Open letter to LOL - Please Do Something About the Player Base Behavior
I have had an account in one form or another since season 1. I have come and gone 2 or 3 times over the years due to various life events, however, one thing is becoming abundantly clear. That is, that moderation of the player base is severely lacking and as a result more than 50% of games include a game ruining player influence, and its getting worse.
To be clear, I am not a high elo player, I am a father, who plays a game or two a couple nights a week after my kid is in bed or taking a nap. This means that I don't have the opportunity to play many games and it is important to me that the games I do get to play are enjoyable. Some might say but "Leggins1 the player base is too large to moderate", and that may well be true, however, I have to believe that there is a better way to manage the player base. I am not blameless, and have probably have done things punishable via the rules, however, there are no meaningful punishments so why not join in. I am not referring to someone leaving champion select or even the incredibly toxic AFK, I am referring to player behavior in game. Language is worse, intentional feeding is worse, slurs are worse, etiquette is worse, everything is worse from a play experience perspective when compared to even a year ago. This leads me to believe that the punishment system for behavior is ineffectual. I understand things happen, people have a bad day, but the punishment potential has to make players think twice before raging, and right now it simply does not.
Win or lose, LOL is a great game I enjoy, but i feel like unless i queue a 5 man its a roll of the dice. Fully 50% of the time, even after a win, I regret spending what little free time i have playing LOL, because of the player experience. I have spoken to many friends who play the game, and it is a growing concern. Please make an honest evaluation of how you moderate and hand out punishment. It sure feels like profits trump a quality experience...