Boards›Player Behavior

Is It Really So Hard to Not be Toxic?

MazerRackhem·3/29/2016, 11:29:09 PM·12 votes·2,234 views

I guess, I'm honestly asking this. Maybe it's just me but my last few days have been filled with toxic players to the point I don't really want to play anymore.

Now to be fair, I'm no saint. I get pissed at people, and sometimes I lash out at them. In my case it's almost always in response to another player flaming, I don't flame people for having a bad game. However, I do understand some of the anger. You invest in a game and you get angry when things go wrong. That being said, I've never been chat restricted for my comments, I'm sure I've been reported and some of those reports were probably deserved, but even when I'm super pissed off and responding to chat toxicity (which I know I should just mute and ignore) I don't start saying that a player should kill himself or start cussing them out and using racial slurs.

Yet, that's exactly the behavior of people in my last 5+ games. In each one of these I'm proud to say I did NOT return the flames, but even my relatively peaceful responses aimed at getting the team to calm down just made the flamers even more pissed and turn their ire toward me.

Things like: "Hey guys. That's not helping here. Let's just focus on the game and not on typing." or "Hey guys, can we just work together please? Just ignore the people who piss you off and lets try to win" or (the one that apparently fanned the flames the most) "Ok, I'm sorry but I'm going to put you on ignore. I can't argue with you and focus on winning. So please just stop typing to me and focus on snowballing the lanes."

Just some of the things others said were (censored) : "You're worthless now and you'll be worthless late game just like you're worthless in life trash." And, "The only thing you'll [I honestly don't remember the verb] is your mother when she dies fa%%%" "You want a magical f%%% fairytale community? Play another game, because you are all s%%% ni%%% here. Uninstall then kill yourself." "One poppy just peeled all you ni%%%% told you you'd be late game trash. \allchat "REPORT THIS TEAM INTENTIONAL FEEDING!"

After the last comment that player went to baron stood on top of enemy ward and started Barron while yelling in \allchat for them to come kill him, get Barron and end the game.

So I'm asking, is it really so much to ask people to keep their rage down to a "You suck, this game is over, ff at 20. All of you ignored until then," level? Even that is something I would never say in chat and would be pissed if someone else said (almost every game can be recovered from and those kinds of attitudes lose winnable games) but I could live with that if that was where the worst of it was. Is it really so hard for people to hold their rage to that?

P.S. I'm not even in Elo Hell. I'm currently Gold II and on my way up. I realize Gold-Plat isn't even close to LCS material, but no one who has legitimately got to that rank "sucks" at the game. We all have bad games just like we all have legendary games, can't we all just agree to be nice about it?

37 Comments

ColbyFoPresident3/30/2016, 4:25:57 AM3 votes

Hey, how about stop being a pussy boy scout and play a video game. It's a video game, no one on this thread or any other thread of any forum is going to make it to the end goal that is LCS. If you're not in reach of the LCS, then this is a video game, and you are a casual. There's a mature language filter if you don't want to see it. There is an all chat deactivator if you dont want to see it. You'll never clean this community up because no one is gonna sit there and get hammered by either verbal insults or simple troll remarks that people think are cool and not fire back. I'll defend myself 10 times out of 10 and Riot can go fuck themselves in their cozy little offices playing God in a Tribunal. Like go home and tell your mom that's what you're making of your lives. It's a game, people like you pushing for a reporting system getting peoples mains banned and causing them to make troll accounts is the entire reason this is even a question right now. We are people who have constitutional rights to tell you to go fuck yourself with any hate speech we want. Fuck you, OP. Fuck you, Riot.

No flash no life3/29/2016, 11:39:38 PM3 votes

It's like asking black hole not to be dark.

Using toxic to describe this community isn't accurate; this community defines the term toxicity.

HowPlayGAEM3/29/2016, 11:58:11 PM3 votes

[deleted]

Mirage Seraph3/30/2016, 12:04:35 AM3 votes

But if I don't tell people to kill themselves and to never play adc again then how will they get better? :^|

Yeah I don't get it. Sure I might sigh and curse under my breath once in awhile but I've never gotten the urge to scream at them in all chat, much less because they dared to die while getting 5 man dove 6 minutes into the game.

IPlayTeemoOnly3/30/2016, 12:53:32 AM3 votes

No it's not hard. All you need is a tiny amount of self restraint. You know, the stuff we were supposed to learn in pre-school. Just mute the people who flame you. If you can't stand anyone, mute them all. If you don't have fun don't play. Basicly, don't be an angsty 9 year old. If you can't manage that then you deserve to be banned and probably are going to have a crappy life due to no interpersonal life stills.

disregardable3/29/2016, 11:33:57 PM2 votes

Yes, it really is hard not to be toxic. The game isn't very fun when you play by yourself, sometimes even with friends. When things go wrong you feel trapped, angry, and hopeless, and most people would rather not keep those emotions in.

Looking at those responses though, I'd sooner guess that they were intentionally flaming to try to get a faster surrender.

lolptwo3/30/2016, 1:41:33 AM1 votes

Riot be like 0.0002% of our community is toxic. Yet in their standards, none of those players are considered toxic just having a bad day, so we can see where those stats come from.

HyperSMB3/30/2016, 1:42:46 AM1 votes

Honestly, yes it is.

While I have never been banned or restricted, I can say I know I have come close.

I teach stupid shits all damn day, the last thing I wanna do is deal with stupid shits when I get home.

Kingnewgameplus3/30/2016, 1:57:39 AM1 votes

Honestly, I've been getting more and more toxic as S6 goes by because of more frustrating situations I've been put in. I'm trying to stop by not playing for a few days but everyone has a breaking point. So my best answer to your question is that everyone has a breaking point, and when people are pushed way beyond their limit, they turn toxic.

Ozag the Mighty3/30/2016, 1:10:52 AM1 votes

I've noticed that ADULTS who play are pretty laid back, the kids (teenagers) are the ragers...from what I've experienced anyway.

DeloricVI3/30/2016, 5:28:35 AM1 votes

I've been playing for a few years; I get a little angry sometimes, but it usually shows through that what I say comes from a place of genuinely wanting players to improve or to improve their experience.

When I see someone in ranked get flamed and they shrug it off saying "it's just a game," and "I don't play this role/champion/style" very often, I recommend they go back to normals. It's not because they're bad and I'm being toxic, it's because I think they'll, 1) do better there, and 2) experience less toxicity from rightfully angry teammates in ranked.

See? It's not hard to be angry, while keeping yourself from being toxic. Just make sure you're constructive. Don't say, "ug lux, you suck stop playing ranked, and uninstall," say, "Lux, don't walk into a 2 v 1; I was clearly going to die. Just be more careful next time," for instance.

KVbqbFsC8e3/30/2016, 6:19:24 AM1 votes

As far as Riots definition of "toxic"... Yeah, kinda.

Elphrihaim3/30/2016, 6:38:39 AM1 votes

Evidently, it's somewhat expected.

My even-wordier-but-inexperienced friend had an opponent that kept calling a game over in various ways before the 15 minute mark, so said friend ended up using a ton of verbage to describe how 15 minutes is supposed to be about half a game based on the numbers in-client (it says 30-45 minutes for a SR game--though I've recently had most of my games end in 25-35 minutes).

This opponent ended up responding "why do you gotta be so positive".

Level 10-20 players, all of the people in that game. I was astonished when the story was related to me and still kind of am.

Dominick Destine3/31/2016, 7:28:00 AM1 votes

If the players you were matched with were in violation of the summoner code, you are well within your power to report them after the game for what acts they committed.

Beyond that, you are simply whining; There is already a system in place to deal with what you are talking about.

Lothàrs Edge3/31/2016, 9:23:59 PM1 votes

I wonder the same thing.

Sumurai3/31/2016, 9:29:47 PM1 votes

It is different for everyone, for thousands of years it has been an important part of our species survival mechanism to have some humans who react to aggression by trying to trump that aggression and other humans who are submissive and still others who find a middle ground. We all live in a special time where our technology and way of living has changed so drastically and in such a short period that it is debatable that humans who are at the highest end of the aggression spectrum can not fit into places like a heavily censored chat room no matter how hard they try. None of this is your problem however, you want to enjoy league and not get upset by people being mean.

  1. turn off all chat
  2. mute everyone every game
  3. friend people who do well in your games and try to play with them, the amount of reports and shit you will see when you play with regular buddies will be way lower.
Pooping money9/20/2017, 2:17:01 PM1 votes

It's hard not to be toxic. Trust me, its like 9gag. Also if u get one report then it's gonna be equal to 10 reports...so that's a cool thing huh. You can just report someone once and get them banned on the spot.

Lost R9/20/2017, 2:33:32 PM1 votes

You can thank the glut of reality TV and particularly The Jersey Shore for that, all of which promotes and glorifies the worst elements of humanity. Seriously, anyone who has watched even a minute of Jersey Shore should be put on a federal watchlist, because they cannot be trusted.