Gaming stats have gone through the roof in 2020 with more people logging on to blast, construct, and co-op than ever before. Don’t just take our word for it. Back in March, long-running platform Steam declared that they had hit their record for concurrent users, with more than 20 million people online at one time. With the internet on fire, and pixels and digital bullets flying, it was always going to be an impossible task to explain to all the newbies the ins and outs of gaming etiquette. After all, there were plenty of experienced players who never quite grasped the idea of playing nice in the first place.
Here are some of the longstanding gripes of those gamers who dream of a day when we can all just get along while playing the games we so dearly love.
Spread Love, Not Hate
It sounds cliché, but just as it’s definitely not okay to kick a man while he’s down, it’s also not okay to rub salt into the wound of a fallen opponent, or even worse, one of your own teammates. A little “gg” here and a “glgl” there never hurt anyone – be it after a grueling battle royale or a stint on an online casino game. But repeated chat smatterings of snide abuse and derogatory comments can certainly negatively impact the well-being of a fellow gamer or even a professional live dealer. If the red mist descends and you need an outlet for your frustrations, why not scream at the cat to get off the sofa instead, or go and grab yourself a cooling popsicle.
Pro Gamers Do Not Invade Other Peoples’ Living Rooms
With pro gamers streaming non-stop – be it on YouTube, Twitch, or Mixer – there is the possibility that amateur gamers at home get the idea they must have a state-of-the-art gaming setup to match. However, with the likes of Ninja and KSI all having more than enough spare cash to assemble their dedicated gaming stations in a separate study or games room, what they don’t do is launch a forced takeover of communal living space. Gamers beware, if you want to enrage family, friends, and housemates, one sure-fire way to do it is to claim you need the living room, TV and sofa all to yourself for eight consecutive hours.
Glitches in games are a hot topic at the moment, with an argument raging over whether the exploitation of such developer brain burps is fair. However, there are certain aspects of games that are open to abuse despite them being essential to the game in question. One of these is spawning. There tend to be two main offenders: first, those hot-headed individuals who fall out with their team to such an extent that they lock themselves indefinitely in spawn until their friends are vanquished, secondly there are those who camp out at known spawning points, picking off defenceless enemies before they’ve so much as had a chance to pick up ammo.
Both practices can ruin a game for everyone involved and should be discouraged at all costs, just as smoking or picking one’s nose are at elegant social occasions.
Be Nice to Noobs
There is nothing worse than being the new member of a gaming team only to be given the cold shoulder by your prospective peers. While the temptation is to treat newbies with the contempt they deserve (we jest) many gamers will tell you that the heart-warming gratitude of a noob taken under a wing rather than left to fend for themselves is incredibly fulfilling. Ultimately it is this sort of positive community atmosphere that will drive gaming forward in the long run and that could make it a genuine force for social good. So next time you see a clueless noob in your vicinity, give them a reluctant pat on the back.
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