Sony has filed a new patent for the PlayStation. Viewers may be able to vote on players in the future. However, this is likely to affect the wrong people if the patent for PS4 and PS5 is implemented as it is, according to MeinMMO author Benedikt Schlotmann.
What it’s about: Sony has now registered a new patent. A patent consists of ideas and concepts for which developers want to secure rights (via pdfpiw.uspto.gov).
According to the official statement, the patent will enable viewers and participants of livestreams to remove other players from a game in the future.
- Either viewers can decide directly against the players, and the player is then to be thrown out of the game.
- An alternative is a fixed price mentioned that must be paid if a player is to be removed from a match.
- It should also be possible to warn players if they make too many mistakes.
According to the patent, it primarily offers the advantage of quickly removing disrespectful individuals or troublemakers from a match. However, these measures could ultimately end up targeting the wrong people and make matches a paradise for trolls.
The ban system will primarily impact disadvantaged groups
Who could be affected by the system? Basically, the system is intended to promote better interaction and primarily penalize players who behave disrespectfully.
However, such a system could also be easily abused for the wrong purposes.
- For example, women active in esports often have to endure many misogynistic comments.
- Other gamers like the rapper T-Pain are subjected to racist insults from fellow players.
Such individuals could end up being targeted, even though the intention is really to protect them.
Viewers are given a powerful tool to kick unpopular individuals from the match, even if they behave correctly or perform well in the game. Whether it is gender, appearance, or nationality, there are many aspects where viewers could react negatively towards the participants.
This is the other problem: According to the patent, players have no chance to protest against a ban or removal. The banned player or participating streamer has no opportunity to speak out against the ban.
An alternative would at least be to support such a system with a moderator who controls why thousands of viewers want to ban a certain player in large, competitive matches. Here, injustices would quickly become apparent. An automatic system that relies on viewers invites trolls to abuse it.
A game that currently has issues with such “false” bans is the MMORPG New World: Because in New World, players are currently being banned to prevent them from participating in wars. This way, competitors can be locked out of the game, which is not what MMORPGs are about.
