DURING the quarantine and lockdowns, people have taken to video games to pass the time. They can be a great way to entertain yourself and learn new skills.
Whether they be Adventure, Strategy or Role Playing (RPG) games, the mix of great graphics, music and action can drag you into the virtual world and make it our own. They are an escape from the chaotic reality we are facing.
There is just one risk that comes with investing in video games – meeting salty players.
“Salty” is used to describe people who easily get angry or bitter over small details. Sometimes these people can even be racist.
This is especially common in Multilayer RPG games where you meet different people from around the world. If you are a newbie or “noob” and you make a small mistake expect a flood of insults and threats to enter your inbox.
Why do players get salty though? It isn’t even a real world. Why do people invest so much emotion into it?
Well, when you spend so much time into completing missions or improving your statistics in a game, it becomes as much a part of a routine to your daily life as brushing your teeth.
I noticed that in video games, just like in real life, the environment affects your attitude. When the theme of a game is competition and the goal is to eliminate other players, it’s easy to be irritable. It’s the same way you get hostile when people cut in line or when you are overtaken on a highway.
I confess I can also be salty when provoked. I can go on a tirade when the game is at its climax then later when the action is over I regret what I say.
However, in another RPG game that I’m playing where the goal is to help your fellow players, I see that the atmosphere is much lighter. People like me who are salty in competitive games become helpful and patient when the game surroundings push us to be that way. It just goes to show that our environment plays a big part in the way we react to situations.
I am not condoning salty behavior and I myself am trying to improve. If you feel you are starting to develop that kind of attitude, stop yourself immediately. Your growing feelings of hostility are just due to your environment and they can be controlled.
Salty behavior ruins gameplay and doesn’t increase your chances of winning. Our environment influences our emotions so we must constantly keep those emotions in check.
With the way things are going now, we still have plenty of time to spend in our virtual worlds./PN
