The thought of being manipulated by someone towards an agenda that does not reflect your own can leave a seriously bad taste in your mouth. An approach some may think harmless can leave others clueless; Social Engineering is often times used in more serious and often illegal parts of the workings of the world. In gaming it can be used in LoL Champion Select to dodge a toxic player or to keep morale up by rewarding your team mates with encouraging comments on their accomplishments and reassuring them of success in their faults.
On another thought. Taking advantage of someones feelings towards a particular subject and causing them to over react in a very negative way is openly harmful and typically used for no benefit except ones own enjoyment. Trolling can be described in many ways but for this post I am referring to the typical griefing addressed to enemy players and team mates alike by the “troll.” Examples could be racist comments in all chat directed towards a particular enemy based off of stereotypes associated with the summoner name or most effectively griefing a team mate.
Of these two common passive aggressive outlets in video gaming which is to be considered worse? I honestly already know what you are saying. Riley, you are just so stupid. Sincerely, the few who read your posts. Well its true at first glance these two very different behaviors do not seem the same and mostly people understand trolling because it is something they constantly battle. The other side to this is the negative impact both have on the individual player who is viewing them.
When faced with a troll its obviously negatively impacting the game. Unless you can somehow challenge them to win you will probably lose. They want to be fed and its an easy game to be played at that point. They might even offer you criticism. But most likely they will just continue to troll you.
When faced with an engineer you most likely will not even recognize the situation as being what it is. You may even feel good about it and about yourself. They could have offered you some delectable treats of good praise or reassurance in an area where otherwise you could have improved. They are not trying to help you. They are trying to help the team have maximum morale for more likely success.
As shameful as being passive aggressive, I myself have sadly participated in both acts. I do admit that trolling can bring enjoyment. This type of behavior is unacceptable however given that my own feelings become completely wrapped up in the game and I am left feeling disappointed and longing for more engagement. Very sad. On the other hand. Analyzing the battle and looking for opponent weakness and ally weakness and engaging them accordingly has worked wonders and often times wins games.
Boosting morale is top notch gaming practice. Being a team player is more important than even skill in my honest opinion. Recognizing priority and actively engaging in psychological and sociological warfare is just as much a part of the game as hitting your skill shots. If you ever find yourself feeling like trolling why not try being creative and approaching the game from a different perspective. Enjoying others pain at the expense of your worthless attempts is just sad. Why not engage the mind and attack the prowess of the enemy mind unit.
In the end is it right to grief or deceive your team mates?
leisureleague 