Being "Nice" to your Teammates DOES NOT win you more games.

Best Ekko NA··4 votes·6,398 views

There's this huge delusion that Riot has created where "being a good sport to your teammates wins you games".

This is absolutely NOT true.

Being nice to someone on your team doesn't teach them the game, it doesn't make them gain experience. Now I'm not saying that players should just be a dick to every person but there's a line that has to be put down somewhere. When you have a player on your team that keeps charging into the enemy team feeding, teleporting to push into 5 enemies, ruining everyone's games... Someone HAS TO SAY SOMETHING TO THEM. It doesn't matter if you are just tilting them, they're already doing poorly. What good does it do if they can see the gank coming because they aren't distracted when they're going to die to it either way? If you don't say something they're going to keep doing the same thing forever and probably never learn.

There is no nice way to tell someone that they are ruining your game, I'm sorry if you think otherwise.

At high ELO's, you can see clearly that people already understand the game. They are intelligent enough to figure out what they are doing wrong. It makes sense that a player at a very high caliber wouldn't need someone else's input to know that they're messing up and that they need to fix it.

The same is simply not the same lower down the ladder.

These people don't understand what they are doing wrong, they don't even know they're doing something wrong to begin with. They'll keep overextending and dying to the enemy Jungler again and again. They'll have the enemy laner under their wing, but let them roam around killing their entire team without pinging they're missing or following to keep them in check. They'll stand around and farm or watch as their teammates die in a fight when they have the proper tools in their kit to win that fight for their team.

Ignorance is Bliss, you'll always think you're right if you never understand the correct way to build or play in any given situation. Even if you "nicely" point something out, these people will get offended. "I'm not wrong, I could never be wrong... my whole team is just feeders.. you guys are bad".

Not to overlook the fact that all of us make mistakes.

In the meta right now, solo carrying is probably more difficult than it's ever been. Without teammates who do their job at least half-assed, it's extremely hard to win. If you think it's just one single player, get over your brain washed self and gtfo. For years I've seen the whole "hey you're the only thing on your team that doesn't change". You're 100% right, in a scientific world that means any theory for winning would be impossible to figure out because you lack enough constants and have far too many variables. Every game your team changes and so does the enemy team, you have to play a different way every game with different build paths and items based on the situation you are in. If you are losing, it doesn't mean that YOU are always the problem. Whoever came up with that is full of shit. Sure you can always improve yourself to where you will do better but you can't control every factor of a game just because you play slightly better.

If someone on your team is ruining your game, you should never be punished for saying something to them. Granted, I do believe there is a point where maybe you could be going too far (like telling someone to kys, I do believe that's overkill and morally wrong to say to someone), but telling someone that you think what they did was completely stupid and that they should stop doing it should be acceptable (my opinion obviously).

In the real world, people don't hold back to tell you that you fucked up.. sure it probably pisses you off hearing someone tell you that you were wrong but it definitely never killed anyone.

If someone tells you that they think you aren't playing right try to play how they are telling you. Maybe they were wrong, but you'll never learn for sure if you don't try something new right?

Don't get butt-hurt because someone's upset at you, they want to win just as much as you do. Before you cry about how they're "toxic" in chat just calm yourself and think about if there's actually some validity in whatever they said. No one gets pissed off for no reason.

36 Comments

Dynikus14 votes

team morale is important for playing well. happy teammates are good teammates. Or atleast better than they would be if you were an asshole to them. You can critique someone without being negative, just say it in a somewhat polite manner.

RedPandaFury3 votes

{quoted}

team morale is important for playing well. happy teammates are good teammates. Or atleast better than they would be if you were an asshole to them.

Ineeded, good sir.

Best Ekko NA2 votes

{quoted}

team morale is important for playing well. happy teammates are good teammates. Or atleast better than they would be if you were an asshole to them.

Wrong. Have you never seen someone who doesn't play computer games attempt to play a video game on the computer? I've taught many people how to play computer games. I've introduced my girlfriend and ex to League as well as my brothers and several friends.

Happy teammates are NOT good teammates. Me being friendly with them didn't magically make them grow awesome League of Legends powers.

How can you be so naive to think this?

Knowledge is said to be power for a reason.

At higher ELO's sure, people probably will always play better when they are feeling good. When you aren't on THAT level, you're going to make a ton of mistakes regardless because you don't know how to play.

Just another thing that is brain washed into people causing the whole "Let's all be positive happy" in Leauge of Legends when it's not even the truth.

Dynikus5 votes

You should have probably continued to read my post past the 2nd sentence.

Or atleast better than they would be if you were an asshole to them.

Take those same players that are playing like shit, and make them feel even worse about how poorly they're doing. I promise you it won't make them play better. Critique what they're doing wrong in a polite way and try to raise morale, that might help them play better, or help stop them from tilting.

Best Ekko NA2 votes

{quoted}

You should have probably continued to read my post past the 2nd sentence.

Take those same players that are playing like shit, and make them feel even worse about how poorly they're doing. I promise you it won't make them play better. Critique what they're doing wrong in a polite way and try to raise morale, that might help them play better, or help stop them from tilting.

You can only feel so bad, like being upset is being upset. You either try harder or you give up after that point where you were irritated.

Believe me, most players try HARDER because they want to succeed. They might hate everyone else's guts for calling them out but that's motivation for them to do better to prove a point.

Deep Terror Nami5 votes

The game is one that requires a team. If your team doesn't want to play with you because you're a jerk, they are less likely to help you when needed, and may avoid you or even work against you.

Yes, being sportsmanlike with your own team is very important to working together, and working as a team is more likely to result in victory.

Best Ekko NA2 votes

[{quoted}](name=Deep Terror Nami,realm=NA,application-id=ZGEFLEUQ,discussion-id=4yXbfl2x,comment-id=00000001000000000000,timestamp=2017-03-17T03:55:28.521+0000)

The game is one that requires a team. If your team doesn't want to play with you because you're a jerk, they are less likely to help you when needed, and may avoid you or even work against you.

Yes, being sportsmanlike with your own team is very important to working together, and working as a team is more likely to result in victory.

Yes but my post starts already BEYOND that point. When they've already ruined the game, what good is it going to do you?

Tell me that feeling when you only have 1 completed item against everyone on their team already having multiple items and almost all of your towers because of 1 player on your team constantly making poor decisions.

No amount of teamwork helps you. Is your team going to surrender? Nope.

After many hopeless games like this you finally understand -- It doesn't matter what you say to these types of players, they're going to ruin your game either way.

My post isn't about needless rage to innocent players. Obviously that's completely uncalled for.

Magical Player3 votes

So the game is lost(your opinion) flaming others fixes it? does it somehow make what happened go away? Does it make them a better player? Does it somehow rewind time to undo all the errors that occurred?

Frap Achiino1 votes

[{quoted}](name=Magical Player,realm=NA,application-id=ZGEFLEUQ,discussion-id=4yXbfl2x,comment-id=0000000100000000000000000000,timestamp=2017-03-17T04:52:42.459+0000)

So the game is lost(your opinion) flaming others fixes it? does it somehow make what happened go away? Does it make them a better player? Does it somehow rewind time to undo all the errors that occurred?

No but it's nice to let them know how you feel. If you suck, you should be able to handle people telling you that. so many people get mad when do give them constructive criticism, like telling supports to get a sightstone, BUT they just tell you to F off and continue trolling. At that point, I don't hold back any longer.

SEKAI1 votes

[{quoted}](name=Frap Achiino,realm=NA,application-id=ZGEFLEUQ,discussion-id=4yXbfl2x,comment-id=00000001000000000000000000000000,timestamp=2017-07-13T18:31:44.352+0000)

No but it's nice to let them know how you feel. If you suck, you should be able to handle people telling you that. so many people get mad when do give them constructive criticism, like telling supports to get a sightstone, BUT they just tell you to F off and continue trolling. At that point, I don't hold back any longer.

This is a months old necro.

Also, there is a difference between telling a player that they suck balls, and telling them to go kill themselves because they suck balls at this particular match.

There is also a difference between giving people constructive criticism and berating them.

Usually, people are mad not because someone tells them that they suck balls at the game, but the other bits and pieces of personal attacks the come with those criticisms (many times without and is just pure salts) that are clearly unwanted and serve no purpose.

TheLastShadow453 votes

But being a complete asshole to someone doesn't really help either.

Best Ekko NA2 votes

{quoted}

But being a complete asshole to someone doesn't really help either.

I believe I disagree tbh. No one gets mad at something they don't care about it, they get upset because they do care.

When your girl ditches your ass you don't feel like shit because you didn't care about her. Quite the opposite.

DrCyanide2 votes

I know there have been games that I've played which were only won because moral didn't break. That's not to say critiques weren't given, but they were given the right way and everyone on the team understood it. When the team did something better, that was also acknowledged.

There's more to this game than winning or losing, I think sometimes people forget that.

DJ Left Shark2 votes

{quoted}

I know there have been games that I've played which were only won because moral didn't break.

I agree 100%. Team morale not only helps the team dynamic, but it can also help you remain composed rather than getting frustrated or upset. Remaining composed increases focus; helping you make the right decisions to hopefully aid your team to a victory. Attitude is SUPER important in any sort of team based activity, for the best results are achieved when everyone is on board.

Lapis5 votes

Maybe it doesn't win you more games, but being an asshole certainly doesn't either.

ModThe Djinn5 votes

Note that there's a big difference between "Hey top -- He's pretty far ahead of you now. Perhaps just play under tower so he doesn't get even stronger, since you probably can't fight him now" and "Top. Stop being such an idiot. You can't fucking fight him."


In actuality, being nice DOES lead to more victories. While it may not make players more skilled at the game, it may keep a player who is good enough to win but is having a rough start from tilting further, or organize a disorganized team, or make everyone realize that yeah, you DO have a chance to bring the game back around.

It's not that being a good sport creates wins -- it's that creating a supportive, friendly, cooperative environment tends to bring out the teamwork in people, make them more invested in the game, make them more likely to bounce back from a bad few minutes, and encourage those who might be doing poorly and make them more inclined to listen and work together. I've turned around a number of awful games by pointing out that people shouldn't rage at the guys doing poorly on our team, but rather group up, focus the fed enemies, and win as a TEAM rather than as a group of individuals angry at each other.

Best Ekko NA2 votes

[{quoted}](name=The Djinn,realm=NA,application-id=ZGEFLEUQ,discussion-id=4yXbfl2x,comment-id=0003,timestamp=2017-03-17T03:32:54.647+0000)

Note that there's a big difference between "Hey top -- He's pretty far ahead of you now. Perhaps just play under tower so he doesn't get even stronger, since you probably can't fight him now" and "Top. Stop being such an idiot. You can't fucking fight him."


In actuality, being nice DOES lead to more victories. While it may not make players more skilled at the game, it may keep a player who is good enough to win but is having a rough start from tilting further, or organize a disorganized team, or make everyone realize that yeah, you DO have a chance to bring the game back around.

It's not that being a good sport creates wins -- it's that creating a supportive, friendly, cooperative environment tends to bring out the teamwork in people, make them more invested in the game, make them more likely to bounce back from a bad few minutes, and encourage those who might be doing poorly and make them more inclined to listen and work together. I've turned around a number of awful games by pointing out that people shouldn't rage at the guys doing poorly on our team, but rather group up, focus the fed enemies, and win as a TEAM rather than as a group of individuals angry at each other.

That's strange, I seem to win more games when my teammates call me a retard and are upset than I do when they're dead silent and saying nothing.

When people are emotional they're invested, they're TRYING. If someone is carefree then they likely don't give a shit about winning or losing.

{quoted}

I know there have been games that I've played which were only won because moral didn't break. That's not to say critiques weren't given, but they were given the right way and everyone on the team understood it. When the team did something better, that was also acknowledged.

There's more to this game than winning or losing, I think sometimes people forget that.

There's no "right way" or "wrong way". You either tell them they fucked up or you said nothing.

Like damn son, making shit out to be more complex than it is.

ModThe Djinn2 votes

{quoted}That's strange, I seem to win more games when my teammates call me a retard and are upset than I do when they're dead silent and saying nothing.

When people are emotional they're invested, they're TRYING. If someone is carefree then they likely don't give a shit about winning or losing.

That is definitely interesting (and surprising to me), but you'll notice I didn't suggest dead silence. My games tend to be full of a lot of positive communication, since I've found that doing so actually brings out that aspect of many other players and makes the whole team start communicating more.

Your mileage may vary.

Dynikus1 votes

There's no "right way" or "wrong way". You either tell them they fucked up or you said nothing.

1."top you retard stop fucking feeding. /all top is brainded /all gg"

or

2."top, can you play safe? fiora is 7/1, try to just farm up and play safe. You probably have to give tower, but it's better than giving another kill and still losing tower"

Which do you think is more likely to help the toplaner who already feels like shit for playing poorly?

Best Ekko NA2 votes

{quoted}

1."top you retard stop fucking feeding. /all top is brainded /all gg"

or

2."top, can you play safe? fiora is 7/1, try to just farm up and play safe."

Which do you think is more likely to help the toplaner who already feels like shit for playing poorly?

For a rational person, they are both the same. If someone tells me that, I consider what happened in my lane. Perhaps I am brain dead?

I make mistakes just like anyone else, I have moments where I literally am a retard and probably should be called one. There's no difference for me between the first few comments or the second one. I see them both as the same thing.

I'm not some crybaby who feels bad for being called out on messing up.

Dynikus2 votes

If you're tilted, you're not thinking rationally.

Superbonner641 votes

"top, can you play safe? fiora is 7/1, try to just farm up and play safe. You probably have to give tower, but it's better than giving another kill and still losing tower"

I know this is 4 months old, but telling a downright feeder that shes 7/1 and to stay in tower and farm is useless, What good will it do to tell someone that's already feeding to stay under tower and play safe. How will you play safe against a 7/1 fiora that can annihilate you under tower, You're 1/7. I know you said "but its better than giving another kill and still losing tower" But thats still useless, as its a 4v5 and the feeder is probably useless by now. You're literally saying that the feeder is a sitting duck, and is useless.

If the top laner isn't a feeder, and got kills off of roams, that's a different case.

EvilDustMan5 votes

One, it's a game and that matters before winning. An enjoyable experience.

Two, no, people are not inspired to do better by randos from the internet telling them they suck.

420 grams2 votes

Being nice raises team morale which makes everyone play better. How many times have you made a bad play or get ganked early and gotten frustrated? When you're frustrated, how many times has people telling you to stop feeding and that they're going to report you made you want to try harder to win? 2 games ago I had a toxic team from Champ select. The veigar was raging so hard at teemo for picking teemo top and our adc went Fizz to try to get someone dodge. I was nice to the teemo and bot lane saying they can play whatever they want and convinced them to just mute veigar. Even when things were bad, all 4 of them were negative 4 kills or more, I still remained positive and was able to pull our team together and we came back and won.

Being nice doesn't guarantee a win, but being toxic is pretty much a forfeit.

Spyke19702 votes

You can give constructive criticism without being a total douche. It's one thing to give someone helpful advice. Calling them names and/or typing in all caps, blaming them for ruining the game, is likely to only make them tilt and play worse. Plus if you're spending too much time typing, you're probably not going to be playing at your best either.

scazzman1 votes

{quoted}

You can give constructive criticism without being a total douche. It's one thing to give someone helpful advice. Calling them names and/or typing in all caps, blaming them for ruining the game, is likely to only make them tilt and play worse. Plus if you're spending too much time typing, you're probably not going to be playing at your best either.

the problem is that in low elo "play safe and farm" is translated as "hey farquadd wash my car"

Pie Cubed2 votes

If everyone in a team hated each other, refused to cooperate, etc. by your logic that means they would do extremely well. People will do better at things when they have a higher morale or encouragement. I'm just saying that if we follow your logic, even after a victory, the team should start attacking each other instead of celebrating.

Gregor Gysi2 votes

Hey do you remember the last time when a dude told you "what the fck are you doing, that was so stupid!"? I bet that's a fond memory of yours because he taught you how stupid that was and now you learned something new and will never make this mistake again.

Packun Flower1 votes

Im generally nice but thete have been times when i had to tell a teammate or two to "stop playing like idiots and smarten up" and usually it works.

Velociraptured1 votes

0/2 Lucian 0/2 Thresh, Thresh pinging he has over 500 ping, which is a lie because he's obviously playing normally. "Hey bot please play safe" 'Double kill'. WOW DID A LOT OF GOOD THERE.

Astrovert1 votes

Being nice to people can be as simple as not commenting at all.

Do you really need to tell them they are ruining your game? Think they don't know that already?

Baron Barian1 votes

Being nice doesn't win you games? Okay, I'll stop saying good job for first bloods, "good luck and have fun" at the start of the games (don't even say it glhf, I go all the way), stop encouraging teammates who admit they aren't good, and just start being an asshole overall.

Whether following the summoner's code or just being nice wins you more games or not, it still helps you enjoy even a losing game, and a positive attitude can leave a window open for turnarounds. I've won a number of games where people were getting mad, I encouraged positive thinking, and win after the enemy gets baron buff. A little positivity can go a long way.

So yeah, seeing a thread called "Being nice to your team does not win more games" pretty much encourage a famously toxic gaming community to do literally the opposite of what gamers in general should do.

Frap Achiino1 votes

[{quoted}](name=Baron Barian,realm=NA,application-id=ZGEFLEUQ,discussion-id=4yXbfl2x,comment-id=000d,timestamp=2017-03-20T09:12:24.220+0000)

Being nice doesn't win you games? Okay, I'll stop saying good job for first bloods, "good luck and have fun" at the start of the games (don't even say it glhf, I go all the way), stop encouraging teammates who admit they aren't good, and just start being an asshole overall.

Whether following the summoner's code or just being nice wins you more games or not, it still helps you enjoy even a losing game, and a positive attitude can leave a window open for turnarounds. I've won a number of games where people were getting mad, I encouraged positive thinking, and win after the enemy gets baron buff. A little positivity can go a long way.

So yeah, seeing a thread called "Being nice to your team does not win more games" pretty much encourage a famously toxic gaming community to do literally the opposite of what gamers in general should do.

Nothing wrong with being positive, but some people troll just to troll. Our only recourse is to light them up in chat......they cost me LP and do it on purpose, I should be able to tell them how horrible they are.

More from Player Behavior

More by Best Ekko NA