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[DryvBy]

Blizzard/Overwatch has had it's fair share of questionable ban hammers (like only playing one character), but this one takes the cake. Blizzard has decided to ban players that make toxic comments on YouTube and apparently other social media.

via Polygon

“As you all know, we recently added the ability for our console players to report people which has been amazing and has shown us really great results,” Kaplan said. “We also added warnings for people who were about to get suspended, silenced or banned that their behavior was unacceptable and that if they kept getting reported by other players or noticed by us here at Blizzard that they would get in trouble and that’s helped a lot.”

“We now proactively seek out social media sites like YouTube, for example,” Kaplan said, “and look for incidents of very toxic behavior and track down the accounts that are participating in those and action them, often times before anybody’s even reported them or they’ve shown up in any other place. That’s just one example of us being proactive that I think is going to make a big difference over time.”

Maybe calling someone a racist name isn't that bad, but what exact is toxic? I've seen people scream toxic just for calling yourself a "gamer" these days. There's no Blizzard definition too so what exactly do they believe is "toxic"? I also question if this is stated in their EULA to play online. That you have to "watch your language" on every website you visit.

But I'm sure Blizzard is taking efforts to not accidentally ban someone wrongfully though.

 

[caffeware]

Everything is toxic nowadays.

 

[Mahadev]

Are they gonna check my credit rating too to allow me to play?

 

[wondermega]

God damn. Big brother is watching.. I wonder how much of this is "scare tactics" versus how much resource will actually be poured into it?

 

[EviLore]

Are they gonna check my credit rating too to allow me to play?

But do you get banned for it being too low, or too high?

 

[Mahadev]

But do you get banned for it being too low, or too high?

You get banned if it's lower than 706 or higher than 705.

 

[Brock2621]

Good freaking grief... better use the right gender pronouns when addressing everyone as well or you’re cultivating a toxic environment rooted in a bigoted, mysogonistic and racist history of sexual oppression.

 

[Hoya Destroyer]

Of all the games to do this, Im not surprised that its Overwatch.

 

[Koala Driving a Ferrari]

Gross. More reason to create unique accounts and identities for everything. When your entertainment starts policing you, well, it's time to re-assess where you spend your money.

Overly liberal Blizzard may ban our accounts...

 

[ipukespiders]

What a bunch of pussies.

 

[alken]

.

 

[Leocarian]

Very stupid of Blizzard to do this, get over it.

 

[KyanMehwulfe]

This means toxic comments that are in Overwatch but are spotted on third-party websites... right? As in, just instead of seeing the toxicity directly through in-game mod tools or reports, they see the toxicity (in Overwatch) in videos on Youtube ...

Cuz the way it's worded it sounds like he means Youtube comments or something, but that's insane (...right?). And he just means checking viral videos or clips is another way to find _in-game_ toxicity (...right?).

 

[Mattyp]

There's a reason I ditched this game a year ago. 4 gold medals in a ranked match, but we'll punish the shit out of you anyway along with your SR because we team you up with bellends in ranked? Sure, why not.

 

[Demigod Mac]

They aren't going to ban people for posting toxic comments. More like, if someone posts a video of themselves being a complete asshat in an Overwatch game, Blizzard will use that as evidence.

 

[Angie22]

Wait people here are defending the toxic players? They feel sorry that they got banned? LOL

I will gladly call some people here morons or worse to test if they are ok with it. If they get upset and I get a bann or a warning that would be highly hypocritical.

 

[TheSadRanger]

They aren't going to ban people for posting toxic comments. More like, if someone posts a video of themselves being a complete asshat in an Overwatch game, Blizzard will use that as evidence.

I agree but the problem is it's difficult to judge who the toxic people are at times in YT videos. Yes there's clear cut examples of people being jerks and saying hateful shit. But there's also examples of teams being passive aggressive dicks against players and dog piling on someone who might be having a rough game. It's not that players fault often times, but in competitive people will often times dog pile on someone if they lose. Often times blaming the lowest ranked player even though it might not be their fault necessarily. It's not their fault that matchmaking is kinda crap at the moment.

A big part of the problem with the OW community, especially with competitive is that players just won't admit (you know what, the other team played better) They gotta get their scapegoat so they'll label someone toxic. Which distracts from actual real issues of toxicity and is a reason why people are complaining about reports not working, which is why I imagine that they're trying this.

 

[Spukc]

Just stop streaming the game. /message.
Eggshell mode engaged

 

[WaterAstro]

Blizzard shouldn't ban for content outside of their jurisdiction, no matter what the cause.

I could imagine copycats wreaking havoc to ban users they don't like.

 

[llien]

How do they know who's youtube acc it is?

(like only playing one character)

Jaw dropped...

 

[Captain Star]

Okay, good luck with that. Sounds like a customer support nightmare once the calls start coming in.

 

[deadscreensky]

They aren't going to ban people for posting toxic comments. More like, if someone posts a video of themselves being a complete asshat in an Overwatch game, Blizzard will use that as evidence.

Yeah, it's pretty clear that's what they meant. They also specifically said "very toxic behavior." This isn't people saying bad things on YouTube comments, this is more like monetized videos of you deliberately ruining matches for other people.

I have no sympathy for trolls, Blizzard should do whatever they want with their Overwatch accounts. Who cares?

 

[grumpyGamer]

I get blizzard, but where does the line stop, i mean that's why there are in game report buttons, but the moment you go out of the game and enter youtube to make a video and you got banned, ( for being stupid, making a rant about the game etc..) that is wrong it is against player rights.

who the hell is blizzard my mother, the police to tell me how to behave, i buy the game i respect the ingame rules, what i do out of the game is none of they're business, really hate this kind of dictatorship rules

 

[nephilimdj]

Didn't Riot games already set the bar low for this when they banned Dunkey and Athene?

 

[gunslikewhoa]

Wait people here are defending the toxic players? They feel sorry that they got banned? LOL

I will gladly call some people here morons or worse to test if they are ok with it. If they get upset and I get a bann or a warning that would be highly hypocritical.

"Ruler of the straw men checking in."

Not only are all of us defending them, we've voted to grant them each a bonus of 1,000 SR!

 

[stargateheaven]

uhhh, no i think he just means they find the videos of overwatch of being being toxic and ban those.

i don't think there are any youtube comments involved.

 

[Makariel]

I'm not sure if that's better or worse than banning for just playing one character, both strike me as authoritarian measures that I'd not be happy with. Blizz is of course a private company and they can let on their playground who they want, but if they change the rules after the fact and start banning people, they should also pay out refunds to those who suddenly can't access the game they have paid for.

I'm not at risk of being affected, since I couldn't buy Overwatch because of issues with my account. Apparently Blizzard does not understand that folks can move around the EU fairly freely, and locked my ability to purchase unless I send them a copy of my passport to prove my identity, along with two types of proof of address. I found that not worth the hassle, especially since my attemtps to get a hold of Blizz' "customer support" are unanswered to this day.

Maybe the Blizzard moral police will try to track down my account details and limit my ability to ever play Starcraft 2 again? That said at least there was an option to change the country for the battle.net account, when I tried to do the same for my PSN account it was flat out refused.

 

[michaelius]

Yeah, it's pretty clear that's what they meant. They also specifically said "very toxic behavior." This isn't people saying bad things on YouTube comments, this is more like monetized videos of you deliberately ruining matches for other people.

I have no sympathy for trolls, Blizzard should do whatever they want with their Overwatch accounts. Who cares?

And what if their definition changes into anyone overly critical of the game?

Also do you seriously don't see any issue with them banning for stuff done outside of game or Blizzard forums?

 

[Makariel]

And what if their definition changes into anyone overly critical of the game?

Then they would run empty servers very quickly. If there's something I remember from my years playing WoW, Diablo and Starcraft, it's how fans of Blizzard games like to be overly critical about minute aspects of their favourite games

 

[GreenMario]

I think lots of people are misunderstanding. He is suggesting that in-game bad behaviour seen on 3rd party sites will be punished.

A person uploading a video of themselves greifing, for example, would be punished even if no one in game reported them.

That’s how I interpreted it, anyway.

 

[120v]

probably mainly aiming to go after youtubers/streamers who create content essentially devoted to trolling or just being a dick for 'for the lulz'

i'd like to think they wouldn't go full gestapo browsing thousands of lets plays and streams with less than a couple thousand views in hopes of nailing some rando

 

[BANGS]

Just another reason why I never bought this game...

 

[Salvatron]

I wonder if there's a better way to solve this issue by creating some kind of perma-mute or semi-perma mute option (banned in-game voice/text chat) rather than outright game ban?

 

[vazel]

They're not going to be banning for comments. Blizzard has been banning youtuber MaximilianMus's accounts for months for recording himself throwing games; all they're doing now is announcing this as standard policy.

 

[Lionel Richie]

I wonder if there's a better way to solve this issue by creating some kind of perma-mute or semi-perma mute option (banned in-game voice/text chat) rather than outright game ban?

I agree with this, I'm sure banning someone because of what he said from a product he bought is an infringement of some rights. Just revoke their voice chat instead but yeah there's no place for logic when everything is politic.

 

[Silvawuff]

I have seen organizations fire employees over stuff that they've said outside of work on social media or Twitter, so this isn't a far cry from that same paradigm of accountability. I'm interested what their metric is for a bannable offense tho -- maybe some transparency there would be helpful.

 

[deadscreensky]

And what if their definition changes into anyone overly critical of the game?

Also do you seriously don't see any issue with them banning for stuff done outside of game or Blizzard forums?

Like others and myself are pointing out, this seems strictly attached to people doing "very toxic" things in-game and then sharing it elsewhere. Suggesting this will happen because you say something nasty in Youtube comments is already an enormous stretch, and looks like a pretty blatant misreading of what they're saying (for example "often times before anybody’s even reported them" obviously points only to in-game behavior).

Banning people for criticizing the game would be extremely childish of Blizzard (though probably legal), but that's such an extreme jump from what they're talking about here that you could also suggest almost any enforcement of bans could slide to that. It's so unlikely and theoretical it's impossible to seriously worry about. Why care about such unlikely, made-up fears?

 

[Mahadev]

OK seriously now, my problem with this shit is two-fold. First of all the term toxic is way too vague. wtf does toxic mean to them who the fuck knows, if they're using a meme that has been considered toxic by moral crusaders like that stupid knuckles meme is that toxic? And second the point of reports is for the community to decide what's "toxic" and then forward it to the developer for final decision. Blizzard unilaterally making decisions doesn't sound good to me. Not that it doesn't already happen but the vagueness combined with the fact that they'll be making the decision alone sounds like a recipe for disaster for me.

 

[michaelius]

Like others and myself are pointing out, this seems strictly attached to people doing "very toxic" things in-game and then sharing it elsewhere. Suggesting this will happen because you say something nasty in Youtube comments is already an enormous stretch, and looks like a pretty blatant misreading of what they're saying (for example "often times before anybody’s even reported them" obviously points only to in-game behavior).

Banning people for criticizing the game would be extremely childish of Blizzard (though probably legal), but that's such an extreme jump from what they're talking about here that you could also suggest almost any enforcement of bans could slide to that. It's so unlikely and theoretical it's impossible to seriously worry about. Why care about such unlikely, made-up fears?

I don't see any mention of this being about in-game footage only. So they have left themselves opportunity to ban whoever they want as long as they can find excuse.

“We now proactively seek out social media sites like YouTube, for example,” Kaplan said, “and look for incidents of very toxic behavior and track down the accounts that are participating in those and action them, often times before anybody’s even reported them or they’ve shown up in any other place. That’s just one example of us being proactive that I think is going to make a big difference over time.”

 

[hiphopcr]

Acting like a douche over a videogame is a symptom of larger problems, I don't feel bad if these man children get put in time out

 

[deadscreensky]

I don't see any mention of this being about in-game footage only. So they have left themselves opportunity to ban whoever they want as long as they can find excuse.

...I already mentioned that quote. It references in-game behavior (the mention of "reported"). This whole thing is about very toxic in-game behavior.

I don't understand where so much confusion in this thread is coming from, but this article is just taking quotes from the initial three minutes of this video. Maybe watching it will help make things clearer for some, but Blizzard is talking about players acting toxic in actual Overwatch games. (Cue certain people deliberately misunderstanding the video's early comments about lowering toxicity online.) Vazel already brought up a good example of Blizzard doing this last year.

I don't understand why this is so difficult to understand: Blizzard makes online games. Blizzard games have a problem with toxic players, those who are extremely rude and deliberately seek to ruin the experience for other people. Blizzard needs to improve things because it actively discourages non-trolls from playing their games. They don't care if you post racist dog whistles about white flight on NeoGAF or whatever, they're trying to make their games better. That's their actual business and that's what this is about.

 

[Zog]

I don't play Overwatch and I don't play games online so maybe my understanding is wrong here but it sounds like corporations can take away a product you bought for any reason they choose? People are ok with this?

 

[Phoenix RISING]

Yeah, it's pretty clear that's what they meant. They also specifically said "very toxic behavior." This isn't people saying bad things on YouTube comments, this is more like monetized videos of you deliberately ruining matches for other people.

I have no sympathy for trolls, Blizzard should do whatever they want with their Overwatch accounts. Who cares?

Acting like a douche over a videogame is a symptom of larger problems, I don't feel bad if these man children get put in time out

Thank God that there is a beacon of light in this thread.

PPL getting preemptively mad up in here as if this change will impact them directly.

If you are a decent human person, a ban on "toxicity," whatever that entails, should be of zero concern to you.

Engage in douchebaggery at your own risk.

 

[deadscreensky]

I don't play Overwatch and I don't play games online so maybe my understanding is wrong here but it sounds like corporations can take away a product you bought for any reason they choose? People are ok with this?

If you play a Blizzard product you already agreed you're okay with it (specifically section C).

People often aren't happy about EULA's, of course, and there's probably some legal grayness involved with them, but this is hardly something new or unique to Overwatch. (Nintendo even takes away your hardware if you refuse to accept whatever they've updated their EULA to.)

(Just for reference, if it matters, while I do own Overwatch I think it's kind of a lousy game and I don't really play it. So in this thread I'm not speaking as some Overwatch fanboy or anything like that.)

 

[Blam]

Holy fuck Blizzard. You're crazy.

Didn't Riot games already set the bar low for this when they banned Dunkey and Athene?

Pretty sure those 2 both int'd in matches are were toxic in game.

 

[Zog]

If you play a Blizzard product you already agreed you're okay with it (specifically section C).

People often aren't happy about EULA's, of course, and there's probably some legal grayness involved with them, but this is hardly something new or unique to Overwatch. (Nintendo even takes away your hardware if you refuse to accept whatever they've updated their EULA to.)

(Just for reference, if it matters, while I do own Overwatch I think it's kind of a lousy game and I don't really play it. So in this thread I'm not speaking as some Overwatch fanboy or anything like that.)

Being banned on a multiplayer only game with ever changing rules is straight up theft. Suppose you buy a multiplayer only game and then a month later the corporation decides that if you have a certain piece of unrelated software on your PC (say uTorrent) then you will be banned. You have had the rules changed after your purchase without any recourse.

It's insane what they get away with in this industry. They can sell you a product and then take it away.

 

[Kadayi]

I am literally shaking........

Spoiler

with laughter at this insanity. Blizzard world police.

 

[Omegatron]

It's kinda like those people getting fired from their jobs because their bosses was told they said something toxic on Twitter or FB, even thought their comment had nothing to do with their workplace.

"We don't want people like you representing our company or products, so we will ask you to leave."

With jobs you get fired and with games you get banned. In an age that has people lose jobs all the time because the moral left goes after your personal information to get you fired from your job due to something you said that they don't agree with, this just feels like a step in that same direction.

If you say stuff like "UGH... There's a girl on my team, can we ban her?" or any racial slur that has no place being anywhere, obviously you need to go. What scares me is what OP said, where does toxic behavior begin and end?

But this sadly is par for the course with anything that is competitive, since competition has you show everyone else that you're the best because only the best win.

So in a team based game, everyone on the team has to show that they're the best. If even one person does match up to that competitive spirit, those who feel that they're being dragged down will let you know.

People in the Olympics for example cheat and play foul all the time, be it drugs or something else while reciting an oath about playing just and fair. If you create a product or event meant for competition regardless what that product or event is, then this sort of behavior will rear its ugly head more so than anywhere else.

As they say: "It's not enough that I should win. Everyone else must also lose."

 

[caffeware]

I am literally shaking........

 

[DryvBy]

Acting like a douche over a videogame is a symptom of larger problems, I don't feel bad if these man children get put in time out

The overall problem is there's no definition of what is toxic. Let's sad for argument's sake that in a year, "douche" is considered toxic to some company. You'd be okay with them banning your from a game you play because on a completely different media you said a naughty word?