Rocket League is a competitive soccer video game released in 2015 by Psyonix. As with any competitive game, Rocket League has its fair share of toxic players, but where does this toxicity come from? In this article, we’re going to go over the top 7 reasons why Rocket League can be so toxic, and we’ll even go over how best to deal with these kinds of players should you happen to come across any.
Let’s get started with reason number 1.
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Reason 1: Anonymity
The fact that you can remain completely anonymous when playing video games online is often taken advantage of by toxic players. If no one knows who you are, then it’s easy to say things to provoke others or be annoying without having to worry about them coming back at you and taking revenge down the line.
Saying mean things to someone’s face in person is a lot more intimidating, but when no one knows who you are and you can say things through your PC or console, it’s really easy to do.
Reason 2: Lack of Serious Consequences
Sure, if you’re toxic enough in a video game, you’ll likely get muted or banned, but it’s so easy to bypass this by just making another account if you want to continue playing. This lack of serious consequences for toxicity in games means people do it more often because there’s ultimately not much to lose.
Punishments definitely do their part in keeping players in line though, especially those players with cosmetics and other things tied to their accounts that they don’t want to lose access to. However, if someone really doesn’t care about that stuff and has access to many accounts, there’s unfortunately not much that can be done to stop them from constantly being toxic. Hopefully, they’ll get bored of it eventually.
Reason 3: They’ve Had a Bad Day
Some players are just generally unpleasant people and will be toxic for the sake of being toxic, but with others, chances are they might have just had a bad day.
Negativity and anger can easily build up after a day of trouble, and when a person sits down to play some video games to relax in the evening, often those bad emotions can come out.
If you do find yourself being toxic after a rough day, it’s worth considering doing something else to wind down like reading a book or even playing a single-player game. Toxicity is never great in games as it really does impact people negatively, so it’s best if you try and do what you can to minimize it.
Reason 4: Kids & Teenagers
A large portion of the gaming community is made up of kids and teenagers, who generally tend to have less of a filter than adults. Younger people aren’t generally as aware of the impact their words can have on people, so they say many things they really shouldn’t be saying. Most people grow out of this, but unfortunately, there are still many adults out there that never developed a social filter and continue to say things without thinking twice.
Young gamers also tend to be less experienced than adult gamers who have put in the hours over the years, so they may lose more often than usual, which can be frustrating and increase the toxicity.
Reason 5: The Competitive Nature of Rocket League
Competition can bring about a range of emotions in people. Winning can be exhilarating and euphoric while losing on the other hand tends to be sad and frustrating. Gamers tend to be incredibly passionate about the games they play, and with that comes a lot of raw emotion that unfortunately does sometimes become toxic.
Have you ever missed an easy shot or conceded a goal in the last seconds of a match? It’s frustrating, and it’s only natural to feel a bit annoyed by it.
When mistakes build-up, toxicity tends to increase too, so it’s always good to train yourself to keep calm and not let anger overwhelm you. Controlling your emotions will both improve your performance and remove the risk of upsetting another player, but unfortunately, it’s not a skill that everyone has mastered, or even wants to master.
To get to the top of the ladder though, it’s important to be able to not be consumed by emotions mid-game. It’s okay to get annoyed but try to shake it off and get back to focusing on the game ASAP so you can do better and win.
Reason 6: Smurfing
Smurfing is the act of purposefully getting yourself placed at a lower rank than you should be in a competitive video game so that you can play against people below your skill level. This is incredibly frustrating for new players and anyone not that great at the game, and for one big reason.
It takes away every ounce of fun from the game.
Games like Rocket League aim to pit players against others of a similar skill level so everyone can have fun, but unfortunately, there are easy ways to bypass the system. Hopefully, you don’t come across too many smurfers in your Rocket League lobbies, because it really does make the game frustrating when you can’t even get a single touch on the ball.
Reason 7: Toxic People are the Most Vocal
The vast majority of Rocket League players are likely quite relaxed and don’t get toxic in chat, but unfortunately, it’s the loud ones that tend to stand out and be more noticeable. It’s easy to forget the players you come across that don’t speak much, but if someone is loud and toxic, that kind of thing stays in your head.
Can You Get Banned for Being Toxic in Rocket League?
Absolutely. Punishments get dished out all the time in Rocket League to players that break the rules, whether it be for toxicity, griefing, or hacking. Punishments vary in length depending on a few factors and can typically be grouped into one of three categories:
- Game Bans – These bans start at 72 hours and can escalate to a week, and then a month following repeated offenses. Game bans are typically given out for extremely toxic behavior such as the use of racial and sexual slurs.
- Chat Bans – These bans start at 24 hours, can escalate to 72 hours after the second offense, and can go all the way up to a month for repeated offenses. Chat bans are given out for less severe things such as mild abuse and the use of toxic language.
- Matchmaking Bans – These bans start at 5 minutes and can go up to 24 hours after repeated offenses. Matchmaking bans aren’t exactly given out for being toxic in chat but are given to players that leave competitive matches early, which in itself can be considered toxic behavior as it puts your team at a disadvantage and almost always guarantees a loss for them.
How To Deal With Toxic Players In Rocket League
Thankfully, Rocket League offers a way to mute other players, which is the best thing to do if someone is being toxic.
By opening up the options menu in-game, you can choose to mute just one person or everyone, so you don’t have to see their chat messages or hear their voice(s).
Additionally, you can report players that are being toxic. Reports get sent to the Rocket League team and, using logs from the game, they will decide whether the offense is worthy of a punishment or not. Getting someone banned through the reporting process can take some time, so we’d recommend you both mute and report any toxic players you come across so you can continue playing the game without having to worry about them.
The GLHF Pledge
Video games should be inclusive and fun for everyone, which is why it’s important to crack down on toxicity and not let it consume gaming communities. The GLHF pledge is something that has become more popular in recent years as an initiative to fight toxicity in games and make the space more welcoming to all. By signing the pledge, and spreading the word, you’re helping to make the gaming community better and safer for everyone, so be sure to check it out using the link below:
You even get a cool global Twitch badge if you link your Twitch account. Pretty neat, right?
Some Final Words
We hope this article has been informative in helping you understand why there’s toxicity in the Rocket League community and what you can do to help stop it. Stay safe out there, respect your fellow gamers as best you can, and most of all, have fun! Thanks for reading.
