An AI system developed by a new startup claims to be able to automatically detect, track, and fight toxicity in online games, which is a far bigger problem than you think.
A gamer, member of the eSports outfit Team Vitality, plays video games in the training room on January 16, 2019 at a "Gaming House" in Berlin's western suburb Halensee. - Berlin, which is hosting the European championships of the world's most popular online video game "League of Legends" until the end of March, is a hotbed of eSports talent with several European teams making their base in Berlin for the championships.
The aforementioned AI system is called GGWP (short for "good game, well played", which is a popular gaming acronym). According to Yahoo, it works by collecting and organizing data of player behaviors in any game, which will help developers mix both real-person and automated review to more effectively combat toxicity in their online multiplayer games.
Aside from that, the artificial intelligence system is also designed to give players reputation scores. These scores are a product of an analysis of an individual player's behavior in reported matches, which combined with an "understanding" of the game's culture can also help developers warn people whether they're being too toxic (ratings dip) or just outright ban them if they're not careful with their antics.
But since each competitive online game is different, the makers of GGWP are ensuring that the system is fully customizable to tailor-fit any game's culture. Say, a game like "Halo Infinite" would have a different set of requirements than a game like "Fall Guys."
How GGWP AI Started
The GGWP AI system is the brainchild of former progammer Dennis Fong, who went by the gamer tag "Thresh" during his days pwning noobs in "Quake" and "Doom" in the 90s and early 2000s.
THRESH/C/05NOV98/DD/LH--Immortal (aka Kurt Shimada, 15 years old) and Thresh (aka Dennis Fong, 21 years old) will be competing in a game of 'Quake 2' for a professional gamers league contest with a toal purse of $100,000 dollars
So far, GGWP has already raised $12 million in seed funding, just over two years after he founded his San Francisco-based company, writes VentureBeat. He established the startup with Kun Gao, the founder of anime streaming site Crunchyroll, and George Ng, an artificial intelligence expert.
According to Fong, their initial goal is to finally put a stop to online game toxicity, owing to their own experience as pro gamers in a competitive setting. He mentioned that while they had "no intention" of starting a company in the first place, they decided they wanted to "provide some advice and recommendations" to game devs on how to best combat toxicity and make gaming friendlier for everyone-regardless of skill level.
Why An Anti-Toxicity AI Could Be Just What Gaming Needs
If you think that toxicity is not a big problem in online gaming these days, you're dead wrong. It has been an issue for decades, and this particular story is proof that online games can be a very harmful place-especially for women.
MADRID, SPAIN - SEPTEMBER 29: A Out Of The Blue Airbus (OOB) player during their League of Legends final against Besiktas during day 2 of the Girl Gamer Madrid Festival at Movistar eSports Center on September 29, 2019 in Madrid, Spain.
Late last year, Tech Times reported on a Twitch streamer called Grenade Queen who was harassed by a bunch of dudes while playing "Halo Infinite." While in game, she received multiple sexist slurs, with the men telling her to stop playing "Halo" because apparently the game "isn't made for her," while also telling her to go play some other game like "Fortnite."
Here is the video of the harassment in action:
This wasn’t the future for @xbox live we envisioned. As a community and with the help of @Microsoft this needs to be highlighted and stopped. It will take teamwork between players, devs, and console manufacturers to change this and it’s time. It’s past time. https://t.co/hVPHDvESVP
— Seamus Blackley (@SeamusBlackley) December 20, 2021
It got bad enough that Seamus Blackley, one of the creators of the original Xbox and Xbox Live, reacted by saying that it wasn't the future for Xbox Live that he and his team envisioned. But this isn't even the only time that a woman like Grenade Queen has faced toxicity when playing online games.
According to GamesIndustry.biz, the presence of toxicity in online gaming basically forces almost 59% of women to hide their gender while playing to avoid getting harassed. This should never be happening in the first place, which is where the GGWP AI system could be of great help in terms of making online games a far more inclusive place.
Related Article: Over Half Of US Online Gamers Experience Some Form Of Harassment, Survey Reveals
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Written by RJ Pierce
