Right- and I’m definitely fearful of this situation. Also my natural impulse is to run in and join arguments, but I have had so many negative results that I am hoping there is a better way.

Thank you for misunderstanding me in just the right way to oppose me.

Yeah totally. I think what I’m getting from these responses is that there is a very precise way to deal with it that helps your friend and lets the troll know they’ve crossed the line, but it might be a bit too nuanced for a lot of people to nail it.

Yeah. Everything is boring trope memes. Humans are merely actors performing perfunctory interactions over and over again. (Sigh)

I won’t argue against the inherent sexism/racism of online gamers- it’s prevalent and a problem- but there’s also an aspect of this scenario that supports your argument and is less depressing. There’s a socially observable pattern (in we human apes) that one person doing something seems like a weirdo, but a second…

Yeah, having back-up always feels better than not, but I don’t think these shouting matches or engaging actually accomplish anything. Standing up for your friends is of course a good thing, but I think you have to hit a happy medium in response so you don’t immediately become as bad as the trolls.

I don’t know what you are hoping to accomplish with this response, but if it’s nothing: mission accomplished.

That’s interesting, and I like it’s optimism, but I think in order for it to be effective it would require the troll to be at least somewhat receptive to any sort of criticism (which may be a long shot) and also that you deliver the criticism in a way that doesn’t feel so much like retaliatory shouting that they make…

You’re the worst.

I agree with the idea of being an ally in these situations (ones that pop up far too often), but I am also worried that chiming into these scenarios with jackasses online will just result in more aggravation and shouting matches with them. If they’re already big enough tools to behave this way at the outset, I doubt…

I truly can’t relate to anyone who enjoyed this game. There were always glimmers of hope that it would improve- those kept me going. Just playing a game with the name “Mass Effect” was enough to make me want to overlook all the incredibly terrible tedious gameplay, but it was lousy. Even if all the bugs were patched,…

Hahaha! I just did this challenge last week in Knightmare mode, where they don’t show you the counter-cue-lightning-bolt thingies. I’m sure I tried at least 20-30 times, though I lost count. One thing I’d forgotten that they establish in Arkham Asylum is that the cape move is meant to momentarily stun blade-based…

Oh my gawd. You just punched me right in the nostalgia button. AND I LOVE IT. #masochistfornostalgia

This is a great article. Now I am reflecting on my opinions of MGSV and Fallout 4. I agree that MGSV’s story takes a weird insubstantial turn after building a lot of good faith and momentum. In spite of that, I still consider it to be the best game I’ve played this year because the gameplay is so tight and fun and…

I just overloaded my backlog with further madness- in addition to trying to finally beat Oblivion on PS3 (yes, that’s a deep backlog) I grabbed Elder Scrolls Online while it was on sale on PSN. (Maybe I’ll win the million dollar prize and be able to pay off all my game debt?) I also got Hatoful Boyfriend, which I tend…

Same, I am really enjoying it so long as I have a friend online to game with.

I just Cleved last month! NOT RECOMMENDED.

Fingers crossed no one tells you guys about Apu on the Simpsons.

So long “half-life”! Whatever that is!

This. So much this. I go on mic just to remind people at the top of games and it will still inevitably happen. People are like “oh, OHHHHHH!” Momentum! Physics! Use your nerd brains!