A Cooler Climate

[VladPiranha]

Friends,

 

I'm not the rain-or-shine sort of L4D2 player I once was, but I've been in the servers enough lately to notice a slight shift in the culture.  Maybe this has been sliding so gently and slowly that none of us have paid it much mind or even felt the shift, but I feel like we're not the warm batch of brothers-in-arms we once were.  Frustration and cynicism seem to be running rampant in the servers and I worry about the condition of our community in the server and on the forums.  God knows I have a reputation for anger born of arrogance and that it's my least attractive trait.  What frightens me is that I no longer feel like the odd man out when I lose my temper.  I see more and more people worrying about self-service these days and it's strangling whatever kind of brotherhood that sets us apart from the rest of what's left of Left 4 Dead's abyssmal community.  Those of you who have played this game for two or three years, back before the official Valve servers shut down, can attest to exactly how toxic the player interactions were (and probably still are).  We were, and still are, a lush island of peace and order in a sea of misery and contempt.  It's a bit ironic that a game that was designed to focus so intensely on teamwork and cooperation would host the most egocentric, selfish and cruel players since DotA or Counter-Strike.  It's a blessing that the GC community has never tolerated the kind of damage that their breed of parasites would inflict.

 

This is not a lecture on how we organize our games.  It isn't a critique of our admins on how they perform a job that is increasingly difficult and demanding.  I'm not calling out players for being difficult to deal with when they're struggling with a shrinking game community.  This isn't some sort of angry forum post meant to serve as a 'wake-up call' or anything dramatic like that.  All I ask is that we all stop for a moment and ask ourselves if we actually enjoy this game anymore.  The word to focus on here is game.  Left 4 Dead 2 is meant to be an enjoyable experience - friendly competition in a world of zany, zombie action where even your own horrible demise will be a humorous and memorable event.  Our servers are a place where we can all sit down and use our gifts of humor and cleverness to contribute to something meaningless and, in doing so, make it meaningful - the entire purpose of games.  The old adage about victory being insignificant compared to a game well played?  I'm finding more and more truth in that wisdom as I see more and more difficulty in the ability to enjoy what was once so easy to laugh at.

 

We've all spent a great deal of time grumbling about new players and the influx of their kind after every Steam sale, but if you take a few steps back and really analyze matters from a more objective vantage point, there's a shocking sort of revelation waiting for you.  Outside of the rushers, griefers and trolls, we have people who are inexperienced and want to enjoy what we all know is a phenomenal game experience.  They may not be the most skilled competitors, but their hearts may actually be in a more honest and innocent place than ours.  They intend to shoot zombies and reach safe zones just like the rest of us, but simply lack the experience to do so.  There is no instruction manual for how we play.  There is no tutorial level.  There is only us, the members, the veterans, the community.  Like it or not, we're the best venue for this game now and its purpose is what we make it.  So many of us play for points, for ranks, for prestige and reputation.  These amateurs play for fun.  That is why they'll always be winners while we continue to lose our minds arguing with one another over arbitrary points.

 

Again, I'd like to emphasize that this is not some sort of rant to chastise anyone in particular.  This is just a challenge to every single one of you whom I value as teammates, as community members and as friends.  Make this the game it once was.  Be the tolerant, vibrant pillar of strength that makes your team's effort a worthwhile endeavor regardless of outcome.  I've joked many times about 'moral victories', but they are the true fibers that bind everything we love here together.  Where there are questions, you must provide answers.  Where there is imbalance, you are obligated to be the counter balance.  Don't leave teams stacked because you don't want to sacrifice your chances of victory.  If even a loss for your new team would be enjoyable due to your contributions, that is a true victory.  If you can help the underdogs snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, that is the greatest test of your skill and leadership.  If you are half the player you think you are, then make the game as fun as you possibly can.  Buy witches instead of tanks to give the losing team a fighting chance.  Use a weapon you have very little practice with to really show your skill.  Pull punches to keep the fight going. 

 

If you truly want to be the center of attention and earn respect instead of merely demanding it, then there's no better way to obtain it than true, honest to God leadership, something we're in desperate need of these days.  I want you to join with me in having fun again.  I want to see people forget about the pretenses we think are so damn important and simply interact.  Where do we all go from here?  That's up to me.  That's up to you.  That's up to all of us. 

Edited August 20, 2014 by VladPiranha

[Architect]

I have been playing this game since it first came out.  I am sure we can all attest to exactly how rough it is out on other servers.  I stopped playing for a few years.   Earlier this year I started playing again and I found this community.  It was, as Vlad says, an oasis in a sea of spam, abuse and hostility.  Not to call out anyone specifically, but I too have noticed a recent lack of patience for new players.  Or players who just are not as good.  As the game gets older and older, our pool of new players will continue to shrink as well.  Just from a survivability aspect, we must nurture the new and immature players.  Give them the benefit of our years of experience and the patience to understand that they will not learn it all in one campaign session.  Don't scare them off, keep them coming back for more.

 

</soapbox>

[oakgyrl510]

yes less angerz, moar funz.

[Johnny]

Pump still calls me noob everyday.  

[Pumpernickel]

Thank you for reinforcing that stacking is evil and promoting proactive team balancing. That part alone made me... whatever emotion is closest to :| is but positive. I'm not going to deny I get frustrated with the team I may be forced to play on for various reasons. The main thing that gets me is when you have players who know what to do and don't do it. Losing is eh to me. Winning feels good. Losing with a great team team feels just as good as winning. Winning with a "bad team" feels the same as winning. Winning with a team you have to gripe at to do what they know to do is painful and same for a team that doesn't know what they're doing and you lose. Give me great teamwork and even teams and I'm happy.

 

It's part of your name, Noob.

Edited August 20, 2014 by Pumpernickel

[Lookback]

Take action to make it fun for all.

[anzul]

this post comes in good time for me, i had been getting mighty anoyed by a player called david something, cant even remenber why now. it probably was something silly.

 

"Those of you who have played this game for two or three years, back before the official Valve servers shut down, can attest to exactly how toxic the player interactions were (and probably still are)"

mind talking more about that? i got the game this past december when it was free :V

i have heard complaints about how tocix and awfull the l4d userbase in several places, besides one particular game whit some dumb kids, im still yet to see what they were talking about.

[zero0]

I don't see so much people getting "short" with new or inexperienced players. I'll be one of the first ones to hold someone's hand as they make one bad move after another as long as they are making some kind of effort to work as part of the team.  I see people grumbling a bit with new and inexperienced players that make no effort to communicate whatsoever.  They don't use mic.  They don't use chat.  They rush, spam vocals, grief.  That is about the only time I hear grumbling and it is a valid complaint in my opinion.  We dedicate the time and effort to learn the game.  We pay good money for a membership, that pays for this whole thing incidentally, because we want to play at a high level, not put up with the same crap they do on "other" servers.

[scubiedoobie]

I'll be honest I get really frustrated at "newbies" or players who are generally inexperienced. The bulk of these players either don't speak English (which I can't blame them for I guess, it's not in their capacity to understand what I'm saying if they don't even speak the language) or refuse to follow instructions or verbal commands, and can't use commands. 

 

But you're right though, we, and including myself, should not be as prone to anger all the time at these players. In the end, it's our own pride and arrogance and our refusal to lose that stops us from seeing the big picture, which is that we're all here to enjoy one game. I'm prone to getting frustrated quickly and am guilty, and so when I read this thread I was kind of ashamed at myself.

 

It's up to all of us.

 

edit: something important that I want to point out is instead of offering people no chance to explain themselves or give them the benefit of the doubt like we should be doing, instead of banning or kicking people instantly, we need to use more compassionate ways of reaching out to players who are found disabusing the rules. Instead of their behavior, we should also be judging them by their intentions. Was it an accident? Did he/she do it on purpose, or is it just because me and a whole bunch of other people see it that way? as an admin I can only imagine how hard it must be balancing everybody's views and opinions, and then enforcing your own opinion and not giving in at the end of the day. But sometimes I see a person or two being kicked, banned or unnecessarily punished without letting them explain what they were doing. Often times we assume somebody is guilty and the matter is done with. I check the ban list and the source logs and I see dozens, maybe hundreds of people being banned in a single week. Of these bans, I'm sure some are either regretting their actions and wish to repent, or were even innocent and were never found guilty to begin with. Of the hundreds, maybe thousands or so players we've permanently banned, how many do we know weren't just an innocent and loyal player who potentially would have been able to contribute so much more, but were instead found in the wrong place at the wrong time?

 

We need to start being more empathetic and thinking from both perspectives. Enforcing right and wrong is not black-and-white, there's shades of grey we must consider.

 

Just my two cents.

Edited August 21, 2014 by scubiedoobie

[zero0]

 

edit: something important that I want to point out is instead of offering people no chance to explain themselves or give them the benefit of the doubt like we should be doing, instead of banning or kicking people instantly, we need to use more compassionate ways of reaching out to players who are found disabusing the rules.

 

I don't think anyone is being banned without some kind of verbal or chat warning while an admin is in. If players do it when an admin is not in, the ban is only for a short time.  Most bans are not permanent they are usually an hour maybe up until a day.  If they are permanently banned it's because they did something that any reasonable person would realize you shouldn't do.  Ie. griefing, suiciding, hacking, porn spray, extremely inappropriate language, sexist, or racist comments.  Usually these are repeat offenders.  We generally give a new player plenty of slack, but when they keep doing it, the ban hammer gets put down as it should.  If someone is regretting their decision and the ban is a long one, they are obliged to come to the forums, make their case and if they are sincere, their ban is usually lifted or reduced.  I believe most admins are pretty fair when it comes to these things, in fact probably too lenient sometimes, myself included.  Enforcing right and wrong is not always black and white, which is why we have guidelines and admins to interpret and execute them as best they can under the circumstances at the time.  That is why one person swearing a bit may get an hour ban and a person dropping f-bombs after repeatedly be asked to stop may get a permanent ban.  

Edited August 21, 2014 by zero0

[Pumpernickel]

Your policy is too lenient. Don't fix what isn't broken.

[Johnny]

This post makes 100% sense and too well written for me.  I personally yell at newbies all the time to follow the rules and I think some people get annoyed.  Sometimes I just turn off my mic and /facepalm.  After warnings, I just votekick and often regulars/members support me. I record all the real dingleberries and let the forums handle them.

 

In terms of going easy on newbies - NEVER.  Ten v ten servers are not for tutorial, hand holding, and newbie coddling.  However, I have seen experienced players ( sadly myself included) who have not been the best "team player"  and can be somewhat mean/offensive/insulting towards newbies. Tough, but constructive criticism, tempered with a bit of patience, would definitely go a long way to strengthen the community; and, add to our ranks new blood to face stomp.  Otherwise, all we have to play with are those 50% headshotters, and that's no fun.

[PeanutButterNJelly]

Our servers welcome all levels of experience in the game.  When we opened the second server, at first there were lots of complaints about how wild it was, because of all the new players.  But now we have lots of new "regulars" and members as a result.  They may not have been able to learn our version of the game without that 2nd server (it used to be very hard for non members to get in, during peak times).  

 

Scubiedoobie - if you have any questions about the rules and the penalties, see my post in this forum about it.  I listed the common situations the admins deal with there.  The rules and penalties are designed to keep the game going smoothly for entire server, while still allowing for new people to learn the rules (most situations have warnings prior to kicks/bans).  Also always feel free to message me for any specific situation you see that you believe is not fair.

[robinbanks]

 

In terms of going easy on newbies - NEVER.  Ten v ten servers are not for tutorial, hand holding, and newbie coddling. 

 

^This.

 

The ONLY players who become regulars or members after trying out these servers, are people who are ALREADY experienced in FPS games. Otherwise the skill difference makes it nearly impossible for them to do anything for a long period of time.