The world of online gaming is full of dirty language and shocking insults. Threats of bodily harm and even of death occur frequently on online game venues such as Xbox Live and the Playstation Network. It came as a great surprise to the gaming community, therefore, when Justin Carter, a 19 year-old gamer from Austin, Texas, was arrested for allegedly making terroristic threats in connection with an online game.
Carter was one out of millions of gamers involved in League of Legends, a self-described “Multiplayer Online Battle Arena.” Participants pit their characters against each other in battle on maps and have to use tactical maneuvers to achieve victory. As with any competitive game, a match of League of Legends sometimes ends in a heated argument between opponents. This was just the situation that Justin Carter found himself in February 2013. During a tiff with another player on Facebook, Carter replied to an accusation of insanity by posting “Oh yeah, I'm real messed up in the head, I'm going to go shoot up a school full of kids and eat their still, beating hearts.” Carter followed this alleged threat with a LOL and a JK (short for “laugh out loud” and “just kidding.”)
However, the damage was done. A Canadian woman saw the post on Carter's wall and notified his local police department. Justin Carter has been sitting in jail since March and is currently looking at the possibility of an eight-year prison sentence.
How can other online gamers avoid Justin Carter's fate? All it takes is some common sense, good sportsmanship and a healthy attitude towards competition. Here are a few tips for the gamer with language-filtering issues.
If you keep these simple tips in mind, you'll be able to have a good, mostly carefree time playing multiplayer online games. As an added bonus, you won't be sent to jail for making threatening comments. Have fun!
Carter was one out of millions of gamers involved in League of Legends, a self-described “Multiplayer Online Battle Arena.” Participants pit their characters against each other in battle on maps and have to use tactical maneuvers to achieve victory. As with any competitive game, a match of League of Legends sometimes ends in a heated argument between opponents. This was just the situation that Justin Carter found himself in February 2013. During a tiff with another player on Facebook, Carter replied to an accusation of insanity by posting “Oh yeah, I'm real messed up in the head, I'm going to go shoot up a school full of kids and eat their still, beating hearts.” Carter followed this alleged threat with a LOL and a JK (short for “laugh out loud” and “just kidding.”)
However, the damage was done. A Canadian woman saw the post on Carter's wall and notified his local police department. Justin Carter has been sitting in jail since March and is currently looking at the possibility of an eight-year prison sentence.
How can other online gamers avoid Justin Carter's fate? All it takes is some common sense, good sportsmanship and a healthy attitude towards competition. Here are a few tips for the gamer with language-filtering issues.
1) Don't threaten other players, even if you're just kidding.
Comments such as “I'll come to your house and beat you up” and “I'll kill you” are quite common in online game-related chats and posts. The targets of such threats may take them seriously. This is just one reason that you should never threaten anyone online in any manner.2) Control your anger and remember that you're just playing a game.
Just as with offline arguments, online arguments often start over petty issues. You might be angry because you feel your opponent played in a cheap way or even that he cheated to win. Even if you think you're right, however, you should control yourself. Speak calmly with your opponent. Better still, just leave the game behind and ignore him completely. There's no shortage of players to challenge in popular multiplayer online games like League of Legends or World of Warcraft.3) Always be polite and non-confrontational, even if your opponent is a jerk.
“Don't fight fire with fire” is a phrase that applies very well to online gaming. Many gamers may ignore these tips and continue to insult and threaten each other – and you. Don't debase yourself by responding to these people. Avoiding foul language while online is also a good way to keep from descending into an argument. Bad language in itself may not be dangerous, but using it can increase your own anger and act as a catalyst to an unwanted argument.If you keep these simple tips in mind, you'll be able to have a good, mostly carefree time playing multiplayer online games. As an added bonus, you won't be sent to jail for making threatening comments. Have fun!
Written by Danial Munsif
I am a Creative Blogger who is addictive to writing on latest topics on Technology, Smartphones, Graphics, Web development and Android
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