#GamingBytes: 'Rainbow Six Siege' adds chat filter to fight toxicity
What's the story
Rainbow Six Siege is one of Ubisoft's most popular gaming franchises.
Its massive popularity stems from the diverse gamer base and unfortunately, interactions between gamers turn out badly because of the toxic language used by some players.
To combat this, Ubisoft has come up with a new chat filter system which it announced on Rainbow6 Developer Blog.
Read all about the new system here.
Chat filter
How will the new filter work?
The new system is supposed to forewarn players about using certain vocabulary and specific terms within the game's chat system.
This is a marked development from the old system where permanent bans were just handed out to players for use of inappropriate language.
Presenting a clear picture of what players can say is a marked improvement introduced by the developers.
Twitter Post
Check out the official tweet here
On Dec 10th, we will be evolving our chat toxicity system by activating a chat filter.
— Rainbow Six Siege (@Rainbow6Game) December 10, 2018
The chat filter system will give direct feedback to players using toxic language while still allowing us to appropriately sanction offending players.
Read more: https://t.co/Jwzd2kO5SR pic.twitter.com/Ihv24y48Vn
New system
The need for a new system
The new chat filter system was based on fan feedback.
Notably, Rainbow Six Siege's ever-evolving live service model has enjoyed success for over three years by keeping fans happy.
Its recent attempt to censor some mature content globally faced severe backlash, as we reported.
In wake of this, it decided to find middle ground between censorship and expressive freedom through the new chat filter.
Problem
The problem of toxicity within the gaming community
As someone who has been part of the gaming community for a long time, toxic language is a definite problem.
Some gamers tend to be really conservative and deliberately arrogant in their outlook, and gamers are often on the receiving end of improper racial stereotypes and gender-based comments.
In light of how this ruins online gameplay experience, Ubisoft's latest move is a welcome one.
Opinion
Why the new filter system is a smart move?
Due to the rampant problem of toxicity within game chats, those tasked with the responsibility of monitoring users have a tough time.
The live service model that many Ubisoft games run encourages players bases to hang around longer. Rainbow Six Siege especially experiences this due to the continuous updates it gets.
Thus the new filter is an effective way to weed out toxicity.