I’m not usually one to tackle controversial or sensitive subjects lightly, but in this instance, I’m going full-on. I browse a site known as N4G, which is a great resource for gamers to tap into if they’re looking for swift access to multi-plat announcements and chatter. I came across a post from the folks over at gamingcircle that highlighted Ubisoft’s strenuous efforts to obliterate abuse and racism in gaming, specifically Rainbow Six Siege. Quite interested in the situation, I then headed on over to the N4G article to see what all the fuss was about.
It appears as though gamers are being banned on the spot for racist outbursts, and the select few are clearly not very happy about it. I’m not going to call anyone out directly but of you divert your attention to this link right here, you’ll see that it takes you to the Twitter feed for the official Rainbow Six Siege account. You’ll also see that the account is directly responding to an abusive Tweet from one individual that doesn’t like the fact they got a ban for being racist. This is swiftly followed up by another user that tries to justify the behavior.
The argument here is that a handful of (now banned) players are upset that they cannot abuse and talk freely in a game that’s rated M/18+ and that due to the game’s rating, they should seemingly be given a free pass. The official Rainbow Six Siege account proudly sweeps these two outbursts under the proverbial rug and goes on to respond that it’s “good” one of them has been banned and that fighting toxicity and cleaning up the Siege environment is a very real and important issue. So, what’s my stance on the matter at hand?
I’m with Ubisoft one hundred and ten percent. There’s no room in the gaming world, let alone the real world, for racism and abuse. Yes, this game in particular is a very tense team-based game that will either bring out the best or the worst in each of us that play it, but there’s no justification whatsoever for being a racist, abusive scumbag. It’s really as simple as that. What baffled me is that I praised Ubisoft over on N4G and came back to my comment about an hour later to see that I had a number of dislikes next to my comment.
Do we really game in an age where people think this behavior is acceptable? It sadly looks that way. Thankfully however, those that are moaning and groaning are of the minority. The rest of us are quite happy with assholes like this getting the old server boot. One user replied directly to my N4G comment and said that talking badly to opponents was part of the fun and the “de-stress” procedure. Take a moment to soak that up. This person can clearly see the title headline, yet seemingly tries to make a positive approach out of it all.
I was absolutely baffled. I mean don’t get me wrong, I fully appreciate that people have differing opinions but when it comes to directly abusing and being racist towards other players, there’s really only one side of the fence to be sat at. That’s just my opinion here. The fact of the matter is, is that this game is rated M/18+ for its graphic content. That doesn’t at all mean that it’s ever going to be acceptable to enter an adult-rated game and expect to get away with foul language. It’s just not the way of the world. We live in 2018.
A few other supporters of the foul language jumped on board to point out that there’s a mute feature and that people should just use that instead. Well, that’s entirely true. Of course, let’s not forget that this game is a team-focused game and muting team mates just because they’re obnoxious disgusting individuals is counter productive. I would much prefer they get a swift ban and leave that player slot open for someone with some decency. There’s a very clear analogy coming your way right now, and I hope you’ll agree with it.
People need to be the same age (or older, mind) as this game to enter a bar and drink themselves to merry-ville. Does that age-gate give anyone the right to smack-talk other people and throw racist slurs around? No, it most certainly does not. Interestingly however, I bet my life that these online racists would never dream of doing this crap out in the open. It’s just a stupid argument to try and worm out of a punishment they clearly deserve. What do you think? Do you have any thoughts or opinions on this subject? Hit the comments.
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Jason
I applaud this effort. Hiding behind an 18+ rating or “freedom of speech” is as ignorant as it is insulting. These are servers and platforms owned by businesses that are, at heart, in the interest of making more money. If you sacrifice the income from the racist minority to allow someone like me who would normally stay away from a game like this to avoid that sort of toxicity, then good for them.
I grew up in a world where multiplayer was only possible on the same couch. If you yelled something racist in my house you would never be welcome back.
It’s especially alarming when you read studies like the recent leniency of how frequently adults let their kids play these adult-rated games. I don’t want to post a link but a recent study by Childcare UK (posted on Destructoid) said 86% of these parents let their kids play these things unsupervised.
Get racism (sexism, etc) out of video games and align the community with the business’ values.
cloudtavern
Jason I could not agree more! Much like you, I grew up with couch multiplayer and you would NEVER hear that level of toxicity shoulder to shoulder. It’s nice to know that other players feel the same and I appreciate you taking the time to share this, thank you!
Joe
Great article Mark. And Jason it’s sad that parents don’t take more of an interest in what their children are playing. Games haven’t been just for kids for at least 25 years or so. We are the gaming generation and as we’ve gotten older the industry that we love has evolved along with us. This is why the rating systems were created. But that’s a different subject. Yes people have the right to be openly racist if they want to be. They also deserve and have the right to face whatever consequences their rude and disgusting behavior warrants. Be that a ban by a gaming company or a foot to the face. Some people just have no tact. I myself have often used the mute button to avoid that sort of behavior. The down side is when you do this it often takes the leash off the animals completely and you get greifed incessantly until moderators actually take action.
Loobeensky
What a world we live in if there are people that basically admit publicly that their destressing procedure involves abusing others and are not even ashamed of that.