Online Gaming - Why is no-one talking... Can you hear me?

 When the current generation of Gaming was created in 2005, direct communication through online gameplay was born for the console players. Of course, communication on PC gaming had already been established for several years but this brought the use of microphones to the forefront of gaming. Xbox live allowed gamers to instruct one another and allowed players to get along with one another as they shared common ground with the games they were playing. Of course when the PS3 was released the communication in gaming was not as open as it is on Xbox 360, due to PS3 having no party system. Eventually however, the mood within the online community changed and many people preferred to play without a headset and why is this? This current trend of no communication through gaming has become more and more noticeable over the past 2-3 years. Surely the community’s attitude hasn’t turned sour… Has it?

 Ever since the emergence of popular FPS and 3PS franchises such as Call of Duty, Halo and Gears of War, Communication in gaming has always been vital. How else would you know where an enemy is coming from if you are crouched behind some barrels or whether to go all-out attack and go for the victory? So why did people suddenly begin to stop using the headset to use Party chat or no headset at all?

 The main reason I believe is due to the amount of children that play games which are intended for a mature audience. Kids screaming at you, “Die! Die! Die!” That sort of language and attitude from gamers under 12 or so is no good at all. It ruins the realistic feel which games are supposed to impose or immerse you into the game, as it were.  One minute you are sneaking around playing Search and Destroy and before you know it someone on your team is going around killing everyone because they ‘feel like it’. Partly, it is this immature attitude which has divided the hard-core gamers and Casual gamers I would say. This act of selfishness amongst the “Team Killers” which ruin the game for everyone on their team can be avoided with player feedback in the profile menu but once the act has been committed, it is hard to get your win streak back, especially if you are going for achievements.

Point in question

 These are gamers who wish to show off to their friends by saying, “Oh, look who I killed, they all died trololololol.” Again, this selfish act may just be the last straw for some players who will inevitably turn their back on the game and move onto something else. I would know it’s happened to me before. That is why I have never touched COD: MW3 because of the amount of immature players which are on the servers. Of course the majority of players just wish to play and play fair but there’s a minority who wish to “Troll”.

 The current trend of “Trolling” has impacted gaming like an unwanted zit on prom night. Gamers throughout forums seem to be embracing the “Troll” as well as the Trollface logo. I for one totally discourage this. It’s no wonder people have opted out of using microphones because of small minded gamers who wish to poke fun at any given chance. Left 4 Dead is another prime example of great teamwork to begin with and then it turned into every man for himself. Survival is the aim of the game in both Left 4 Dead games and in order to do this, you need to stick together. When the first game was released it was no problem as the community did this without hesitation. But as the public’s ability to play the game grew, people became cocky and started venturing off on their own which inevitably means that Left 4 Dead became Left 3 Dead, Left 2 Dead then Left to die all on your own. Again, not only did this make players want to only play with their friends or forget about wearing a headset but also turned players away from the game when Left 4 Dead 2 was released.

 Games such as Fifa 12 with its “Be a Pro Mode” which allowed 22 players from around the world play in the same game and if you weren’t quick, then you had to play out of position as the popular positions of strikers and wingers would be taken straight away. As you were communicating with your teammates and asking for a pass or even a touch of the ball, players would play with themselves or with their friends while you are in the same team which makes games very frustrating. The exact same problem which faces other games I have mentioned. Gamers playing the games while looking for solo glory and abandoning the rest of the team happens in many games these days. There is a way around this problem however which can only be found on Xbox.

 The Xbox revolutionised the communication barrier with the party system. Friends could gather in a single party and play the game they wanted to play it and if you were a serious gamer then this was the way forward. If you were playing COD, Left 4 Dead or Fifa then you could plan how to play the game while you were in the middle of the game itself! Personally, I only use the party system nowadays. I have been put off of public communication and would rather talk to my friends or my Xbox Live friends over party chat. It cuts out all of the abuse, bullying and ranting that every Joe Bloggs seems to want to talk about. It of course is a big bad world out there in Xbox Live communication. Microsoft can’t stop that unless they removed the communication function.

 Of course I am part of the problem in that I only use party chat but Microsoft… What else can I do?

 The maturity of some gamers is a whole other issue. Parents buying their kids GTA, which is an 18 rated game and letting them play it shows how little they know of games. I don’t think that the fad of trolling will go anywhere soon. Just need to hope that by the time the next generation rolls around, everyone will have grown up and can play like adults!

Can't we all just talk about it and get along... please?!

@SimonMarshall6

GT: SCIENCEakaSYCO