Psyonix to implement new ‘Language Ban’ system

Psyonix announced Wednesday they are working to tweak Rocket League’s report-ban system. They are focusing on a new automatic language ban system.

As it is, players can mute and report teammates and opponents mid-game. When reporting someone, players have three options as to why they are reporting the other player. These options include “verbal/text harassment,” “unsportsmanlike conduct” and “cheating.”

According to Psyonix, the majority of thousands of daily reports “are tied to in-game abuse and harassment—typically in the form of abusive language.” They responded by introducing what they call the “Language Ban” system.

What it does

The automatic Language Ban system builds off the existing report-ban system in place. The basic idea of the system is to automatically ban players for using certain words and phrases.

Mute/Report player. Screenshot courtesy of Ryan McElroy

A new feature players may have already noticed with the report-ban system is a chat log that appears while reporting a player. The submission sends the chat log off alongside the report, allowing the automatic language ban system to determine whether to plan players for abusive language or not.

Already, there is a list of over 20 words and variations which the system scans chat logs for. Psyonix stated that the list “will continue to evolve over time, and include words and phrases from multiple languages.” The list of words will not be released to the public at this time.

How it works

According to the announcement, the words and phrases included in the ban list each have their own use limit. Players are automatically subject to ban once the limit is reached.

The system punishes repeat offenders with progressively longer bans. Initially, the system gives the player a 24 hour ban. The time then increases to 72 hours, followed by one week and, eventually, a permanent ban.

Abuse and Season Rewards

Psyonix also included an update on season rewards and rank abuse in the announcement.

Report player options. Screenshot courtesy of Ryan McElroy

At the end of competitive season three, and now season four, Psyonix denied players end-of-season rewards.

“When the reward trails were issued last month, players who were found abusing the matchmaking system to increase their rank, were not rewarded for their actions,” Psyonix said.

The announcement cited “gaming the system to force a win or a loss” as an example of how players abuse the ranking system. Psyonix acknowledged the potential room for error. The announcement offered the option to appeal a denial of rewards by contacting the Rocket League support team.

What it all means

There is some good and bad with the language ban system and denial of season rewards. That being said, the good easily outweighs the bad.

With 34 million players of all ages from around the globe, Psyonix is aiming to keep Rocket League a welcoming and friendly community to all.

Language Ban

Anyone who plays Rocket League, or competitive esport games in general for that matter, knows that tilting happens.

You’ve had a bad day in general and now you’re on a losing streak, your teammate whiffs and the next thing you know you’re furiously typing about how he or she should uninstall the game immediately.

However, isolated instances shouldn’t result in a ban for the player. The ban focuses on continuous verbal/text harassment. As well, Psyonix listed racial slurs as an example for the type of language that will get a player banned. Since there’s no justification for throwing around racial slurs, the average player should won’t have to worry about this, tilted or not.

Season reward denials

As for continuing to deny end-of-season rewards, Psyonix is making a solid choice.

There is always the chance that the system will deny innocent players their rightful rewards. However, Psyonix recognizes this and offers the chance to appeal denials.

Image courtesy of store.playstation.com

As for truly guilty parties, they deserve to be denied their rewards. Millions of players seek to improve their mechanical and decision making skills every day. The only goal in mind to progress through the ranks and see their game getting better in the process. They look for true competition against others of a comparable caliber. Matching with a smurf account or someone trying to game the system takes away the joy of competition. At the same time, it discourages honest players and may eventually deter them from returning to the competitive portion of the game.

In conclusion, keep it classy and friendly folks. Tilting happens to the best of us, but there is no need to continuously harass other players, whether verbally or through text. We’re all here for high-flying car-soccer action.

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