Tag: technology

Bystander’s Guide – Combating Harassment in Online Multiplayer Games

I used to play a lot of competitive Overwatch. Like, a lot. I’ve lost track amount of times I’ve been harassed in a game of Overwatch (not to mention in other games) while the other four people on my team quietly listen to a fifth person say absolutely vile things to me, completely unprovoked. It feels awful that bystanders often don’t seem to bat an eye as they observe what is essentially verbal assault. It always makes me wonder, How can they listen to this and say or do nothing?

Correcting the toxicity in competitive gaming communities will be an ongoing, group effort. This guide will teach you how and why you can and should help when you encounter harassment in one of your games.

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Koral Review (Switch) – taking a deep dive

Playing Koral left me feeling ambivalent. It is safe to say that Koral is best approached as a “zen game” in that it is a visually appealing yet simple game good for relaxation. Its dazzling graphics and mundane puzzle gameplay co-exist in discord. This game will only be a good fit for some and that’s okay.

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The Silent Death of the Video Gamer Stereotype

Two years ago I ran into an old high school acquaintance while I was out for lunch. Over our meal he complimented my hoodie featuring a logo from one of my favorite video games. I was surprised and delighted to hear that he was a gamer because I remembered he had been a sports jock (speaking of stereotypes) when I knew him in our teenage years. I asked him about it and he told me he had hidden his interest from friends and acquaintances to maintain his friendships and to avoid judgement.

What makes it socially acceptable for a person to carry their love of football out of high school and keep it throughout their adult life, but feel the need to hide their love of video games?

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Why do female gamers tend to play support characters?


Over a year ago I wrote a post about female support players on the Overwatch subreddit that hit the front page and generated a lot of buzz in the community at the time. It earned 9 Reddit Gold awards and over 14,000 up-votes, with nearly 4,000 comments. I was even reached out to by the head of player behavior at Blizzard whom had read it.

At the risk of sounding like a humble-bragger, I was absolutely blown away by the response to what started as a rambling rant to another post about Mercy players. I’ve revisited the original content and cleaned it up for posterity.

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