Tip. Assholes are going to be assholes, and the internet, through IRC has been toxic and risky since its inception. We all know harrassment is wrong, but its like focusing on the blueness of the sky. This toxc enviroment has been around well before the explosion of modern gaming. As far as behaviour all ppl need to do is exercise personal responsibility. These articles would be more mature if they assumed their readers were adults instead of berating them.

Assholes have been through out all of society. Simply pointing to boisterous while males is too easy a bogeyman. Some are self aware and humorous about their arrogance others have an inferiority complex, we dont all know each other so well. There are ppl of all races and genders who act this way, some in the gaming community.

Real ostracism is subtle and non verbal, often practiced in seemingly professional environments where people with diff opinions are easily marginalized and cut off due to moral grandstanding cheap, new testament pharisee personas looking to profit off of, manipulate, and dispose of hard working others. and in the twitter verse often expressed through the loyal attack dogs of some of these spiteful games 'reporters'.

This is one in a series of articles that came out suspiciously all within 24 hrs at the tail end of last week. Here's what I think gamers really care about.

Can you perform or not?

Do you think someone would be crowned champion in a rap battle or drafted on a sports team for waving their gender or race around? Not saying there aren't issues, but still. These folks have taken the committee seats of Tipper Gore and Jack Thompson, and the rest of the community is stuck in the testifying chair being lectured to needlessly, about things they are already aware of. They can police their own, and we all don't need any Nurse Ratcheds to come into video gaming to do so.

Id think "Can you perform or not" is something you'd value, or examine if someone were to play on your team. Thats it. If games feature certain aspects of competitiveness, then how much I wear my blackness on my sleeve isnt necessarily going to be a determining factor in the likeliness of winning matches or levels.

Showing and improving breeds inclusive enviroments, because in a cooperative environment, players have to depend on you. Some of the 'shit talkers' you mention call of duty tweenies who camp all the time, would get knifed up in bewilderment in Counterstrike from dwelling in maps with virtually no skill gap or challenge that makes them think for once. People who haven't learned how to lose, some of them eventually shut up.

I think indies do present intelligent ideas but suggesting alternate semi-games as a cultural 'replacement' of AAA action, as gamasutra has so blindly suggested is an equally immature and poorly thought idea. Some people like to externalize conflict in art, others prefer to internalize or abstract it. There is art and meaning in both. All that truly matters is execution, not the critcism of ideals or this 'culture of shut up and safe spaces ' that seems to be encouraged now. The enjoyment of all types of games are not mutually exclusive to gamers.

If you want to fix entitlement in our society, I'd worry more so about the lack of harder, and more clever built games to keep people busy, and willing to communicate and share ideas, or the byproduct of our "everyones a winner", psuedo intellectual self esteem movement we've been breeding since the turn of the 80's, and from the looks of some of these writings, 'reviewers' are trying to suggest be the replacing aspirations of all gaming. Yeah real stellar social movement there. I can see the results were very 'productive'

I dont know about you, but I see assholes of many different types of sociopolitical alignments in our culture. I'd like them to be more honest rather than hide behind little banners of 'social justice'. Twitter is a breeding ground for them. Moral zealots will never have the mental capacity to see themselves as capable of being a problem. Unnecessary crusades are their dopamine, while everyone wants to be free to enjoy entertainment unafraid to cross lines and expose themselves to things that may be uncomfortable. . Maybe...just maybe the culprit isn't the AAA games or gamers who time and time again will always tell you. They don't give a ****. Thats democratic enough for me, and should be for all of us. So ehhh...

" Hey Jim!! "

"What?"

"I'm all outta fucks up here. We got any in back stock??"

"Sorry. That was our last shipment. Call the other stores, see if they've got leftovers."

"I humbly apologize. We all seem to be emotionally sold out of fucks right now. I'm honestly not sure, how soon we'll be getting any more. I call ahead to see if any of our neighboring stores might have some, but telling from the inventory numbers, the odds are very very slim. "

I hated activistion since they oversaturated Tony Hawk. They're always doing this. You know they tried to buy out Id Software back when they had a partnership deal to release Quake 2 and the expansion packs?

Yeah they're shameless pimps when it comes to games publishing. Valve ignored countless calls from EA and Microsoft trying to own them too.

Fight em Houser bros. Fight them tooth and nail!!

and Rockstar will be like... " Hah! Copycats...."

I knew Lesnar after UFC decided he wasn't going play "theatre" all night and 16 Suplexes proves it. Makes for good WWdrama anyways.

Allright. We need to have social media diet holidays. From hashtagvism to obsessive tweeting this is quantifiably BAD for us as a species. There's little of any sign of negative violent reinforcement in playing violent video games, but we can LITERALLY SEE how unhealthy social media obsession is to us. We even have to admit to ourselves when we're going in too deep.

I wonder how Phil'd be if he overcame his personal burdens without twitter.

Just a few little addendum. Nice strong article. Very well thought out.

Yeah I figure for story not only should it be in tandem w/ gameplay but in direct service of. Because you can have great emotional identification with characters, when they've been thrown a dramatic curve ball, but when you get out by the skin of your teeth battling an enemy like FF7's Ruby Weapon, there's sweat and perspiration. This type of drama must intersect more often. The tone atmosphere and narrative must always support and influence what you are doing in the game. Instead the other way around. I.E. No more Battlefield 3 quality in stories.

Level design is paramount. Especially in single player. Less focus on nigh impenetrable avatar strength, protections and patronizing mechanics, but instead balance that stuff out.

and more focus on the level being the evolution of that avatar and the player. Tricks, scavenging, critical thinking, situational weapons and devices, and secrets etc. Otherwise we might not feel threatened, challenged, or intimidated. Can't have houses w/o foundations.


Oh yeah, and less menial stuff, like big upgrade grids for twitchy action games with already able-bodied characters, and lukewarm difficulty, or rescuing your friends from narrative doom by mining empty planets for minutes on end. XP upgrade systems should feel like shopping nervously on a shoestring budget, what to save, who to upgrade in what way and what to buy (with IN GAME MONEY) without dying.

sorry bout all that. Carry on.

@Lulu_Lulu: Sure with many titles over the years but notably with Tekken, DOOM, difficult JRPG boss battles, Road Rash, Counter Strike and F.E.A.R. series etc.

Just something about having a narrow margin of error in action games that keeps your eyes peeled.

Especially when you finally start whuppin their ass.

Here's the thing. Noticing difficulty is an afterthought.

The heart of the problem, is people care more about avatar strength assets and influence than unique level design. The level is supposed to give us all the goodies we desire if we use our heads. Thats the whole point. Were gorged for extra DLC character assets that we have to shell out extra for, some that should be a part of the original game, we're given loadouts, that we'd have to have played at least a 4th of the way through earlier games to even obtain.

Yes graphics looked poorer back then, and there were many technological accomplishments of the 7th gen.

But its better off if the level is unique, tense and engaging enough. It should have all the challenges, perks, scares and secrets to bring out the player's full potential.

But if its just a bowling alley, and you have the movement and skill to beat the game from the outset. We're beyond talking about nostalgia at that point. Lukewarm gameplay is lukewarm gameplay no matter how old or young the game is.

Remember the twin uninspiring disasters that were Kane and Lynch. Is all I have to say...

Sorry homie, all the signs are there, but if John Carmack couldn't convince them in the early 90's they probably won't budge now.

@Black_Knight_00: Yep. Splinter Cell copycats.

its like hmm I wonder what we used to do when we couldnt see through walls.

Oh THATS right. we used our EARS doy!