"Plague of game dev harassment" (Polygon article)

Seriously, the "that's what you should expect for being famous/having a twitter account/being in the industry/existing" argument is dumb. It's "she was asking for it wearing that outfit" levels of dumb.

Stop trying to make excuses for assholes, call people out on their shit instead of going "meh shit happens" at death threats, I'm not saying we should be policing gamers twenty four/seven, there will always be assholes, but call them assholes, instead of being all "OH JUST GROW A THICKER SKIN" to the victims.

This a sort of "He who fights monsters" thing. In order to fight the assholes, you must become a different breed of asshole. It's kind of like fighting a bear with a cougar.

Eh, that feels like a false equivalency to me, I'm not saying we should be sending in death threats in return or anything. More that, if we see someone like that behaving badly, tell them it's not cool, ostracize those kinds of people instead of just passively accepting it.

edited 26th Aug '13 6:45:37 PM by Firestorm

I do not see how calling an asshole an asshole makes you an asshole. It just makes you right.

Here's how I see it. We can get upset over issues within video games, what some have done to our beloved hobby and franchises. I know to use a current example I didn't like how Rebecca Sanabria wasn't in Saints Row 4 playing Latin Boss or when I saw the graphic tin case for Dead Island: Riptide and looked into the trailers, the Zombie Bait edition and how far these R rated games are going I think I was as upset about that as I have ever been with gaming. However the scorn I have for it and how much I can cut Deep Silver who are part of both games for what they've done, the Super Dangerous Wad Wad edition where they short change some quarter of a million dollars, it being a joke aside I can and have been snide about it and deservedly so in my view. But you look at the way some people act, are they not acting the same as Jack Thompson? Shouldn't we be sending hate mail to the Czech military for putting the Flashpoint developers in prison? If some people get that wound up because Edge is not in the next Ace Combat game then what hope have they got living in the real world?

TL, DR. Save the anger for those who really deserve it, there's more than enough of them out there.

Because calling a asshole who craves attention an asshole is like giving him a pat on the back and announcing you're significantly less intelligent than he is to him.

I dunno, I think "We are going to ignore you from now on, and this is why" is a valid way to deal with people like that. Starve them of the attention they want, and make sure they know it's their own fault.

I think if they're bad enough to be making death threats then no matter what the reaction is they are encouraged to keep doing it. I know we've tried to deal with particularly bothersome people in different ways and they'd keep coming back. Complete ignorance seems to their activities seems to work as sooner or later they get tired of not getting a response.

Once again, how much could be avoided by just not going on Twitter? It seems to be a magnet for douchebaggery.

Why should the trolls win and deny developers the right to use social media? It's not just Twatter the problem exists, it's blogs, forums, email, if a troll is persistent enough it can even get to personal home life. Not even the guy behind what gender wars was called deserves that.

Because Devs also make themselves look like douche canoes on Twitter. Its a source of constant stupidity.

It should just be avoided.

Twitter is also a really handy way to connect with other professionals, along with advertising, updates etc. Telling them to stay off to avoid harassment is useless and kind of insulting advice. I guess Helper should of never written games in the first place if she didn't want death threats towards her children.

Pretty sure stupidity can be found anywhere and is not exclusive to Twitter like you're implying.

OT: Unless the game devs are being total pricks, the people harassing them are entirely to blame.

Twitter is good for all those things when there is someone whose job is to actually manage it for you. Doing it yourself is just a great way to expose yourself to the worst of your "fan"base.

It also, in the case of already volatile personalities, causes situations like what recently happened with Phil Fish.

Official twitter accounts that are used for news purposes should be completely separate from personal/professional accounts that are used for inter-developer communication.

Well, it's good for all those things regardless of whether you're doing it yourself or not. Not everyone has the option to hire a publicist. Should they have to pass up useful tools because other people are scum of the earth?

edited 27th Aug '13 1:35:51 PM by CorrTerek

I think the way Adam Orth acted and the backlash he suffered was well deserved (he was the guy who mocked those concerned about the XBOX One and lost his job.) Death threats though...look at it this way: suppose you had an absolute shoot on Kennedy and how much she sucked and she shouldn't have been in the show, or Twilight and you raged at how much you hate Bella, does that give license for those who don't like what you said to stalk you? To track down your home address and make threats over the phone?

The FBI, according to the manual for Rainbow Six, defines terrorism as "The calculated use of violence or the threat of violence to inculcate fear, intended to coerce or intimidate governments or societies as to the pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious or ideological."

http://www.peacejustice.msu.edu/exhibits/show/terrorism/meaning/whittaker

Penn And Teller revealed that after September 11 terrorism is a crime that had extended to the use of vandalism, arson and damage and destruction of property by the likes of PETA and animal liberation groups.

edited 27th Aug '13 3:35:34 PM by tsstevens

People being shit to other people is a fact of life. Just like rain. When its heavily storming out, you avoid the rain, not stand out in the middle of the storm with an umbrella.

And?

edited 27th Aug '13 3:42:55 PM by Thorn14

"How something is" does not dictate "How something ought to be."

If sending death threats is not the calculated threat of violence, what is it? Are you saying you would be happy to have people send death threats to you for things you said online?

What if you have to be somewhere important, like a faculty meeting or a job interview? Do you stay inside because of some falling water?

edited 27th Aug '13 4:03:20 PM by PhysicalStamina

Buuuuuull.

People shouldn't just lie back and accept it. People as a whole should ostracize and fight it. People as a whole should stand up and make it clear that harassment is unacceptable.

Have fun fighting a fight you can't win. Its like fighting to "end all violence or war."

Trying to end internet douchery is like trying to make it not rain. You either take shelter or find a way to not let it affect you.

Of course not. No one should have to deal with it. But the only thing someone can do is ignore it and not let it bother you. I'd argue that none of those death threats were serious anyway. Any 12 year old can say "I will find and kill you"

edited 27th Aug '13 4:21:26 PM by Thorn14

No one said anything about fighting to end all trolling. It's a matter of standing up yourself. Why should someone just let people give them death threats?

Making a big fuss about it only makes it worse and fuels the fire. They WANT a reaction. They WANT you to go and do stuff. If you keep on trucking along and ignore it, they'll get bored and stop.

edited 27th Aug '13 4:22:21 PM by Thorn14

Not doing anything about it, on the other hand, makes you look like a pushover.