I thought I’d start with the topic most pressing on my mind: shame culture in gaming. This is a biggie.
Gaming is huge in shaming people; either someone is too ‘sweaty’ and needs to ‘touch grass,’ (go outside once in a while) or they’re too nooby; a ‘bot’, who needs to ‘git gud’ (get good at the game). But your skill level isn’t the only thing people can ridicule you for. The type of class you choose, the weapons you wield, the tactics you employ and even the game you’re playing can be judged by the greater gaming community.
An article by Jonathon Baron (1999) explores how glory and shame are inherent in most online games where a player is in direct contact with other gamers, whether that be as teammates or opposition. It should be mentioned that some of the words Baron writes are no longer applicable (he mentions mass multiplayer games not being a large part of the media industry) but his discussion on shame and glory remain relevant, more now than ever. He writes: “As a player, you are at once participant and spectator, beholder and creator of the game environment.”
He explains: “If the stadium in which the NFL Pro Bowl was filled with pro football players as its only spectators, imagine the psychological impact upon the players on the field. Now imagine that every new football player had to play in front of this audience from the moment they first played football ... This is multi-player gaming today.”
And therein lies the problem… as well as the reason multiplayer online games are remotely fun to play in the first place. The glory of winning and the shame of losing; a dual-edged sword.
Kristian Murrells, who has been gaming for more than 20 years, says: “If you’re on a losing streak, frustration can easily turn teammates against each other, because you want to feel that glory of winning and of being the better player. You end up putting all these hours into learning the game and trying to get better at it, and then you can have a losing streak and get frustrated because you think ‘I thought I was getting good at this’ and you can build up that expectation for yourself.”
A good player is one who’s actually enjoying themselves, because that’s the point of playing video games
Kristian Murrells
Murrells, who started playing Call of Duty: Black Ops II at 13, adds: “When you win a game though, it's really validating. Gaming is quite a hostile space anyway, especially if you’re a noob. So when you do start to develop some skill you can unintentionally inherit the same sort of habits and language of the people who used to insult you. And you can justify it by saying ‘this is just how online gaming is.’”
“But then you can have positive experiences too,” says Murrells, “I was playing a game recently that I’m pretty new at, and I thought I was doing okay, until I kept coming across this one opponent who was just insanely good. He made sure I could do nothing the entire game, and he was chatting on mic and I could tell that he found it funny. We played two matches like this, until the third one I approached him and joked, saying, ‘you must teach me yours ways,’ and this guy thought this was hilarious and said ‘you’re no foe of mine, you’re a student.’ And he taught me how to play the game better.”
If you’re playing to win, don’t be afraid to be bullet fodder
Kristian Murrells
Murrells, whose first gaming experiences included Zelda and Club Penguin, but later saw him playing anything from Destiny to Holdfast: Nations at War, explained that he was lucky not to have experienced the toxic attitudes towards noobs all that much when he was younger. “When I was 13 I would always watch those troll videos on Youtube of people playing Black Ops II and winding others up. But compared to the amount I saw on YouTube, I didn’t get any of that. I was a kid and I never spoke on mic, even though I was still listening to everyone else in the lobby.”
“Enjoying a game, and dealing with the toxic behaviours of other players, is all about mentality, rather than how good you are. Arguably a good player is one who’s actually enjoying themselves, because that’s the point of playing video games,” he summarised.
So being a noob, sitting in the respawn, relying on your teammates for regular revives or ranking bottom of the league doesn’t really matter. As long as you’re not intentionally being cruel to someone else online then you should be able to play whatever you want, however you want, without judgement.
Gaming is about having fun. Celebrate the wins, but don't feel too bad about the losses, there’ll always be another round to play and you can always come back to the game later, if you’re getting too frustrated.
Something I’ve learnt:
Sometimes it’s good to be bullet fodder.
Murrells said: “When you’re playing an online team game, it's easy to hang back because you’re aware you’re not as good as the other players on your team. If you’re playing to win, then don’t be afraid to be bullet fodder. So, if it's three against three and you’re hanging back that means it's two vs three. Whereas if you’re out there, and maybe you’re looking stupid and all eyes are on you, then you’re probably more likely to get three people shooting at you. And yes, you’ll probably die instantly but that gives the other two people on your team time to do something.”
What I’m playing now:
The chill game: Minecraft
The intense game: Fortnite Battle Royale
The solo game: Marvel’s Spider-Man
What I’m looking forward to playing:
Banishers: Ghost of New Eden