Xbox Live rep soured by sore losers
by James Ransom-Wiley 
{ Nov 29th 2005 at 1:30PM }
Over on Xbox 360 Insider, Justin Nolan, took some time to
vent his frustration about the cheap shots that certain Live opponents were taking against him after he won a
series of races in Project Gotham Racing 3.
We're not talking ramming his bumper or plowing into him around corners, no, we're talking negative feedback.
After winning 3 clean races, Nolan's 90% player approval rating had dropped to 74%. The losers of those racers
were reporting that Nolan was "Unsporting." To be fair, Microsoft designed the system to handle these cheap shots.
Despite the plummeting approval rating, Nolan still has a perfect 5-star rep.
Let's face it, we love to hate the winners. Do you really feel all warm and cuddly when you think of that J.J. Redick fellow? Well, maybe you do… But wouldn't it be cool if sore losers could actually send in "hateful" feedback that would accumulate as a player's hated-on rating? That would be a better indication of a player's class, as well as a more constructive use for sore losers' cheap shots. Do we smell a Live patch in the works?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mullinator @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Human nature in a natural state. Perhaps this specific problem could be eliminated by also showing the player names who leave comments?
Mullinator @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Human nature in it's natural state. Perhaps the problem could be eliminated by showing the player names of those who leave comments along with information on whether they won or lost in relation to the player they are commenting on?
Draco @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
MS should implement a counter on how often people complain.
those that complain often (% wise)lose credibility
your enemies friends @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
someone needs to punch that kid in the face.
BB @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Very cool idea, there should be 2 different ratings as Joystiq said. One for the way people play (the regular rating) and also another one for people who are "sore losers" can vent their frustration.
ill trooper @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Even if some 'hated-on' catagory is added, no one will use it. People who wish to damage your rep will still use whatever option or catagory that will hurt your rep the most.
After using the new LIVE this last week on the 360, I almost think there's too much info available on you. I would like to be able to opt out of the whole gamer-card/feedback/acheivements thing, as well as if you've been online lately showing up on the website.
I think they should add a 'stealth' catagory and just let you play games without the weird 'research report' gamer card aspect that they make so public and available.
Scott @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Amazingly, I haven't encountered any jerks in PGR3 yet. I've run into some bad drivers who are wallflowers (ie they plant themselves into the wall on every turn) but nobody who was an out and out jerk.
In contrast, the first time I played Halo 2 online I was treated to some 12 year old singing "suck my c**k! suck my c**k! suck my c**k!"
Dan @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Gawd, I freakin' HATE J.J. Redick...
But then I'm a Tarheel so that's my job...
PJ @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
ill trooper...
What, are you one of those team killers who can't hide anymore and now you're feeling the heat? Just kidding.
The new Xbox Live does allow you to opt out of making most of you gamer info available. I can't walk you through it now (I'm at work) but play around with your Gamercard options and you'll figure it out.
PJ @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Draco,
I love your idea. You should submit that to Major Nelson at www.majornelson.com. He is the Xbox Live Programming Director.
paul tucker @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Xbox Live for the 360 is an enoyable experience for the most part.
That is until after Christmas when the little kids will be flooding Live with their singing, screaming, racism, etc.
Kind of peaceful now since everyone that has one is a true gamer, but it will be a different story when little Johnny gets his christmas gift.
mike @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Can someone tell me exactly why it is soured if he still has 5 stars???
tpp @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Why are ya'll still playing with jerks? Sign up at seasonedgamers.com or any other adult gaming community and you'll minimize your exposure to griefers.
pheen @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Same thing happened to me in PGR3. I rarely talk during games unless communication is required for strategy or if someone asks me a question. During the time I was racing, I didn't say one word but I won a couple of races (cleanly) and I received negative feedback for being "disruptive". Oh well, could have been worse. I've only encountered two people that have annoyed me thus far. One was about 12 years old and kept repeating what I can only assume was some sort of lyric from a song for an entire round of Perfect Dark Zero and the other was an idiot that called me a faggot after I called him on his cheap tactics (intentionally spinning me out in PGR3 on a straight stretch). Other than that, everyone has been great. I dread the after-Christmas crowd though.
Lesbian Ham @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Yeah, I agree, Draco's idea = fantastic. Tell Major Nelson now!
Snap @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
The rep system is obviously poorly implemented. Wouldn't expect anything less from Microsoft and the shite that is called "Live". I can't believe I beta tested this garbage way back when.
Master misChief @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Eh, Snap. Get off of your high horse, and suggest what you would do to better the experience?? At least MS has made an attempt to sort out the jerks - but like anything based on a rule-set, that rule-set can be bent and broken by anyone determined enough. If you can, suggest an alternative instead of saying MS can't do any better.
SickNic @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Snap:
Garbage compared to what other online console service? If people didn't abuse the system and act like idiots, then XBL would be perfect.
Snap @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
"If people didn't abuse the system and act like idiots, then XBL would be perfect."
That's a pretty big IF and it surely isn't going to happen when A) Console's are generally owned by n00b tweens, teens, and drunk idiots B) The actual development of a good "rep" system is nearly impossible due to human nature.
A silly marketing ploy (fancy pancy e-peen rep points) that fails on every level and XBL not being a FREE service is a travesty.
What is better? Something that A) Allows me to play online for free B) Allows me to OPT out of chatting with other idiots C) Allows me the choice to either play ranked or unranked D) Allows me the choice to not be voted against by sore drunk losers. Pretty much any online game that is NOT apart of XBL meets this 4 criteria with the exception of life draining MMOs.
Pixelantes Anonymous @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Snap, the rep system is implemented as well as it can considering there's no way to know if the feedback is genuine or not. It'll stabilize itself over time.
This is what's happening with the 2K Sports new 2K6 games. They have the same type of system. Every time you play a ranked game against someone, the system forces you to give feedback on your opponent. Plenty of feedback abuse, but it's not as bad as it looked in the beginning. The bad apples are starting to stand out, and if you just avoid playing them altogether you'll end up with a much better gaming experience than before. I play a lot of NHL 2K6, and I've stopped playing against people with less than 80% feedback rating. I get feedback abuse maybe once in 50 games now. On the other hand, sometimes when I'm "forced" to play people with bad feedback ratings, feedback abuse is fairly common.
As for your "what's better" comment. The new XBox 360 Live system actually implements B and C of your requirements. It's not free because it takes resources to maintain it, therefore you pay for it. I'm sure you would not prefer the alternative, which is usually a system sustained by ad revenue. Those are horrid. You will never get rid of sore losers because you can't regulate human nature. There will never be a system that will satisfy that requirement until you develop the ability to see into the future and therefore would be able to avoid playing against people who give you negative feedback for no reason.
Snap @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
I currently do not play any online game that is sustained by ad revenue nor do I plan to do so in the future.
I'm well aware that B has been in place for sometime, including the original XBL for which C was not. A & D are the most critical IMO. The original XBL system does not support A but does not include D, at all. We both know why D was created in the first place.
The original XBL is filled with idiots, grievers, home schooled tweens, etc. These "people" find it fun to ruin the gameplay of others. It's their sport. There was no way to "punish" these people. You could ignore them via voice chat but you could not remove them from the game. I doubt this even exists in the new XBL.
What is the "rep" system going to do over time? Probably not much. Will people not be allowed to join large games like Halo 3 because their rep rating is below a certain threshold? Doubtful. So you say you don't play against people with low rep. That may be fine for a game that is 1v1, but when using something like Optimatch for a 4+ type game you won't have a choice.
The rep system is a gimmick. EA tried it with their 2005 online titles and it failed. I have yet to see a EA 2006 title that includes their famous "rep" feature.
dslamngu @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
#8 Dan,
I go to Duke and I still don't like JJ. I mean, I don't know the guy personally so I can't really hate him per se, but he does have kind of a big head. He has been winning games though, so he has my respect.
Eih'Beir @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
He's getting negative feedback just for that picture.
Milton Bradley™ @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
LOL
I find the picture very sexy...
Nice tongue action he got going there. Probably drives the "sexy sore losers"(if there's a such thing) crazy!
hydrogen_wv @ Dec 18th 2005 10:01PM
Human nature isn't an excuse. It's sore losers, simple as that. I go to my friends and play Halo 2 on Live now and then, and I suck at Halo 2, and always lose. I don't care, though. I had fun in the process. What annoys me if when I get beat by people playing VERY cheaply.
I wigged out at my GameCube once when I was playing Double Dash and Wario inched past me on my right, then made a sharp left and ran himself into the wall right in front of me so I had to stop, back up, and drive around him.
I don't mind losing, it doesn't matter to me. They are just games, as long as I had fun in the process I'm happy. Whether it's board games, video games, or whatever.
Don't get me wrong, i'm very competitive though. If it's just me and a few friends playing some multiplyer red faction, timesplitters, double dash, whatever... I'll call them bitches and stuff, and they do the same to me. It's all in good fun. No one ever gets angry and tries to offend.