Sunday eSports: Manners and Misogyny

[News Portal]

When the competitive fighting game community comes under fire for not only tolerating but promoting sexual harassment and misogynistic views, it's clear that there's a need for a cultural change. Veteran pro-gamer Alex Walker has all the details.

Read full article by Alex Walker

[skitzor]

the situation was **** disgusting and that piece of **** Bakhtanians should be totally kicked out of eSports. all of his supporters that were claiming his opponents were censoring him or were examples of political correctness gone mad can also **** off.

if this happened in any IRL sport, he would be kicked off his team, be unemployable and might even get charged with sexual harassment. this guy gets nothing (it seems). how **** up is that?

[Jnr]

the situation was **** disgusting and that piece of **** Bakhtanians should be totally kicked out of eSports. all of his supporters that were claiming his opponents were censoring him or were examples of political correctness gone mad can also **** off.

if this happened in any IRL sport, he would be kicked off his team, be unemployable and might even get charged with sexual harassment. this guy gets nothing (it seems). how **** up is that?

It's the FGC, this has ALWAYS been present, although I do think he took it way too far.

[skitzor]

It's the FGC, this has ALWAYS been present

I'm not directly addressing you, because I don't know your opinion behind the statement, but other people use that as an excuse for why it happens. I find that pretty **** stupid. it's like they can't grasp the concept of something changing.

[-=THUNDERBIRD=-]

People need to be more accountable for their actions.

The **** that would happen to me if I acted like this when playing sport in real life would be close to life ban.

Just because it's E-sports dosn't mean they can undermine all other sports with this sort of behaviour.

[Jez]

the situation was **** disgusting and that piece of **** Bakhtanians should be totally kicked out of eSports. all of his supporters that were claiming his opponents were censoring him or were examples of political correctness gone mad can also **** off.

if this happened in any IRL sport, he would be kicked off his team, be unemployable and might even get charged with sexual harassment. this guy gets nothing (it seems). how **** up is that?

It's the FGC, this has ALWAYS been present, although I do think he took it way too far.

I don't think that makes it acceptable. I'm not precisely sure of how these things would be treated within the scope of the law, but it does seem to me that this kind of misogynistic **** should be covered under laws governing hate speech and sexual harassment in the workplace. As gamers we should not be content with such people representing us to the world.

[Fireslide]

The attitudes of many communities is absolutely atrocious. There has to be some competitive aspect, but most people take it too far. If we want eSports as a whole to become more widely accepted, they need to be treated with the same level of professionalism as well established sports. Part of that is going to involve conscious efforts by the top players to act as good role models for people to look up to. Unfortunately with many of the most skilled players there comes a level of arrogance and lack of manners that everyone else picks up on.

[Jnr]

the situation was **** disgusting and that piece of **** Bakhtanians should be totally kicked out of eSports. all of his supporters that were claiming his opponents were censoring him or were examples of political correctness gone mad can also **** off.

if this happened in any IRL sport, he would be kicked off his team, be unemployable and might even get charged with sexual harassment. this guy gets nothing (it seems). how **** up is that?

It's the FGC, this has ALWAYS been present, although I do think he took it way too far.

I don't think that makes it acceptable. I'm not precisely sure of how these things would be treated within the scope of the law, but it does seem to me that this kind of misogynistic **** should be covered under laws governing hate speech and sexual harassment in the workplace. As gamers we should not be content with such people representing us to the world.

The thing is, there was a **** storm a few weeks back about an article covering e-sports from the Fighting Game Community perspective, references were made to SC about how their growths have been similar to an extent (outside of Korea) and it in they say they don't want to be compared to other e-sports, that they've always been a unique grass roots movement and will continue to be so. I guess this is how they consider themselves unique?

I mean, as gamers we are always going to be ill-mannered, offensive and slightly misogynistic at times, but I think when it gets to a point where it escapes a community, and instead of apologising, you tell people to 'not change our scene' you are just being ridiculously stupid and forcing the issue to escalate.

[Pearl]

if this happened in any IRL sport, he would be kicked off his team, be unemployable and might even get charged with sexual harassment. this guy gets nothing (it seems). how **** up is that?

This is one of the many things i came in here to say.
Theres too much for me to actually type.... I will say this is sickening **** though.

[Zombywolf]

the situation was **** disgusting and that piece of **** Bakhtanians should be totally kicked out of eSports. all of his supporters that were claiming his opponents were censoring him or were examples of political correctness gone mad can also **** off.

if this happened in any IRL sport, he would be kicked off his team, be unemployable and might even get charged with sexual harassment. this guy gets nothing (it seems). how **** up is that?

i agree man.
this little **** was being a sexist arsehole, then he and his compatriots told that poor lass that she needs a thicker skin...
but as soon as he comes under fire for trying to justify himself, he becomes the personification of the okay.jpg face... hypocritical wanker.

Sure, Bakhtanians, you can have your little FGC and keep the prejudice as part of your culture...but have fun being regarded as nothing more than infantile, bigoted little ****.

There's a difference between arrogant and immature competitive spirit, and mature, actual competitive spirit.

[Drakand]

the issue does seem to come down to FGC not accepting that change is inevitable.

When it started as a grassroots movements, in the arcades, there woudl have been a feeling of everyone being caught up in the same mood and excitement and when words were said, it was accepted by the crowd. As it got accepted, it continued and became part of the norm, it became a habit for this group.

Now it isn't just a local thing, its an international thing, being boradcast and therefore accessed by a larger population, this attitude of previously accepted sexism by a small community is being assessed by a larger community and not being accepted. FGC may not have asked for this wider community look at them but as they grow in popularity and success its something they need to accept. I mean if they get a tv show broadcast......of course they are going to get attention!

Just to be very clear, in case anyone misreads this, i do not support the behaviour or attitude displayd by the FGC, they need to accept that they are part of the world and their culture needs to change if they want to keep growing, otherwise they'll be stuck in the arcades forever.

It probably wont be easy for them but sometimes accepting chnage isn't easy.

[Bluefire]

I could only make myself read about half of that interview before my head started hurting... Has the guy even finnished primary school ? I mean I know my english isnt the greatest but still.... Reading it reminded me of a bunch of highschool girls at the mall 10 years ago .. Like.. stuff and like yeah...
I mean maybe he cant speak.. but then with that attitude I just think he's uneducated.

The really sad thing about this is today tonight or some other such program is likely to pick up a story like this and change it arround to be something along the lines of all computer gamers think its ok to abuse women..

[tacitus42]

I think if its going to be touted as just a bit of harmless smack-talk maybe it should wait until the sexes are properly equal and misogyny is just a stupid idea from the past.

[Rogue]

You can’t go to the NBA and say “hey, I like basketball, but I don’t want them to play with a basketball, I want them to play with a football.” It just doesn’t...it doesn’t make sense to have that attitude, you know? These things are established for years. That would be like someone from the fighting game community going over to StarCraft and trying to say “hey, StarCraft, you guys are too soft, let’s start making sexual harassment jokes to each other on StarCraft.” That’s not cool, people wouldn’t like that. StarCraft isn’t like that. People would get defensive, and that’s what you’re trying to do the fighting game community, and it’s not right. It’s ethically wrong.

Hahaha.

the situation was **** disgusting and that piece of **** Bakhtanians should be totally kicked out of eSports. all of his supporters that were claiming his opponents were censoring him or were examples of political correctness gone mad can also **** off.

if this happened in any IRL sport, he would be kicked off his team, be unemployable and might even get charged with sexual harassment. this guy gets nothing (it seems). how **** up is that?

It's the FGC, this has ALWAYS been present, although I do think he took it way too far.

'It's America, we've always enslaved black people, although I do think we can be a bit harsh'...it jars a bit, doesn't it?

Even if sexual harassment etc. was appropriate at some point - was it really ever okay, even if it was not uncommon? - it's time to move on.

[Burty13]

He does have a very mild point. You need to be slightly thick skinned with those types of immature communities. If consoles when I were growing up had voice chat I would have been one of those annoying 12 year olds calling people ****.

However was super creepy in that video asking her about her bra size and it was painfully forever alone to listen to. I had to stop it after that as it was too awkward.

You can tell by the way he talks he is doing its targetted and creepy probably because he probably wants to sleep with her.

If he wanted to make sexist jokes he should have made them in a general sense and light hearted.