Are the obnoxious kids online ruining the gaming community?

[TimothyJames]

I know it's a tired old topic but I genuinely feel my interest in the online community lessening (great vocabulary -__-) every time I hear another kid blasting out my eardrums. And it doesn't only go for during the game. Be it video comments or discussions over the Halo or CoD franchises, I just feel like I'm over it.

I was doing a little bit of web surfing today, and somehow wound up on a few articles discussing 343 Industries and Halo 4. The comments section was just a wall of hate comments, be it 343's title update of Halo: Reach, or the bloom debate, and I saw at least ten posts about the BR vs. the DMR. Not a single constructive discussion, it was all just trivial, thoughtless nonsense

I only really play with my friends exclusively nowadays, and you know what? We have a good time on our own. But if I travel outside of that group, I just hit a wall of a community I don't want to be a part of.

 

[The Madman]

I honestly don't encounter that much if at all. Maybe it's just the games I play online or that it's always on the PC, I don't know, but I've never really had a problem with kids online. Almost never see em, even during my WOW days.

 

[Tiswas]

The FPS online community maybe?

 

[Newtonyd]

It seems like there's something wrong with these kids. I have yet to meet any who weren't annoying dipshits, and it's not even the voice. Just yesterday I ran into two separate groups of kids on Killing Floor who made asses of themselves and screamed that I was a 'failed abortion' over and over after they died until I muted them.

Back when I played WoW it seemed like kids always rage-quitted instances or ninjaed items from monsters.

It's kinda weird, I never knew anyone who would pull this kind of shit when I was a kid. Like having the internet available for their whole lives, and therefore anonymity, has had some weird psychological effect to turn them into apeshit screamers. Doing the things they do would get them curbstomped in reality, but they've grown up used to doing it online.

Maybe I'm just overthinking it, and all kids are bastards regardless of upbringing.

Or maybe I just really, really hate kids.

 

[Taunta]

I've heard legendary stories of Xbox live kids and their ilk, but I don't own an Xbox myself so I wouldn't know. I definitely encounter them in WoW, but I usually ignore them and stick with my guild whenever possible.

I wouldn't go so far as to say they're ruining the gaming community. I don't think they're a new phenomenon, they're just getting more exposure as online multiplayer games are becoming more common. I was a screaming kid myself once, but I didn't have anyone but myself and the walls to vent it to. And then I grew up and got over it.

Also, I don't think a lot of them are bad people either. There are some kids on my boyfriend's side of the family that are perfectly nice kids away from the controller, but as soon as they have a controller in their hands that competitiveness and frustration takes over. Like one kid, I don't even think he's aware of what he's saying half the time, he's just completely immersed in the experience. Unfortunately, one that also involves a stream of profanity coming out of his mouth.

 

[Amethyst Wind]

Luckily I have a unique solution. My headphones don't work except to register that they are there. I can't speak through them or hear anyone's voice when I play online. They do, however, make it so that voices aren't blasting out of my speakers either. It works for me. Allows me to play my (limited) time online in peace without people bellyaching for using the rocket launcher.

I like the rocket launcher. Put down the Sniper Rifle once in a while and then you can talk to me about which weapons I use.

 

[empa]

Depends really what game you play.

For example i play EVE online a lot, and most players there are quite mature (nature of the game i assume)

However in games like heroes of newerth almost the entire community is just plain retarded..

 

[Shoggoth2588]

I tried playing online but it lost its luster after a few months. The Xbox Live community wasn't as terrible as it's made out to be (well it wasn't but there were always some people who you wanted to slap). The PSN community was great but that was mainly because in all the time I played online using the PS3, I was the only person who had a mic!

As for the debates/flame wars and such; the Escapist is basically the only game community I'm a part of. I recently joined Screw Attack but I haven't touched the forum yet. At this point I've gone months without playing a game online. It just doesn't appeal to me: I'd rather play games with friends and, in the same room.

 

[El Luck]

Nope, because I'm part of an online gaming community that has nothing to do with obnoxious kids. Infact quite a lot of online gaming communitys can't stand them.

 

[AuronFtw]

Hardly any kids play WoW anymore (at least... hardly any that you have to interact with). People I hear on vent are at least late teens with most being adults. Very rarely someone's kid will be playing their char for clearing trash or an easy fight or something, but usually kids just don't raid.

Or I'm just insanely lucky and avoid all the ones that do

 

[Mordekaien]

This is actually the reason I can't go and play Heroes of Newerth or League of Legends, or other DOTA-styled game, even though I find the concept for these games interesting.

 

[Don't taze me bro]

I'd be inclined to say, that it isn't just kids that are ruining games. Teenagers and young adults also make up a large portion of hackers / hecklers and bigots with zero social skills and a vocabulary full of four letter words.
I also dabble in MMOs, and there is an increasingly popular trend to try and 'troll', whether it is espousing puerile and immature garbage in general chat, or deliberately trying to sabotage groups in dungeons and raids.

 

[Xannidel]

To me it seems like flipping a coin, on one hand you may be in a game (like CoD for example) and you may just have a bunch on young individuals that can only spout immature words or insults because that is all they can do. The other side is you can be in another game (WoW or some other MMORPG) and have everyone on your team working together and not trash talking. It just is a matter of chance and in some cases, having a full party or group of your friends so you don't have to deal with a few bad apples.

But I would not say they are ruining a community, the only real way for a community to be ruined is if everyone stops playing that game and the company behind the game(s) needs to shut the server(s) down.

*Edit* I suppose, in a game like CoD or Battlefield, that a community could be ruined by hackers, I remember having to take days off of MW2 on the PC because I had bad luck and was placed in a game with wall hackers or whatnot.

 

[Odbarc]

I'm more annoyed with foreigners who both never played whatever genre of game you're in, but speak broken English.
Not that I'm against foreigners in general, people picking up a good game, or having the ability to speak a second language, especially seeing as they are likely spelling it better than most monolingual people.

They just have a completely unique interpretation of how co-op games play.
For example, I was playing Diablo and we were looking for the next floor. Seeing as we could both 1-2 shot kill everything, we didn't need to stick together. Instead of spreading out and doubling our chances to find our goal.
Most people would recognize or not care what I was doing, and we'd cooperative but separately complete the same goal faster and more efficient.
So, instead he followed me and because I was slightly quicker, I was doing all the work and he became worthless fodder.
That annoys me.

There have always been wondrous mute buttons in all games to block stupid people (and stupid kids) so there's never trouble from me.

 

[Urgh76]

The FPS online community maybe?

This.... I mean this is really where most of that horrid infestation takes place.

 

[Blunderboy]

Really 17 year olds are complaining about 'kids these days'? Jesus.

It's not really an issue I've come across really. Those kids I have ended up encountering online tend to be fairly polite and mature. Maybe it's because I mostly play PC games.

 

[Kahunaburger]

That's like asking if the smell is ruining the septic tank.