Spiral Knights - PSA: We as a community will be strong even if the Game Masters will not help or care.

PSA: We as a community will be strong even if the Game Masters will not help or care.

12 replies [Last post]

Sun, 02/05/2017 - 13:15

Magical-Princess

I am here to address an issue currently going around and the Game Masters seem to not care. If you care about your friends in-game and those you've met from SK that you speak with outside of it, you need to read this and think about what I have to say.

Lets face it, most people online are insecure about something rather it be looks, being a loner, or just insecure about their real lives. People use the internet to escape from their home lives, this is why I've played Spiral Knights for 6 years (on a constant basis) come June. I have sunk enough money into this game to pay for a car in cash (probably not new but some 10 year old car with 75,000 miles or more on it) I've been around to see all of SK change (good and bad) I've held my tongue plenty of times and stated "if you don't know how gaming companies run, then you shouldn't be making demands for wants/needs" But there is one thing I can not accept/get past.

You are kidding yourselves if you think the Gm's care. I know we joke about them not caring about players and their needs/wants, like updates and suggestions, but they really do not care about the players well being and they let bullying/harassment go on for YEARS and will ignore your pleas to have them stop it.

IMO this game is dying due to the fact that the community has gotten worse. I got a warning from Game Masters that i had to understand that I could not threaten to kill myself, even as a joke. And I have to admit I cried a little before I decided to type all this out, I cried because they let bullying go on for so long and not do anything to stop it.

***I AM NOT LOOKING FOR ADVISE***

I have had an issue with another player in-game for probably over a year by now. I have gone to Game Masters multiple times begging something be done and nothing gets done, they don't even reply back suggesting I /ignore them.

The facts are that you can /ignore those people, but that wont stop them from saying those hurtful things about you to people in zone or trade chat. Your self esteem will go down even more (if you have any) and the motherly nature that I have is kicking in. (i am not trying to guilt you into anything, i am just stating the facts)

Lets think about one thing for a second. You meet this awesome person who you have a lot in common with, become good friends with them. You help them on missions, you decide to be friends outside of spiral knights. That friend trusts you and confides in you, they say "I am being bullied/harassed/stalked for the past few months and the player is saying hurtful things behind my back to my friends and guild members" you are a good friend and give a shoulder to cry on. But you don't hear from them ever again, you find out weeks later that your friend killed themselves due to this community and Game Masters not caring about their community.

I can not name names and repeat what was said to me since its against forum rules, but the gist of it is " you're a gold digging ****" "your family doesn't love you" and things like that. I have enough self confidence to just shrug it off, but what if one of your friends was getting bullyed/harrassed/stalked for the past year? you would probably be a little upset too right?

What has happened to me is probably not that common but it needs to be stopped, it will probably take the community coming together and being support for those people that need help the most.

Some of you probably know who I am talking about, and at this point I don't care if this bully finds out. I am not only sticking up for myself but I am being a shoulder to cry on and being someone to listen and just be there.

P.S if you want a less censored version of this, hop on over to reddit and check out the Spiral_Knights sub https://www.reddit.com/r/spiral_knights/

Sun, 02/05/2017 - 13:35

Hecyea

Agreed

I agree with most of this, but I am a bit hesitant to say the Game Masters don't care. The Game Masters are genuinely caring people from what I know of.

Sun, 02/05/2017 - 18:15

Dats-Mah-Boi

Let's straighten out a few

Let's straighten out a few things here.

1) The GMs are Game Masters, not therapists. If you or a friend has mental issues, find a doctor, don't waste anyone's time here. Let's face it, no one here can help you.

2) Having a shoulder to cry on is for children.

Sun, 02/05/2017 - 18:54

Killer-Bytez

@Lethal-Bunduru

The GMs are Game Masters, not therapists.

Who said they were therapists? This post is about taking a stance against bullying, she never asked for them to counsel her, in fact in the post it even says "**I AM NOT LOOKING FOR ADVICE**". All she's asking for is something to be done about the player that is harassing her and for players in general who harass others.

If you or a friend has mental issues, find a doctor, don't waste anyone's time here.

Once again, this post is about bullying, who said anything about mental issues? Also the fact that you said "don't waste anyone's time here" really annoys me as you're clearly sitting here along with the rest of us on the forums of an online game, so you clearly have nothing better to do with your time right now.

Having a shoulder to cry on is for children.

This is just sad. So you're telling me if your friend or someone close to you was feeling down and came to you, you would call them a child and turn them away? I imagine you're not really their friend then.

Sun, 02/05/2017 - 22:37

Fangel

oh yikes

I am sincerely sorry for whoever you know who's had to deal with this, and additionally, for you if you've had to go through with something similar.

While Game Masters do act as support, they can only do so much. Without being reported, the offending party cannot be held accountable. If anything happens outside of the game, there's no papertrail they can follow.

Game Masters truly do care about players and keeping the community together. However, especially with a significant decrease in the support team, it becomes harder and harder to juggle duties, especially when you're dealing with two MMO communities at the same time (Puzzle Pirates is another time sink).

That said and done, it is important for everyone of all ages and abilities to understand proper internet etiquette. If someone is a bully to you in an online MMO, it is important to know that you can report, ignore, and (try to) move on. This is easier said than done, but that doesn't mean it isn't important.

On a similar note, it is important to report players who are breaking rules even if they are not breaking the rules in a way that bothers, hurts, or otherwise affects you. If you see someone in Haven bullying another player, reporting them for harassment is quick, easy, and anonymous... Plus it helps the Spiral Knight community as a whole.
The hard part with this is when it's a healthy relationship between two players and they enjoy playful bickering. I feel this is the reason many do not report others - there's a lot to it that they simply don't see.

At the end of the day, Game Masters can only help with a specific set of problems. While it is easy to recognize bullying when it is happening to you, it often can be hard to get it in a data form that can be acted upon. This doesn't mean they don't care, rather, they cannot act. This is more of the "innocent until proven guilty" mindset that a support team should have in action, no matter how much it can stink.

-----

I do want to say, for certain, that bullying, harassment, stalking, etc, is not something that is OK in any circumstance, online or offline. Often times, this is because people who do these things rely on their targets being weak, timid, etc. It takes a strong community to help that person realize that they can stand up to this, not a single GM. To overcome bullying, it takes more than removing a single bully - another will simply take their place. Being a shoulder to cry on is one step along the way, but so is boosting their confidence, standing up for them, etc.

It takes a village to raise a child, and it takes a community to grow a person. :)

Mon, 02/06/2017 - 14:36

Jerrytrollblue

holy

lol im going to try to not use bad words.

First off i didnt read the full thread but the first post and the reddit one, a little bit. I mean i used to play like 6 hours a day SK and that doesnt mean i was suicidal or anything, just because i was a poor f that could not afford to go out everyday and didnt have much friends i wont suicide.

This is why kids these days are so damn weak, because of "bully" this thing been here since the first to people on the earth talked to each other, you just decide how to face it. Holy fing hit srsly this just makes it worst the fact that you took time to write this emotional speech about your problems on a online forum where you dont know even 10% of the people lifes, damn boy/girl go outside and get some air and friends stop blaming other people because of your own choises.

PD: Hope i dont get banned cus SJW GMs

Mon, 02/06/2017 - 14:38

Jerrytrollblue

by the way

Dont try to argue with me, this is so stupid that i wont bother

Mon, 02/06/2017 - 14:57

Killer-Bytez

@Jerrytrollblue

i used to play , doesnt mean i was , just because i was , i wont suicide

Ok, so everything you've said here is referring to you personally, so your whole post about this issue is based on what you would do if you were in this situation. It's good that you are a strong individual but not everyone else in the world is believe it or not.

This is why kids these days are so damn weak, because of "bully" this thing been here since the first to people on the earth talked to each other, you just decide how to face it.

Ok here you said, "you just decide how to face it" and later on you say "this just makes it worst the fact that you took the time to write this emotional speech about your problems on a online forum". Did you stop and think that maybe this WAS their way of facing it? They're just trying to bring exposure to the situation at hand and you're putting them down for that, which is just sad.

damn boy/girl go outside and get some air and friends stop blaming other people because of your own choises.

I don't see why anyone would choose to get bullied? In this line you're basically telling her : "Wow, you CHOSE to get bullied, stop BLAMING the bully", which is honestly one of the dumbest things I've heard.

Holy fing hit

This made me lol.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
EDIT
Just saw you posted "Dont try to argue with me, this is so stupid that i wont bother".

LOL, guess you will have to take my comment head on and not reply then since this is stupid and you're not going to bother :3

Mon, 02/06/2017 - 16:47

Tobutori

A'ight, let's do this! *Starts playlist* *Blitz type*

@Magical-Princess

First of all, I hate when stuff like this happens, first of all, i must say some of the comments here a bit insensitive. There are ppl that have these problems, with "bullying" and are quite more sensitive to this "hateful speech", ofc some of you (including me) are quite aware of and used to this ppl, or "Salty players" wtv you want to call them, and if you are familiar with this behaviour, then you certainly have knowledge that we, as players, can't do much besides ignoring them.
I suggest you to just ignore them, what do you care of what they say? they don't even know you... their opinion is useless and unnecessary...
Now i dont know who you met, i respect if you dont wanna tell their names. Luckly i've never met hateful ppl in SK in my 4(-ish) years in playing the game, and tbh i didnt even knew there were ppl like that in this game '-' (really)

ohhhhh if the sky comes falling down.... for youuuu
there's nothing in this world that i won't do...
( sry, it's just... the song :p )

Closing in, just play the game, and enjoy it! Its one of the best games i have ever played, the game that made me start a whole life of gaming (true, the game that brought me to steam and started my journey through gaming...). Your in SK! The community is great! some of the best ppl i have ever met are from this game, you just had bad luck and encountered some emotional cancerous ppl. Just make friends and have fun together, join a guild and socialize, make FSC runs together and stuff, rank up and become a vanguard, be respected and respect! Anyways, if anyone has something to lose, it's them not you.

Well, you only need the light
When it’s burning low
Only miss the sun
When it’s starts to snow
( sry, again :/ )

Tue, 02/07/2017 - 06:57

Umbra-Lunatis

bois sit down and shut

yall gotta stop giving this thread more attention than it deserves

Tue, 02/07/2017 - 07:24

#10

Tobutori

↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑

The King

Fri, 02/10/2017 - 07:39

#11

Dinosaurvista

SK nowadays?

"you are a good friend and give a shoulder to cry on. But you don't hear from them ever again, you find out weeks later that your friend killed themselves due to this community and Game Masters not caring about their community."

Wtf?

Good thing I quit this game long ago. I need to stop checking up on the forums though, even if it is every 3 months...

Sat, 02/11/2017 - 05:04

#12

Boneblinder

But you don't hear from them

But you don't hear from them ever again, you find out weeks later that your friend killed themselves due to this community and Game Masters not caring about their community.

Okay, let me just say, I don't think there is a person in this world who is stupid enough to kill themselves just because of a game's community or because of the Game Masters. If that actually happens, I don't know anymore.

I'm not saying that this isn't a major issue or it shouldn't be taken a look at, but I think that you're exaggerating it a bit too much.

Also, instead of writing that big wall of text and ranting about the GM's, you could have just reported the user and the GM's could have banned him/her by seeing the chat log.

Search

PSA: We as a community will be strong even if the Game Masters will not help or care.