In the world of GTA Online, you often encounter trolls, griefers, and even cheaters. Our editor Patrick Freese met a player who positively stands out. He kindly greets everyone and wishes them a nice day. But why?
This is what you can expect in GTA Online: A rough tone is part of the daily business in Los Santos, which is full of virtual gangsters. Abusive insults fly through the chat when someone takes another one out. Players grief each other, repeatedly killing weaker players until they leave the server. Sometimes griefers in GTA Online can be really embarrassing.
Cheaters with mod menus often cause frustration. In my nearly 7 years of playing GTA Online, such toxic lobbies have often forced me to take breaks.
Who is this about? During one of my online sessions, I met a young player (username known to the editorial team). He caught my attention when he joined his session and wished everyone a nice day and lots of fun. I hadn’t seen such a positive message in GTA Online for a long time, and others in the chat immediately asked if he was trolling and meant it ironically.
But he means it sincerely.
We started chatting. It turned out that he is 15 years old and named Paul. I found it remarkable that such a young player confronts the toxic environment in online games with such positive energy. Therefore, I quickly asked him for a small interview for MeinMMO to learn about his motivations and share them with you.
“I never wanted to end up like them”
MeinMMO: Hello, how long have you been playing GTA Online?
Paul: “Since exactly the beginning of this year. But I’ve spent 570 hours by now.”
MeinMMO: What do you say to players when you join a session in GTA Online?
Paul: “I always try to come up with something new: The standard is basically wishing everyone a good day, saying to take care during these times of Corona, etc. If I happen to know a good joke, I tell that. But that is rather rare.”
MeinMMO: Did you wish everyone a nice day from the start when you joined sessions in GTA Online?
Paul: “I didn’t really have that thought from the start. I’ve always been a player who plays quietly and doesn’t look for conflict, but I also didn’t really communicate with the lobby, except when actively addressed.”
MeinMMO: When was the point you thought: From now on, I will start every session with a positive message to everyone?
Paul: “I don’t really have a specific point where I started that. Also, because I didn’t pay attention to it until you pointed it out to me. I did it occasionally in my early days, but regularly, I would say, not until I hit my 500th hour of play.”
MeinMMO: So there was no specific trigger or role model for that?
Paul: “No, not really… There was no concrete event that triggered that thought for me. I just kept seeing griefers, trolls, etc. throughout my playtime and never wanted to end up like them. So I decided around my 500th gameplay hour to be the opposite, to approach people with a positive attitude and not to be dismissive or insulting.”
MeinMMO: How do players typically react to your greeting?
Paul: “Honestly, there’s no rule. I’ve seen it all: From people who respond with insults, to those who don’t respond at all, to those who respond very nicely, with whom you can have a good conversation and I get along so well that I also send them a friend request.
You see, there is no real rule. If I had to decide what happens the most, I would say that the most common response is “No response” (laughs). It’s unfortunately true: many people just want to stay among themselves and are not open to contact with other players, which I find very sad. I also had some who didn’t respond even when I directly messaged them.”
MeinMMO: Have there been players who reacted so negatively to your nice message that they specifically annoyed you in GTA Online?
Paul: “Oh, that’s a good question. I must say I don’t remember every response to my nice messages; with several hundred hours of gameplay, you are in a few hundred lobbies.
I do remember one: There was a player who responded to my message that he would have sexual intercourse with my mother (“You love me and I am going to love your mom once I enter her bedroom”). With such players, my goodwill with the GTA community reaches its limits.
In that example, it was obviously annoying for me to receive such an immature and unfunny response to a nice message. However, I didn’t shout my frustration out in the chat; instead, I wished him a nice day and then ignored him while further such messages came in like above. After some time, he eventually stopped as well.”
MeinMMO: Are those the kinds of situations where you think: “Oh, it’s pointless; I’ll stop being nice”?
Paul: “I often had such thoughts; you can believe me (laughs). But I always thought: If I don’t do it, no one will. If you want to use a metaphor: I was the safe island in a sea full of trolls and toxicity. I would then stop with the nice messages for 2-3 sessions to regroup and get new motivation for the nice messages. After that, I continued as if nothing had happened.”
MeinMMO: Do you wish other players would act like you?
Paul: “That would be fantastic (smiles). I have seen people who also say “Hello” to the entire lobby, but someone like me who then writes a nice text afterward has never come across my path. To be honest, I’m not optimistic about it; the GTA community has massive problems with toxicity, trolls, etc., which also makes playing frustrating and what escalates itself. It’s a vicious circle that is hard to resist, as you will inevitably encounter trolls when playing GTA Online. There’s no way around it. It would be great, but I don’t expect it from a community like GTA Online. I’ve gotten used to the fact that I’m often in the minority as a nice player.”
MeinMMO: Thank you for the interview! Is there something you’d like to tell our readers here on MeinMMO?
Paul: “You often hear from parents the phrase: ‘It’s just a game.’ Most may be annoyed by it, but in the end, that’s true. It’s a game; it should be fun, and you should be able to switch off from the real world to relax. It’s not a job. So don’t treat it like one and don’t take it too seriously.
I also thank you for the interview on my side.”
Are you also positive players who stand against toxic atmospheres? What do you think of his attitude?
I met him for the first time in GTA Online when a modder placed a crazy burger car at my feet.
