New Culture by Lumiero

I consider myself a sensible guy. I’m only human, though. I experience life the way most humans do but, when paranoid ideas pass through my consciousness, I acknowledge them and consider alternative explanations. Usually, those findings give way to understanding and a rational conclusion. It’s something that I”m proud to have learned how to do.

Having said that, I’ve spent years considering alternative explanations to the plague of toxic ideology that I experience in Multi-Player Gaming experiences. To be frank, I hope it’s just me. The idea that I’m just “paranoid” or “suck at video games” would be much easier to accept than the potential reality that exists in the online community of gamers.

That reality is that the real world is filled with narcissistic, ignorant and blatantly disrespectful humans that apply those traits, in a magnified sense, to their gamertags and large scale operations have an agenda they want to push and are willing to “curate” experiences to manipulate perceptions of their products.

I want to believe the paranoia. I actually want to believe that I’m being targeted online. It would be easier to accept the state of society if it was only my personal experience in this section of the world.

As frustrating as it would be, it would be easier to cope with the fact that my network has been “sandboxed” and I’m intentionally filtered into toxic environments where racism, homophobia, cheating and overall lack of discipline is not only allowed but encouraged.

I’ve only been in Multiplayer Matchmaking scenarios for about 3 years. (Unless you count the 4 times I tried to play FIFA 11 on the Nintendo Wii with primitive Wi-Fi) However, I’ve been online since before Social Media was a thing. I know what it does to people, being online and semi-anonymous. People who struggle with confidence and morality feel like they’re wearing a mask that frees them of the responsibility of being a decent human being. I get it, it’s a rush.

The problem is, you’re not really anonymous. You are, in fact, very easily traceable. More importantly ,your actions really do have consequences. I don’t need to cite any sources because if you’re able to get online and read this, you already know the kinds of terrible things that have happened as a result of children and adults abusing their sense of invisibility on the internet.

So, I’m not really surprised. Like I said, I hope my network of devices and consoles have been compromised by some elite hacking entity. It would be a relief to see one of my cousins say, “Haha, gotcha!” or a company reach out and say “We were just hazing you, welcome to the team” because the alternative is much more disappointing.

Sports games are my favorite to play, both online and IRL. Some of the values I learned playing team sports as a child have stuck with me. I was fortunate to have some success and I believe that it was due to the culture of discipline, honor and respect.

My favorite memories are from picking up teammates when they were down, setting them up for success by being unselfish and cheering them on when things went well. I believe those things are why we won so often. Teamwork really does make the dream work.

Today, in my team scenarios online, that vary from sports games to shooters, don’t bring the same feelings of accomplishment, camaraderie and contentment that they should. I know what’s missing and I think you do, too.

Even if you don’t game online, I’m sure you understand what happens when you add the spirit of competition to that toxic culture of perceived invincibility that comes from hiding behind a username. These kids and young men can be insufferable.

From the desire to be acknowledged to the impulse to make others unhappy, most gamers I’ve experienced are either chasing that glory at the expense of everyone else or are so unhappy offline that they need someone else to feel upset with them. It’s not just a few bad apples anymore. Thanks to the “get rich quick” and “everyone is famous” culture that’s hijacked the internet in recent years, it’s become a culture.

It’s a culture because it’s become a self reinforcing environment. For example, in sports games, you would expect that real life tactics and techniques will lead to success. Having patience, passing the ball around, making intelligent decisions are how you win. However, some players either lack the intelligence or the patience and have resorted to exploiting inconsistencies in the game code to simply win as fast and by as much as possible.

More on the FIFA Pro Clubs Drop-In culture in another post - @goLumiero

These types of players have consumed the environment. When players choose to play the right way, they are instantly ridiculed and shamed for not feeding the exploitation. Selfish desires overcome some of these players and if they don’t get their fix, they resort to insults and harassment including an action known as “team killing”.

It’s not all bad. A small amount of matches I’ve been a part of have been with patient, intelligent and unselfish gamers. Even without microphones, we were able to share the experience and play as a team and many times, we won.

The problem is, it’s so few and far between, it’s almost not even worth it to look for it anymore.

So, if you want to play games and interact in a positive and manner or want to contribute to a new culture of gaming that’s inclusive and respectful, contact Lumiero on social media.

Be Good,

Josh | artscience84.com | #goLumiero