A user of the above account has recently been involved in actions deemed inappropriate for StarCraft II by the In-Game Support staff of Blizzard Entertainment. This decision was made after a thorough investigation of the situation as a whole.
Though we are unable to discuss the outcomes of our investigations due to privacy concerns, rest assured that this incident has been looked into very thoroughly, and the appropriate actions have been taken on all involved accounts.
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Account Action: Education
Offense: Sexual Orientation This category includes both clear and masked language which:
* Insultingly refers to any aspect of sexual orientation pertaining to themselves or other players
Details (Note - Times are listed in Greenwich Mean Time, GMT): 2011-01-29 23:20:19 entous sounds like a faggot
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We understand that these policies may seem harsh, but they are in place to ensure that every player is able to fully enjoy their time in StarCraft II. Thank you in advance for respecting our position.
Funny part is, whats being described happened in a chat channel, where I was messing around with clan mates
Not only is it ridiculous to get an email over something so stupid but this was sent from "wowaccountadmin@blizzard.com", who really has no business talking shit to an SC2 player, let alone a paying customer.
I knew SCII was going to fail the minute i was playing my first game in beta, and now I find out that I can get banned from the game i spent $60 on for typing fag in a channel, what a joke.
Blizzard should be ashamed of themselves, but I know better then to expect that. They have shown that they really have no regard for SC2, what with the no lan, the shitty fucking map pool, the horrid as fuck bnet 2.0 interface, I could go on and on.
So yeah, be careful about typing in channels now, otherwise you might get an email from an enraged WoW admin. What a fucking joke.
Edit: The situation was the following: Guy in reddit channel gets cheesed/allined, I responded with "sounds like a faggot" with regards to the cheeser, some butthurt redditor reported me. Didn't get banned either, so knock it off.
wow that's funny.. I've said 100x worse things than "entous sounds like a faggot" and I've yet to be reported. I guess i've dodged a few bullets in that regard. I don't think it's a big deal that you got an e-mail from a wow customer service guy though cuz they pretty much handle the cs for all blizzard games and have done so for a while.
Unless I'm mistaken it didn't ban you, it is only a warning or for education purposes. I'm not sure why typing the word 'fag' or 'faggot' is an integral part of your gaming experience, but I would just let it go. It's a hurtful word and you are being warned not to use it on their servers. I don't think it's such a bad thing. Wouldn't you enjoy a gaming experience that didn't have words like 'faggot' or the N-word plastered all over the chat channels?
On February 17 2011 07:59 OpRaider wrote: I'm glad they banned you to be honest. You should calm down before you type shit.
He was banned for joking around with clan mates. Saying something like, 'damn that strategy is gay.' shouldn't cost you $60. I think blizzard is taking this stuff too far. Isn't there a mature language filter or something?
Holy shit I'm gonna get banned too. This is ridiculous, unless one of your clanmates reported you. Then lol (but still ridiculous). There is a fucking chat filter
well tbh it is offensive language and should have been punished, and was.
I'm sorry you don't understand how language does affect people. blizzard has taken steps to assure the community stays respectful and a firendly place. in this case you were neither in the chat.
tbh i don't know the entire thing but since the word was used. someone reported you, and you deserved to be banned.
It might be all a joke to you when you use offensive words in a public forum but it might hurt someone else deeply. Whatever you did obviously affected the other party enough to warrant a formal complaint. This could explain why some other more heinous acts are not banned but you are.
I highly doubt Blizzard just randomly searches for offensive language to ban. You most likely offended someone and got banned. Learn your lesson and move on.
On February 17 2011 08:02 GreatFall wrote: Unless I'm mistaken it didn't ban you, it is only a warning or for education purposes. I'm not sure why typing the word 'fag' or 'faggot' is an integral part of your gaming experience, but I would just let it go. It's a hurtful word and you are being warned not to use it on their servers. I don't think it's such a bad thing. Wouldn't you enjoy a gaming experience that didn't have words like 'faggot' or the N-word plastered all over the chat channels?
I had 10 years of dealing with this type of stuff with SC1, just doesnt phase me anymore, I have accepted that its just a part of online gaming.
I have had people wish cancer upon me in SC2, you dont see me throwing a hissy fit demanding the guy get sent to the gallows.
On February 17 2011 08:04 gogogadgetflow wrote: Holy shit I'm gonna get banned too. This is ridiculous, unless one of your clanmates reported you. Then lol (but still ridiculous). There is a fucking chat filter
They have a chat filter in League of Legends as well. Doesn't stop alot of people from being reported. Apprently even if they have a chat filter and the person isnt using it, the fault is on you somehow, because they are too lazy to click a box.
On February 17 2011 07:59 OpRaider wrote: I'm glad they banned you to be honest. You should calm down before you type shit.
He was banned for joking around with clan mates. Saying something like, 'damn that strategy is gay.' shouldn't cost you $60. I think blizzard is taking this stuff too far. Isn't there a mature language filter or something?
Yeah, I think this is a bit of stretch from Blizzard on their part. How can they tell nuances and context over the internet? s;
On February 17 2011 08:06 Dknight wrote: I highly doubt Blizzard just randomly searches for offensive language to ban. You most likely offended someone and got banned. Learn your lesson and move on.
You clearly offended someone enough for them to report you (maybe one of your clanmates?). I don't think Blizzard does a grep through all conversations and bans people. I think someone needs to report you.
On February 17 2011 08:02 GreatFall wrote: Unless I'm mistaken it didn't ban you, it is only a warning or for education purposes. I'm not sure why typing the word 'fag' or 'faggot' is an integral part of your gaming experience, but I would just let it go. It's a hurtful word and you are being warned not to use it on their servers. I don't think it's such a bad thing. Wouldn't you enjoy a gaming experience that didn't have words like 'faggot' or the N-word plastered all over the chat channels?
I had 10 years of dealing with this type of stuff with SC1, just doesnt phase me anymore, I have accepted that its just a part of online gaming.
I have had people wish cancer upon me in SC2, you dont see me throwing a hissy fit demanding the guy get sent to the gallows.
Just because you don't find something offensive, doesn't mean everyone who play SC has the same insensitivity to language that you do. Words matter dude.
If you got banned, then yes, Blizzard is full of shit and personally I'd consider seeking a lawyer to see if their ToS goes too far and you can challenge it...
But that being said it looks like "Disciplinary Action: Education" That doesn't look like you got banned to me...
It's not like blizzard is monitoring every chat channel. It must have been one of your clanmates who complained to and blizzard was forced to take action.
rofl i feel bad for you. with all the bm ive seen and reported and done. its like going by a police officer who has another car pulled over. thx its not me sucks for you hope the best for ya
this is utterly retarded. These sort of words have become so common in speech that it's just foolish to take action against them now. I don't see why blizzard feels like it has to entertain all these whiny tattle-tail kids and punish them like this is grade school for use of bad words. I bet this is the reason they took such steps to deny chat channels, there utterly terrified that their player base doesn't get offended even at the cost of its own social enjoyment of the game.
EDIT: oooh sh** I said retarded. I hope tl doesn't ban me
"entous sounds like a faggot" is such a stupid sentence to get warned for. You're not despising a whole sexual orientation. Unless you're referring to a homosexual person as a faggot, the warning is out of context. Besides, he was talking to a teammate? I'd be just as pissed as Enki.
"I knew SCII was going to fail the minute i was playing my first game in beta, and now I find out that I can get banned from the game i spent $60 on for typing fag in a channel, what a joke.
Blizzard should be ashamed of themselves, but I know better then to expect that. They have shown that they really have no regard for SC2, what with the no lan, the shitty fucking map pool, the horrid as fuck bnet 2.0 interface, I could go on and on."
Emotional statements with no regard for the real world. 1.5 million copies of SCII sold in its first 48 hours. The game has already set a new strategy gaming standard, and you write angry shit. You should just calm down.
A great way not to let this happen is not to talk shit to people.
Anyway, blizzard didnt ban you and I as many others have real doubts that they are monitoring every channel. Most likely you were being a complete asshole and you got reported. In this case blizzard had no other choice then to waste time on you and sent you an email basicly saying, stop being a douchebag.
This resulting in you making this blog so i am thinking you didnt learn alot from your experiance.
On February 17 2011 08:38 Enki wrote: I dont think some of you are really understanding the message. Someone reported me for saying faggot, and in the email said:
"Offense: Sexual Orientation This category includes both clear and masked language which:
* Insultingly refers to any aspect of sexual orientation pertaining to themselves or other players
Details (Note - Times are listed in Greenwich Mean Time, GMT): 2011-01-29 23:20:19 entous sounds like a faggot"
Basically, the admin called me a faggot, hence why I wondered why a WoW admin is dealing with SC2 related issues.
Um, no he didn't, don't be ridiculous. The clause "pertaining to themselves or other players" is to cover their bases when people claim "i can say fag because i am one"
Emotional statements with no regard for the real world. 1.5 million copies of SCII sold in its first 48 hours. The game has already set a new strategy gaming standard, and you write angry shit. You should just calm down.
I don't care how much it sells, doesn't change the facts I put out. You must be some casual player who just plays 3v3/4v4 with friends occasionally, in which case I can't blame you for not understanding my points about the maps.
Anyways, all I did was post a letter I got over a trivial matter, and just warning everyone to maybe watch what they type from now on to avoid it, since blizzard has shown that they are anal over some words that are typed out over bnet 2.0. Dunno why so much rage is being addressed to me.
Reread your blog understand that it was pure rage based on something that you did wrong and failed to accept that. And people dont and shoudnt accept rage based on nothing.
Not only is it ridiculous to get an email over something so stupid but this was sent from "wowaccountadmin@blizzard.com", who really has no business talking shit to an SC2 player, let alone a paying customer.
You do realise the account administration services department is one unified group, right? They most likely just forgot to change the alias address before clicking send.
I don't see where they "talked shit" to you either, and I don't even understand the relevance of "let alone a paying customer" considering every single person ON battle.net is a paying customer.
The fact that you're describing a warning form letter from an employee as "shit talking" should tell you something about how warped your view of the situation is.
Go play another game, and lol who gets pissed that wowaccountadmin sent you an email, it's a fucking computer, not a person "talking shit" to you. Damn you must be very friendly in real life.
On February 17 2011 08:40 Manifesto7 wrote: You didn't get banned. Don't call people fags and you won't get any mails.
this, it's not Blizzards fault if you get banned, they are following their rules that they made for their game.
I think that people should use the block out offensive language that's why it's there. It's ridiculous that they expect everyone to be GM there's some ass holes out there. But like its the internet who cares just relax and block communication to that person that's why it's there !
wow this is fuckin bullshit. i remember the days when blizzard gave us a game, let us decide what maps to play on it, who to play with, how to play it (lan), and how many fuckin accounts we could make. when did you change blizzard? why?
On February 17 2011 08:38 Vi]gReep wrote: Emotional statements with no regard for the real world. 1.5 million copies of SCII sold in its first 48 hours. The game has already set a new strategy gaming standard, and you write angry shit. You should just calm down.
Do yuo understand that what you said is significantly dumber then what he said? He complains about a game from a players perspective and you claim that the game is good by exclaiming a corperate perspective... that it sold copies (black ops sold copies). Advertisement and reputation sell games not quality. And how can you say it set a new strategy gaming standard, you just made this up. I see absolutely no way in which it improved upon broodwar in terms of strategic depth. Rather instead it matched a strategic standard and then proceeded to harass the player base as much as possible.
I'm honestly glad you got banned. You deserve it. I think its fucking idiotic that the gaming community loves calling each other fagots so much and I fully encourage any punishment blizzard will give you. SC2 is a game that should be enjoyed by everyone, and people like you continue a tradition of shitty behavior. Gays and women who constantly have to deal with this shit are often discouraged by competitive games where this behavior is prevalent.
Simple solution:
baddie you're awful get out stop wasting my time baddie go back to bronze league etc.
Grow out of the habit of calling people fagots and graduate to BM which doesn't break TOS. You can trash talk and completely harass someone about their abilities without bringing sexual orientation, sex, religion, race etc. into it.
On February 17 2011 09:49 Liquid`Tyler wrote: I don't understand how it's possible for warnings to be justified for language that the mature language filter filters. Can anyone explain it?
Calling someone a fagot can be considered harassment since it refers to their sexual orientation, whereas saying "GET THE FUCK OUT YOU PIECE OF TRASH" is just being an asshole. You would also get banned for making fun of someone due to sex, religion, race etc. the fact that the word is censored doesn't really have much bearing.
I totally agree with the blizz stance on this one because I hate how everyone uses the word fagot as a general negative term ignorant of the sexual connotation. It's like using nigger as a synonym for dipshit and wondering why people get annoyed.
On February 17 2011 08:12 -orb- wrote: If you got banned, then yes, Blizzard is full of shit and personally I'd consider seeking a lawyer to see if their ToS goes too far and you can challenge it...
You'd see a lawyer over $60? You realize how much litigation costs, let alone legal advice. Regardless, as previously stated, it looks like he didn't get banned. This thread would have been a lot better if he did get banned.
Edit:
On February 17 2011 09:49 Liquid`Tyler wrote: I don't understand how it's possible for warnings to be justified for language that the mature language filter filters. Can anyone explain it?
It's pretty easy to justify a warning -- a warning doesn't punish and can deter even worse behaviour. The warning doesn't need to be a first strike for breaking a ToS; it's simply a preventative measure.
Edit2:
On February 17 2011 10:04 Liquid`Tyler wrote:... Turning the mature language filter off (it's on by default) is tantamount to saying "I want to read the word faggot when someone wants to say it". Thus whenever someone reports another person for using the word faggot, the only logical response by customer support is to reprimand the reporter for abusing the system, since it is known that they consented to reading the word faggot and have no grounds for complaining about reading it. Frivolous reports ought to be punished.
That's a good point although turning the filter off could also mean you want to read the "bad word" when you send it to someone else.
Also, the mature language filter doesn't work. Or at least it's not intuitive. If you turn it on and send someone "fuck" then the chat window shows that you sent them !@#$. But if the person who receives the message has the filter off, they receive "fuck". So you can turn it on so that your inappropriate language is blocked out when you send it to others, but it is only blocked out for you despite appearing to be blocked out for everyone. Seems like a fucking trap!
Turning the mature language filter off (it's on by default) is tantamount to saying "I want to read the word faggot when someone wants to say it". Thus whenever someone reports another person for using the word faggot, the only logical response by customer support is to reprimand the reporter for abusing the system, since it is known that they consented to reading the word faggot and have no grounds for complaining about reading it. Frivolous reports ought to be punished.
On February 17 2011 10:04 Liquid`Tyler wrote: Also, the mature language filter doesn't work. Or at least it's not intuitive. If you turn it on and send someone "fuck" then the chat window shows that you sent them !@#$. But if the person who receives the message has the filter off, they receive "fuck". So you can turn it on so that your inappropriate language is blocked out when you send it to others, but it is only blocked out for you despite appearing to be blocked out for everyone. Seems like a fucking trap!
Turning the mature language filter off (it's on by default) is tantamount to saying "I want to read the word faggot when someone wants to say it". Thus whenever someone reports another person for using the word faggot, the only logical response by customer support is to reprimand the reporter for abusing the system, since it is known that they consented to reading the word faggot and have no grounds for complaining about reading it. Frivolous reports ought to be punished.
Just because I want to say and read the word fuck doesn't mean I want every second person calling me a faggot, nigger, jew etc.
Tbh I think you should be raging at the person who must of reported you in appose to blizzard. I can't honestly see them having some kind of filter for every instance of the word "fag" and investigating every one. They'd have to hire half of India to support that kind thing.
On February 17 2011 09:56 Wr3k wrote: I'm honestly glad you got banned. You deserve it. I think its fucking idiotic that the gaming community loves calling each other fagots so much and I fully encourage any punishment blizzard will give you. SC2 is a game that should be enjoyed by everyone, and people like you continue a tradition of shitty behavior. Gays and women who constantly have to deal with this shit are often discouraged by competitive games where this behavior is prevalent.
I didn't get banned, last time I am gonna say it, learn to read the op. I don't really care about gays either, they can do w/e they want with their life, thats fine by me. Somehow you infer that im homophobic, which I am not.
On February 17 2011 09:49 Liquid`Tyler wrote: I don't understand how it's possible for warnings to be justified for language that the mature language filter filters. Can anyone explain it?
Calling someone a fagot can be considered harassment since it refers to their sexual orientation, whereas saying "GET THE FUCK OUT YOU PIECE OF TRASH" is just being an asshole. You would also get banned for making fun of someone due to sex, religion, race etc. the fact that the word is censored doesn't really have much bearing.
I totally agree with the blizz stance on this one because I hate how everyone uses the word fagot as a general negative term ignorant of the sexual connotation. It's like using nigger as a synonym for dipshit.
If the word is censored, the bearing it has on the situation is that it's not possible to communicate it. You can communicate sexist, racist, homophobic sentiments without using bad words.
You can make ambiguous communications, that may or may not be sexist, racist, homophobic, etc, when using words filtered by the language filter.
The point of the mature language filter is to help ease the burden of using words with more than one meaning. Consider these two communications: (A) "I hate you because you are black and you like men." (B) "you play like a faggot"
(A) gets through the language filter and it should obviously be punished. The language filter cannot possibly be intelligent enough to censor all forms of hate speech and harassment. That isn't its purpose.
(B) does not get through the language filter. The person speaking it might not have any homophobic thoughts at all. His communication could be perfectly synonymous with "I don't like the way you play". But because the word faggot has more than one meaning, the receiver doesn't know for sure what he meant. The language filter is able to cover him so that people sensitive to homophobic language can protect themselves with the language filter and cannot be offended by his communication.
can a mod modify OP and bold underline font x10000 in red that
OP WAS NOT BANNED!
he just got an email telling him not to be rude. Which is the appropriate level of response against someone who was swearing. You'd do the same in public too if someone was cursing and being hateful. If OP was banned i would be up in arms and pitchforks just like everyone else, but he just got an email that scolded him.
@OP: you are asking blizzard to chillout and overlook your use of language in a joking manner that might have been interpreted negatively. But you in turn are not looking at blizzard's polite email in a chillout manner, and instead decide to rage on forums about it. =/ hold yourself up to the same standard you are expecting from blizzard.
There's no reason for this e-mail to have been sent to him because there's a language filter. Anybody who doesn't want to read what he has to say can enable it in the settings. Actually, you have to disable it to be able to read swear words, so in reality you are accepting the fact that you might see a few swear words. So if somebody reported him, they're the idiot and should be warned for being an idiot. They should get the e-mail saying that they can turn the language filter on if they don't like it.
On February 17 2011 09:49 Liquid`Tyler wrote: I don't understand how it's possible for warnings to be justified for language that the mature language filter filters. Can anyone explain it?
Calling someone a fagot can be considered harassment since it refers to their sexual orientation, whereas saying "GET THE FUCK OUT YOU PIECE OF TRASH" is just being an asshole. You would also get banned for making fun of someone due to sex, religion, race etc. the fact that the word is censored doesn't really have much bearing.
I totally agree with the blizz stance on this one because I hate how everyone uses the word fagot as a general negative term ignorant of the sexual connotation. It's like using nigger as a synonym for dipshit.
If the word is censored, the bearing it has on the situation is that it's not possible to communicate it. You can communicate sexist, racist, homophobic sentiments without using bad words.
You can make ambiguous communications, that may or may not be sexist, racist, homophobic, etc, when using words filtered by the language filter.
The point of the mature language filter is to help ease the burden of using words with more than one meaning. Consider these two communications: (A) "I hate you because you are black and you like men." (B) "you play like a faggot"
(A) gets through the language filter and it should obviously be punished. The language filter cannot possibly be intelligent enough to censor all forms of hate speech and harassment. That isn't its purpose.
(B) does not get through the language filter. The person speaking it might not have any homophobic thoughts at all. His communication could be perfectly synonymous with "I don't like the way you play". But because the word faggot has more than one meaning, the receiver doesn't know for sure what he meant. The language filter is able to cover him so that people sensitive to homophobic language can protect themselves with the language filter and cannot be offended by his communication.
I don't think this situation was moderated through the language filter.
On February 17 2011 09:49 Liquid`Tyler wrote: I don't understand how it's possible for warnings to be justified for language that the mature language filter filters. Can anyone explain it?
Calling someone a fagot can be considered harassment since it refers to their sexual orientation, whereas saying "GET THE FUCK OUT YOU PIECE OF TRASH" is just being an asshole. You would also get banned for making fun of someone due to sex, religion, race etc. the fact that the word is censored doesn't really have much bearing.
I totally agree with the blizz stance on this one because I hate how everyone uses the word fagot as a general negative term ignorant of the sexual connotation. It's like using nigger as a synonym for dipshit and wondering why people get annoyed.
You are wrong on so many levels. Censorship is rarely if ever good. Ever heard of a denotative meaning? If at some point nigger became commonplace slang for buddy, then its acceptable as being used. You know, kind of like it has been and is given a tolerance to. The same applies to faggot. Unless the CONTEXT of its usage is clearly in an insulting, derogatory, or inflammatory way then it has no reason to be censored if its in a friendly context. That is like me going out in the streets of Harlem and arresting people for hate crimes for calling each other niggaz/niggers.
Denotative meaning is fucking everything. It is not what a word means but what the perceived meaning behind it is. Its like if I were to call you a mardunk. Well fuck its not a word, but if somehow that word gained a denotative meaning of you being a raging homosexual than it would obviously be bad.
Fuck blatant and painful censorship. Its assholeMARDUNKS like you that lead to books like huckleberry finn getting censored and The Catcher and the Rye getting banned from schools.
what was that about wow admins? in wow if you're talking to your guild anything goes was it a private channel? at any rate you need to calm down from the rage. your statements were all extremely illogical and made it obvious you need a time out from games
On February 17 2011 08:05 masterbreti wrote: well tbh it is offensive language and should have been punished, and was.
I'm sorry you don't understand how language does affect people. blizzard has taken steps to assure the community stays respectful and a firendly place. in this case you were neither in the chat.
tbh i don't know the entire thing but since the word was used. someone reported you, and you deserved to be banned.
All im saying is if someone called me a faggot in real life, I would go find an authority figure immediately. I mean, how do you expect me to handle that situation? Ignore it?
Deal with it. You insult people over a blizzard game, and get suprised when they give you a warning?
And if you thought the game was shit in beta, why did you buy it? It's like paying to eat rhino turds, even though you knew you would hate it, and you had tried it for free already.
On February 17 2011 09:49 Liquid`Tyler wrote: I don't understand how it's possible for warnings to be justified for language that the mature language filter filters. Can anyone explain it?
Calling someone a fagot can be considered harassment since it refers to their sexual orientation, whereas saying "GET THE FUCK OUT YOU PIECE OF TRASH" is just being an asshole. You would also get banned for making fun of someone due to sex, religion, race etc. the fact that the word is censored doesn't really have much bearing.
I totally agree with the blizz stance on this one because I hate how everyone uses the word fagot as a general negative term ignorant of the sexual connotation. It's like using nigger as a synonym for dipshit and wondering why people get annoyed.
You are wrong on so many levels. Censorship is rarely if ever good. Ever heard of a denotative meaning? If at some point nigger became commonplace slang for buddy, then its acceptable as being used. You know, kind of like it has been and is given a tolerance to. The same applies to faggot. Unless the CONTEXT of its usage is clearly in an insulting, derogatory, or inflammatory way then it has no reason to be censored if its in a friendly context. That is like me going out in the streets of Harlem and arresting people for hate crimes for calling each other niggaz/niggers.
Denotative meaning is fucking everything. It is not what a word means but what the perceived meaning behind it is. Its like if I were to call you a mardunk. Well fuck its not a word, but if somehow that word gained a denotative meaning of you being a raging homosexual than it would obviously be bad.
Fuck blatant and painful censorship. Its assholeMARDUNKS like you that lead to books like huckleberry finn getting censored and The Catcher and the Rye getting banned from schools.
You should probably look up denotative.
While I hate censorship as much as the next guy its fairly clear that the word fagot has a homosexual connotation when used as a derogatory term. You argue that its acceptable to call people fagots on bnet because its a cultural norm and is accepted as far as competitive, male dominated games are concerned. I simply think that its idiotic to use words which have a sexual/racial connotation for the purpose of making fun of someone and that the high incidence of this behavior in online gaming communities discourages new players who may be offended since they aren't used to this behavior.
It's no different than being annoyed at how black people call each other niggers. If I was black and living in Harlem I likely wouldn't be offended, but imagine the results if you put a well educated white collar black man next to some hood rats from Harlem and they said "Whats up my nigga?". Do you really think said white collar black man would take too kindly to that? Better yet imagine a prominent public figure.. say Obama, walking into Harlem and being called a nigger... Its the same when someone new to the game comes along and gets called a fagot, it doesn't exactly make the online experience more enjoyable. Continuing this analogy Obama would represent gay individuals who both have alot to offer the SC community and haven't been exposed to hoards of people throwing the word fagot around for shits and giggles. Think about it.
I could care less if the language filter didn't exist, and I'm certainly not offended by shit talking, but the person who filed the report obviously was offended or at least annoyed. If people don't want to get warnings from blizzard, they should shit-talk without using derogatory words which also have sexual connotations. Like I said in a previous post, just change fagot to "inept piece of garbage" or something, its not that hard.
On February 17 2011 11:24 stroggos wrote: haha i like being bm'd cause then i can retort by showering them with praise and good manner just to fuck with their mind.
on a side note: someone told me the word 'black' was filtered by the profanity filter in sc2beta. can anyone confirm this?
Black is not filtered. Would be ridiculous to do so.
On February 17 2011 11:24 stroggos wrote: haha i like being bm'd cause then i can retort by showering them with praise and good manner just to fuck with their mind.
on a side note: someone told me the word 'black' was filtered by the profanity filter in sc2beta. can anyone confirm this?
I highly doubt it. Besides, it's not like blizzard has a stick up their proverbial arses when it comes to censoring stuff anyway (IE: worgen complaints on the WoW forums back in vanilla)
On February 17 2011 08:05 masterbreti wrote: well tbh it is offensive language and should have been punished, and was.
I'm sorry you don't understand how language does affect people. blizzard has taken steps to assure the community stays respectful and a firendly place. in this case you were neither in the chat.
tbh i don't know the entire thing but since the word was used. someone reported you, and you deserved to be banned.
well tbh this isn't high school.
No, its not high school. Neither is it the gym, restaurants, the workplace, public places etc. but you don't see people calling each other fagots left and right there because they have the common decency to keep it civil.
On February 17 2011 11:24 stroggos wrote: haha i like being bm'd cause then i can retort by showering them with praise and good manner just to fuck with their mind.
on a side note: someone told me the word 'black' was filtered by the profanity filter in sc2beta. can anyone confirm this?
I highly doubt it. Besides, it's not like blizzard has a stick up their proverbial arses when it comes to censoring stuff anyway (IE: worgen complaints on the WoW forums back in vanilla)
lmao is that to do with the whole thing with worgens being slaves and the word backwards is negrow and they drop watermelon when they die?
It's just words, but for some reason it seems to have caught on to not offend everybody and it's really annoying. I dont like X17 or youtubecomments so I just avoid those places. Not hard at all.
For moderation to work properly it should be done like here on TL, where every case is looked over and taken into context, on bnet that's impossible.
On February 17 2011 11:24 stroggos wrote: haha i like being bm'd cause then i can retort by showering them with praise and good manner just to fuck with their mind.
on a side note: someone told me the word 'black' was filtered by the profanity filter in sc2beta. can anyone confirm this?
I highly doubt it. Besides, it's not like blizzard has a stick up their proverbial arses when it comes to censoring stuff anyway (IE: worgen complaints on the WoW forums back in vanilla)
lmao is that to do with the whole thing with worgens being slaves and the word backwards is negrow and they drop watermelon when they die?
I don't think there was enough info in the original post for anyone to really make judgments about the OP or the e-mail from Blizzard. We don't know the context, or even what was said.
You got reported and warned for it. So what? Gaming needs to tone down the ridiculous level of degregation that happens in games when it comes to language anyway. If esports ever wants to become legit then changing the culture of the anon rage/flames needs to start. Blizzard wants this so its cracking down.
I think it's ridiculous as well. I don't think you should be banned for anything you type or say. I don't go on cursing tirades often, but it's scary that I could get banned because I feel like typing some dumb stuff for a minute. They should mute (like a month on first warning, and bigger and bigger for subsequent ones) your account without banning it.
Doesn't blizzard have a duty to the law to discourage any type of harassment online? I mean couldn't they get in trouble if someone gets harassed online inside of their game and reports that to higher authorities. I think this is pefectly fine, they didn't ban you, they just gave you a warning.
You called someone a fag and got a warning for it?
I fail to see the problem here, i seriously wish blizz would change thier first line in ToS to "THIS IS OUR HOUSE", would shut up so many affronted gamers who do not realise they cant behave any way they want.
On February 17 2011 09:49 Liquid`Tyler wrote: I don't understand how it's possible for warnings to be justified for language that the mature language filter filters. Can anyone explain it?
Calling someone a fagot can be considered harassment since it refers to their sexual orientation, whereas saying "GET THE FUCK OUT YOU PIECE OF TRASH" is just being an asshole. You would also get banned for making fun of someone due to sex, religion, race etc. the fact that the word is censored doesn't really have much bearing.
I totally agree with the blizz stance on this one because I hate how everyone uses the word fagot as a general negative term ignorant of the sexual connotation. It's like using nigger as a synonym for dipshit and wondering why people get annoyed.
You are wrong on so many levels. Censorship is rarely if ever good. Ever heard of a denotative meaning? If at some point nigger became commonplace slang for buddy, then its acceptable as being used. You know, kind of like it has been and is given a tolerance to. The same applies to faggot. Unless the CONTEXT of its usage is clearly in an insulting, derogatory, or inflammatory way then it has no reason to be censored if its in a friendly context. That is like me going out in the streets of Harlem and arresting people for hate crimes for calling each other niggaz/niggers.
Denotative meaning is fucking everything. It is not what a word means but what the perceived meaning behind it is. Its like if I were to call you a mardunk. Well fuck its not a word, but if somehow that word gained a denotative meaning of you being a raging homosexual than it would obviously be bad.
Fuck blatant and painful censorship. Its assholeMARDUNKS like you that lead to books like huckleberry finn getting censored and The Catcher and the Rye getting banned from schools.
You should probably look up denotative.
While I hate censorship as much as the next guy its fairly clear that the word fagot has a homosexual connotation when used as a derogatory term. You argue that its acceptable to call people fagots on bnet because its a cultural norm and is accepted as far as competitive, male dominated games are concerned. I simply think that its idiotic to use words which have a sexual/racial connotation for the purpose of making fun of someone and that the high incidence of this behavior in online gaming communities discourages new players who may be offended since they aren't used to this behavior.
It's no different than being annoyed at how black people call each other niggers. If I was black and living in Harlem I likely wouldn't be offended, but imagine the results if you put a well educated white collar black man next to some hood rats from Harlem and they said "Whats up my nigga?". Do you really think said white collar black man would take too kindly to that? Better yet imagine a prominent public figure.. say Obama, walking into Harlem and being called a nigger... Its the same when someone new to the game comes along and gets called a fagot, it doesn't exactly make the online experience more enjoyable. Continuing this analogy Obama would represent gay individuals who both have alot to offer the SC community and haven't been exposed to hoards of people throwing the word fagot around for shits and giggles. Think about it.
I could care less if the language filter didn't exist, and I'm certainly not offended by shit talking, but the person who filed the report obviously was offended or at least annoyed. If people don't want to get warnings from blizzard, they should shit-talk without using derogatory words which also have sexual connotations. Like I said in a previous post, just change fagot to "inept piece of garbage" or something, its not that hard.
Well I disagree. Technically it is socially accepted for black people to call each other niggers or w/e they want. Even if Obama would get annoyed by it, chances are he wouldn't take offense to it so much as find it trashy. The same way in a subjective situation its OKAY to call someone a faggot, but in others it would be stupid. If I am bullshitting with friends whether it be ONLINE or in person and I call them a fag/faggot its perfectly fine, and if it annoys them then I probably shouldn't do it, however MOST PEOPLE would be fine with it. But if I got up to give a presentation in class and said "MORNIN' FAGGOTS" that might be considered inappropriate, but at the same time would walk the line of being offensive.
At the same time though, why the fuck should we care if we offend someone? On something like Bnet a service I paid for I should be allowed to say whatever I want and if you have a problem then 1. Keep your language filter ON. and/or 2. Block me. Problem solved. There is no reason Blizzard should feel the need to police social graces and formalities since society naturally sorts those problems themselves. IE: If you don't like someone, ignore them.
And yes, you were right. I meant connotative, not denotative. You got my point though.
After many run-ins with the WoW gms (as well as growing up myself), I've adopted a more "appropriate" yet assholish way to joke around and even BM. You should do the same.
On February 17 2011 16:48 DND_Enkil wrote: You called someone a fag and got a warning for it?
I fail to see the problem here, i seriously wish blizz would change thier first line in ToS to "THIS IS OUR HOUSE", would shut up so many affronted gamers who do not realise they cant behave any way they want.
So, if you swear on an Apple iPhone Apple can come take your phone away? If you use a G5 mouse to click a porn link Logitech can come take back your mouse? And if you use a condom outside of marriage, the condom-maker can take it back because they do not condone sex between non-married couples?
It's none of Blizzard's business what I say to people. They have no right to press their morals on people. I would take it to court if this happened to me.
On February 17 2011 07:56 Enki wrote: Though we are unable to discuss the outcomes of our investigations due to privacy concerns, rest assured that this incident has been looked into very thoroughly, and the appropriate actions have been taken on all involved accounts.
This translates to "we know our action is nonsense but we put ourselves above oversight." This is a waste of Blizzard resources and a waste of customers' time and money.
Considering the attitude you expressed in the OP, your weird sense of entitlement as a "paying customer" and your behaviour in-game (regardless of whether you're joking around with clanmates or doing something else), the warning is justified. You may not like it, but you're on Blizzard's turf and they make the rules.
Also, someone probably reported you as Blizzard will hardly monitor every single chat channel. So you shoudn't worry about the evil Blizzard support but about your clanmates who think it's fun to get you an official warning.
On February 17 2011 08:12 -orb- wrote: But that being said it looks like "Disciplinary Action: Education" That doesn't look like you got banned to me...
What is up with that: "Account Action: Education"? Are they going to force you to follow an online seminar or something? That. Would. Be. EPIC!
The Blizzard campaign against hate: "teaching gamers to be more tolerant since 2011".
Also, I though mails from "wowaccountadmin@blizzard.com" were mostly spam mails? I've been getting 3 a day telling me to check my wow account password, while I don't even HAVE a wow account Sure it's not one of your clan mates trolling you?
This is a warning Mr. John Spartan. You have been fined with 50 bullshit credits for inappropriate behaviour. Be well John Spartan.
You remember how ridiculous was the situation and that's how ridiculous is this bullshit. People crying about language used are offending me greatly. It's your choice what words do you use. An educated mature person who is not a little sissy won't get offended by your words and it only makes you look foolish and primitive, not them. People who say that it's a matter of defending children from hearing inappropriate language are fools themselves as i hear kids swearing and throwing words around all the time - parents should be responsible for their kids, not you or me.
On February 17 2011 19:42 limonovich wrote: moral of this story is:
don't say anything in blizzard games, EVER. just use skype/teamspeak/irc.
lol. Sounds like a plan. But then blizzard would start getting mad that people aren't using the mic system they installed and sc2 would start scanning your computer for outside client programs and ban you if skype was running! ... anyway yeah I think just not talking to anybody ever would solve the problem. rofl
On February 17 2011 19:42 limonovich wrote: moral of this story is:
don't say anything in blizzard games, EVER. just use skype/teamspeak/irc.
lol. Sounds like a plan. But then blizzard would start getting mad that people aren't using the mic system they installed and sc2 would start scanning your computer for outside client programs and ban you if skype was running! ... anyway yeah I think just not talking to anybody ever would solve the problem. rofl
Never used the mic system anyway. I always disable voice chat in any multiplayer game, can't stand pre-pubescent children screaming obscenities at the top of their voice. If they actually scanned for other programs im pretty sure they'd have more than a couple dozen lawsuits on their hands, breach of privacy/security...etc.
On February 17 2011 21:12 Ricjames wrote: mature person who is not a little sissy
roflofagus
seriously though he's right. Freedom of speech is a pretty basic right. They can censor their forums, but private conversations isn't cool, and shutting down something you paid for as a consequence is downright unacceptable.
There's no such thing as "freedom of speech" (or any other freedom for that matter) on the private property that are Blizzard's servers. And if you actually read the EULA you agreed to when installing the game you'll notice that they reserve the right to remove your access (=ban your account) for whatever reason they like, and there's nothing you can do about it.
It's really sad how so many users think they're entitled to special treatment just because they bought the game. You wouldn't argue the same way with a train ticket or a gym membership but with games it's suddenly ok?
Ok so I was a bit hasty with my posts yesterday, it wasn't exactly what I thought. I now understand the situation of this.
"Details (Note - Times are listed in Greenwich Mean Time, GMT): 2011-01-29 23:20:19 entous sounds like a faggot"
Here there is a timestamp, where I am in channel and typed, "sounds like a faggot". Now, according to my memory, I was in the reddit channel actually, where someone remarked that they got allined and expressed their rage, so I typed, "sounds like a faggot". The word faggot in this case is used to describe the the kid who allined this guy. Can you honestly say you never thought some kid you played was a faggot, in sense of him being bm? Like he floats all of his buildings off around the map or something?
So, thanks for all the rage posts directed towards me, thanks for completely overreacting and misunderstanding the situation. It is still hilarious, I get people in SC2 directing threats to me and I dont report them, because its a fucking game and I dont take it that seriously, obviously they are just raged kids who need to calm down. Yet, I get a message from blizzard about me using to word faggot, in a non-descriminating way, completely retarded.
This begs the question to blizzard though, if you are going to report people for language then what the fuck is the point of having the chat filter? Same thing in League of Legends, if you can still get in trouble for what you type, whats the difference, take the filter out if you arent even going to acknowledge its existance.
TLDR: Someone got cheesed in the reddit channel, I responded with "sounds like a faggot" in regards to the cheeser, some butthurt redditor reports me.
On February 17 2011 16:48 DND_Enkil wrote: You called someone a fag and got a warning for it?
I fail to see the problem here, i seriously wish blizz would change thier first line in ToS to "THIS IS OUR HOUSE", would shut up so many affronted gamers who do not realise they cant behave any way they want.
So, if you swear on an Apple iPhone Apple can come take your phone away? If you use a G5 mouse to click a porn link Logitech can come take back your mouse? And if you use a condom outside of marriage, the condom-maker can take it back because they do not condone sex between non-married couples?
It's none of Blizzard's business what I say to people. They have no right to press their morals on people. I would take it to court if this happened to me.
If you go on a golfcourse, and pay for it, they will kick you out if you insult other players.
If you stay at a hotel and insult other guests you can get kicked out.
If you log onto TL.net and insult other peole you can get banned.
If you log onto battlenet 2.0 and insult other players (and they complain) Blizzard can ban you.
What you tell your friend IRL it is none of Blizzards buisness, but if you insult him over battlenet is is thier buisness, it is thier house and you are not forced to even be in it. Again they would not take any action unless it is reported.
I would suggest going to a golfcourse, call a complete stranger "fucking faggot" and other things and see how it goes for you, i guarantee you they wont accept your excuses.
Good luck with taking it to court, while at it insult the judge and try to use the same immature excuse when he gets angry.
On February 18 2011 02:33 DND_Enkil wrote: What you tell your friend IRL it is none of Blizzards buisness, but if you insult him over battlenet is is thier buisness, it is thier house and you are not forced to even be in it.
This isn't self-evident. I can say "faggot" over my Verizon land line without their van coming to my house and their employees stamping an education sticker on my door. But the guy on the other line can just hang up if he can't take the simple use of a word.
Also, try think about whether the policy itself makes any sense. Simply saying that it's their rule is a cop-out with respect to whether the rule is just or helpful. WoW/Battle.net 2.0/xbox live community moderation is a novelty compared to say the original Battle.net or just going into a Quake 3 server. As Tyler already said, it's redundant to offer a mature language filter and then ban people for using mature language. If you don't want to see it, the option is right there.
On February 17 2011 19:42 limonovich wrote: moral of this story is:
don't say anything in blizzard games, EVER. just use skype/teamspeak/irc.
lol. Sounds like a plan. But then blizzard would start getting mad that people aren't using the mic system they installed and sc2 would start scanning your computer for outside client programs and ban you if skype was running! ... anyway yeah I think just not talking to anybody ever would solve the problem. rofl
This isn't unheard of. When GameRanger was Mac only, the owner blocked use of a competing VOIP program in order to get people to buy the premium subscription which included VOIP.
On February 18 2011 02:33 DND_Enkil wrote: What you tell your friend IRL it is none of Blizzards buisness, but if you insult him over battlenet is is thier buisness, it is thier house and you are not forced to even be in it.
This isn't self-evident. I can say "faggot" over my Verizon land line without their van coming to my house and their employees stamping an education sticker on my door. But the guy on the other line can just hang up if he can't take the simple use of a word.
Also, try think about whether the policy itself makes any sense. Simply saying that it's their rule is a cop-out with respect to whether the rule is just or helpful. WoW/Battle.net 2.0/xbox live community moderation is a novelty compared to say the original Battle.net or just going into a Quake 3 server. As Tyler already said, it's redundant to offer a mature language filter and then ban people for using mature language. If you don't want to see it, the option is right there.
To tackle the first argument, there is a difference. Your telephone is a simple tool for communication, it is up to you to make contact with anyone, if you join a telephone conference hosted by someone that person can shut you down. No one here is saying that they should kill your internet because of what you say in a game or that DELL or whoever made your computer should care if you use your computer to chat with someone and call them gay.
Battlenet is essentially a social network under Blizzards administration that connects users for chatting and playing games. By entering this network you have to agree on certain number of rules, and Blizzard has the right to enforce said rules if they want to.
For Q3, CS etc you are entering private servers, and the moderation or lack of moderation is up to whoever runs the server. I remember people getting banned from Q3-servers for being dicks...
As for the language filter, i do not take damage from seing bad words, nor am i offended really. And when chatting with my friends i use bad words and want to be able to, that does not mean i want to be called a "dicksucking faggot" or whatever by someone i dont know. It will not upset me and is worth about as much attention of mine as it takes to report and ignore.
Actually, something as small as that would not even be worth the time for me to report it, would just ignore and move on.
Do you really want chat channels .... If a random person can just report you for using inappropriate language in chat and get a warning (or possibly a ban) eventhough atleast 99% of the users of SC2 including the person who reports you used bad words atlest once in their gaming career?
On February 17 2011 08:02 GreatFall wrote: Unless I'm mistaken it didn't ban you, it is only a warning or for education purposes. I'm not sure why typing the word 'fag' or 'faggot' is an integral part of your gaming experience, but I would just let it go. It's a hurtful word and you are being warned not to use it on their servers. I don't think it's such a bad thing. Wouldn't you enjoy a gaming experience that didn't have words like 'faggot' or the N-word plastered all over the chat channels?
I had 10 years of dealing with this type of stuff with SC1, just doesnt phase me anymore, I have accepted that its just a part of online gaming.
I have had people wish cancer upon me in SC2, you dont see me throwing a hissy fit demanding the guy get sent to the gallows.
On February 17 2011 08:04 gogogadgetflow wrote: Holy shit I'm gonna get banned too. This is ridiculous, unless one of your clanmates reported you. Then lol (but still ridiculous). There is a fucking chat filter
They have a chat filter in League of Legends as well. Doesn't stop alot of people from being reported. Apprently even if they have a chat filter and the person isnt using it, the fault is on you somehow, because they are too lazy to click a box.
Except in SC2, the chat filter is ON by default, so that means you have to go an extra step to uncheck it manually, and it automatically gets checked every patch. Doesn't mean going all the way to uncheck the box makes you want to hear those words instead of a bunch of symbols?
EPT
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