dominated by jerks all the time. I think this because, simply put, the jerks far outnumber the people who are falsely labeled jerks.

If you're not a jerk, and someone thinks you are, brush them off; nothing you say is going to make them think otherwise. Player Behavior's job is to take care of the people that ARE jerks.

TLDR yeah its annoying when people are over-sensitive but that's not the REAL problem with toxicity in this game, IMO.