A plea to riot for self-mute option.

ProSaladToss·2/20/2018, 7:23:33 PM·6 votes·987 views

I've been permabanned on my third account now. I know what I did was wrong, but in the moment I couldn't stop myself - impulse control is part of my mental disability which I've been clinically diagnosed with. If I were given the option to self-mute at all times I know I couldn't be able to make those choices - similar to the implant alcoholics can get to make them not able to drink (makes them violently sick). Call me a rageaholic?

Please riot, give us the option to self mute - most people who rage know it's not the right thing to do, but lack the impulse control - mine happens to be from borderline personality disorder, but others may have different reason.

This is a plea, I love this game and I hate getting accounts banned that I've sunk 100's of dollars into. Please give us self-mute.

58 Comments

TrulyBland2/20/2018, 8:17:39 PM8 votes

Genuine question: If you lack impulse control, wouldn't you just end up un-muting yourself when you feel the urge to rage? I mean, I get that any additional barrier will probably make it easier to control yourself, but I'm mostly curious.

ModThe Djinn2/20/2018, 7:27:46 PM6 votes

I can't speak for Riot, but I personally believe they are unlikely to implement such a feature. I'll explain why in a moment.

First, while there are definitely cases (like yours) where it might help, there are other ways of disabling chat. There are ways to unbind your enter key, for example, or you can move the chat off the screen.

The reason I think Riot doesn't have their own, official way is that they want players to communicate. Putting in an official "stop yourself from ever chatting again" button is basically saying "don't communicate." It's the same reason I feel like there isn't a "default mute all" option.

Jo0o2/20/2018, 7:44:41 PM3 votes

In addition to Djinn's perspective, I think there might be a liability concern.

By introducing in-client means of limiting one's own behavior, Riot is taking some aspect of responsibility for something that shouldn't be their responsibility, namely the behavior of the individual players. They can reactively police that behavior, sure. But introducing stuff like self-mute might open the door to questioning how they're implementing those features, and whether they're doing a good enough job of doing so. If somebody with $1500 worth of RP tries to sue Riot when they ban his account, the last thing Riot would want to do is debate whether the self-mute option is visible and effective.

I'm not a lawyer and am very much talking out my ass. It's just a suspicion I have.

Ninja Assassin2/20/2018, 8:01:43 PM2 votes

The answer is fairly obvious. This would be too easy of a solution to the problem. Riot games and players on here are under the impression that their role is that of a counselor whose purpose is to correct your toxic behavior. Instead of the easy solution of allowing you to rage while being self-muted they would rather you get banned and thereby improve your behavior in order to become a "better teammate". This is a good idea in theory, but its application in the context of a competitive online video game makes it seem asinine.

tldr: they want you to get banned and learn from it, so they aren't going to give you the tools to protect your account from your disability induced episodes of rage.

Dr Cat Pooch2/21/2018, 1:37:30 AM2 votes

I think it is responsible of Riot NOT to give players a self-mute option, and it is philosophically in line with their stance on player punishments. You're expected to show self control consistently, both to not start being toxic and to not rage in response to toxicity. It's a stance that seeks to improve the character of the player. Self-control is an incredibly useful personal skill, and it will help you win games.

OP, I can understand that you do not have the same ability to exercise self-control as people without the disability you have, but things like that implant are usually only given to alcoholics who have completed rehab (which would, in your case, be either regular mindfulness exercises or getting medication for the underlying condition). I hope you find some way to manage your impulse control, but it's not Riot's job to hold your hand through this.