Is Second Life more toxic than other games in general?

[Love Zhaoying]

2 minutes ago, Istelathis said:

I think it was @animats that had made this observation, which I now am more or less paraphrasing.  Second Life does not have the reach that most games do, as there is not global chat channels, the reach here does not extend very far so most people are living in their own little bubble (which for some reason is considered bad by many) doing their own thing.  In addition to this, we are not required to group with one another to achieve common goals such as taken down a group dungeon, or raid.

With that said, being a DJ will have a much further reach than a lot of other activities in SL, and it is my belief that the more people you know the higher chance you will find yourself among others that do have behaviors that are not agreeable with your own sense of ethics.  

So, basically, I would say it is less toxic than many games, simply because there is less reach.  

I agree. Since I am mostly "doing my own thing" in Second Life, I am not affected by its toxicity (and would not be aware of it if not for other's stories, past events, etc.).  I take it on "faith" that people are not exaggerating when they talk about Second Life's toxicity, as they don't have anything to benefit from by making up stories, etc.

[Luna Bliss]

8 minutes ago, Istelathis said:

With that said, being a DJ will have a much further reach than a lot of other activities in SL, and it is my belief that the more people you know the higher chance you will find yourself among others that do have behaviors that are not agreeable with your own sense of ethics.  

So, basically, I would say it is less toxic than many games, simply because there is less reach. 

That makes sense.

I've observed that frequently it's those with a more public persona or who are 'SL famous' that incur the most griefing/toxicity.  So yes, the increased visibility that increases the chance of encountering others with differing viewpoints seems to be the crux of it.

[Luna Bliss]

Also this 'setting up of home-life' that is such a big part of SL increases the toxicity here.  When I was a landlord in a community type setting I sometimes felt that a bunch of family members had moved into my home. Well, you know how that would turn out!   Home for the holidays, yay!

There is horrific toxicity going on among many of these families we have here, along with the romantic relationships, working out past dysfunctional patterns from their most inner selves no doubt.  In fairness though, there are some really great communities, families, and functional relationships.

[Silent Mistwalker]

7 hours ago, Robberinthemuseum said:

Don't forget reddit and 4Chan. The doxxing on 4Chan is brutal. 

You left out the Kiwis.

[Luna Bliss]

Hopefully, in these toxic families/relationships so prevalent in SL, many learn to love instead of playing out dysfunctional family dynamics. In fact, I know many who have learned better ways to behave and apply the changes to both SL and RL.
It is amazing indeed to witness true love and empathy for others who differ from yourself develop inside what some would view as a 'silly game'.
Likely one has to be in some of the self-help/spiritual groups within SL to witness this fully.
I am filled with wonder regarding the potential of SL, and feel profound sympathy for those who encounter too much toxicity here.

[Katherine Heartsong]

I get the feeling (hence, totally subjective here) that SL is noticeably less toxic than other online platforms. That doesn't mean there aren't the usual group of toxic people here—argumentative, griefers, bullies, kink-shamers, homophobes, transphobes, manosphere types, and bigots of all stripes—but that it seems less so than other places.

I suspect, again not having a shred of evidence to support my view, that this is largely because SL is so very niche, that it would take too much effort to learn about SL, to come here, set up an account, etc to make it worth most griefer's time. So much easier to grief on other social platforms that why bother with that old thing SL. And I think this is partly due to demographic. Ask any gamer under the age of 25 what games they play and 99% of the time you won't hear SL said. SL isn't on most folks radar and hence, lack of idiots and trolls.

We also make it easy to avoid conflict in many cases. If I read in someone's profile they despise men playing female avatars, or they support this or that political or world viewpoint I vehemently disagree with, I simply don't ever engage. It's not like the real world where you can say hi to someone at a party and then get into a nice convo and then they spew out something nasty and you're kind of trapped. One reason I like good profiles in SL, btw.

It does exist, but we do a good job of blocking and self-policing the worst offenders, I think. Anyway, my $0.02.

Edited January 2 by Katherine Heartsong

[Silent Mistwalker]

32 minutes ago, Istelathis said:

With that said, being a DJ will have a much further reach than a lot of other activities in SL, and it is my belief that the more people you know the higher chance you will find yourself among others that do have behaviors that are not agreeable with your own sense of ethics.  

Depends on the venue and how well their staff handles situations. DJs don't actually know all of the people attending the sets. There is a certain familiarity between DJ and regular customers, but regular customers aren't usually the ones creating a problem.

[Silent Mistwalker]

10 minutes ago, Katherine Heartsong said:

I get the feeling (hence, totally subjective here) that SL is noticeably less toxic than other online platforms. That doesn't mean there aren't the usual group of toxic people here—argumentative, griefers, bullies, kink-shamers, homophobes, transphobes, manosphere types, and bigots of all stripes—but that it seems less so than other places.

I suspect, again not having a shred of evidence to support my view, that this is largely because SL is so very niche, that it would take too much effort to learn about SL, to come here, set up an account, etc to make it worth most griefer's time. So much easier to grief on other social platforms that why bother with that old thing SL. And I think this is partly due to demographic. Ask any gamer under the age of 25 what games they play and 99% of the time you won't hear SL said. SL isn't on most folks radar and hence, lack of idiots and trolls.

It does exist, but we do a good job of blocking and self-policing the worst offenders, I think. Anyway, my $0.02.

KingGoon and his not so merry pranksters are still active. 

https://www.virtualverse.one/forums/threads/king-goon-got-owned.6351/

[Luna Bliss]

2 minutes ago, Silent Mistwalker said:

KingGoon and his not so merry pranksters are still active. 

omg those people copied my entire store and bragged about it!  Toxic Toxic

Edited January 2 by Luna Bliss

[Luna Bliss]

Music is a great way to reduce toxicity/hostility/bad feelings, and that's why I love seeing all the music venues we have in SL. I'm sure it helps to reduce toxicity and channel people into more favorable mindsets. So we should be glad we have this in SL, as opposed to many other "games".

In fact one event I'm going to in a bit at Whole Brain Health, consists of a woman playing Ehru melodies, and after encountering this last week I'm encouraged to buy one, as I enjoy all sorts of interesting instruments.

Edited January 2 by Luna Bliss

[Harper Held]

11 hours ago, Robberinthemuseum said:

I wasn't going to say, but since you pointed it out. Yes, you are correct lol.

 

Don't forget reddit and 4Chan. The doxxing on 4Chan is brutal. 

Not as bad as it was in the years leading up to Gamergate, though? I'm not willing to assert that too strongly, mind you; I'm aware of their role in the disinformation campaign of 2016 and after. But before gamergate they didn't even pretend to not allow doxxing etc.

4chan was brutal in the early years, yeah; and a lot of the techniques that stalkers use today were invented there. I think that activity has moved to facebook groups, obscure subreddits and lesser-known chans; but I could be wrong.

[Robberinthemuseum]

On 1/3/2024 at 5:03 AM, Harper Held said:

Not as bad as it was in the years leading up to Gamergate, though? I'm not willing to assert that too strongly, mind you; I'm aware of their role in the disinformation campaign of 2016 and after. But before gamergate they didn't even pretend to not allow doxxing etc.

4chan was brutal in the early years, yeah; and a lot of the techniques that stalkers use today were invented there. I think that activity has moved to facebook groups, obscure subreddits and lesser-known chans; but I could be wrong.

You're right. I came to sl from reddit and people were so sweet and normal I stayed.  Yes, people in secondlife are way more even tempered and normal than other internet communities lol. 

[Ceka Cianci]

52 minutes ago, Robberinthemuseum said:

You're right. I came to sl from reddit and people were so sweet and normal I stayed.  Yes, people in secondlife are way more even tempered and normal than other internet communities lol. 

A lot probably has to do with it beign filled with older people.. When I started back in 2006, the older people were like in their mid 30's that I would meet mostly.. Now I'm in my mid 30's and mostly still run into older people about the same gap as when I started..

Honestly, who really has the energy for that kind of thing.. hehehehe

[Carolyn Zapedzki]

Where there's large amounts of people interacting, there will always be one or two toxic people around.

I can't say I have come across toxic folk in SL but that being said I don't mingle/socialise very much, if I did then I am sure that would change, that's life, unfortunately.

[Ceka Cianci]

One time a guy that got mad at me for something, which I can't remember what it was.. But  he ended up calling me in all cap.. You F'ing milf.

I'm just glad i wasn't drinking something at  the time. 

[Love Zhaoying]

33 minutes ago, Ceka Cianci said:

One time a guy that got mad at me for something, which I can't remember what it was.. But  he ended up calling me in all cap.. You F'ing milf.

I'm just glad i wasn't drinking something at  the time. 

Insulting someone with a compliment, nice!!

"GOT MILF?" would be a great idea for a commercial.

[Ceka Cianci]

3 hours ago, Love Zhaoying said:

Insulting someone with a compliment, nice!!

"GOT MILF?" would be a great idea for a commercial.

I think people start seeing things like that as just a word and forget the meaning sometimes.. hehehe

I'll crack up if they do make a commercial about that some day.. It'll be kind of like White Castle embracing the name Sliders.. It's like they think it means they go down easy or something, when it's really about the other end.. lol

Edited January 4 by Ceka Cianci

[Unity Evermore]

On 12/31/2023 at 3:19 PM, Prokofy Neva said:

reject the concept of "blaming the victim."

Do you reject the concept of using good online hygiene for the safety of you and your family? Simple things, like not disclosing your real life name, gender, occupation, and where you live? There is way too much RL information available about you. You should retire this account and start using an alt.

[Theresa Tennyson]

14 hours ago, Unity Evermore said:

Do you reject the concept of using good online hygiene for the safety of you and your family? Simple things, like not disclosing your real life name, gender, occupation, and where you live? There is way too much RL information available about you. You should retire this account and start using an alt.

Won't do any good. People generally reach a point in life where they don't change their stripes. Someone can use a different account but they'll probably behave the same way and they'll be discovered - "Whap!" Like a volleyball to the face.

[Theresa Tennyson]

On 1/2/2024 at 11:01 AM, Katherine Heartsong said:

I get the feeling (hence, totally subjective here) that SL is noticeably less toxic than other online platforms. That doesn't mean there aren't the usual group of toxic people here—argumentative, griefers, bullies, kink-shamers, homophobes, transphobes, manosphere types, and bigots of all stripes—but that it seems less so than other places.

I suspect, again not having a shred of evidence to support my view, that this is largely because SL is so very niche, that it would take too much effort to learn about SL, to come here, set up an account, etc to make it worth most griefer's time. So much easier to grief on other social platforms that why bother with that old thing SL. And I think this is partly due to demographic. Ask any gamer under the age of 25 what games they play and 99% of the time you won't hear SL said. SL isn't on most folks radar and hence, lack of idiots and trolls.

We also make it easy to avoid conflict in many cases. If I read in someone's profile they despise men playing female avatars, or they support this or that political or world viewpoint I vehemently disagree with, I simply don't ever engage. It's not like the real world where you can say hi to someone at a party and then get into a nice convo and then they spew out something nasty and you're kind of trapped. One reason I like good profiles in SL, btw.

It does exist, but we do a good job of blocking and self-policing the worst offenders, I think. Anyway, my $0.02.

I follow a few anime/manga franchises on various boards. Generally the less-well-known the franchise, the less toxic the fandom is. A couple of the groups for smaller shows on Reddit are delightful, but the Reddit for a more-well-known show is full of complaints and backbiting, and in my mind it's not a reflection on the quality of the show itself.

Then various platforms have their own qualities. For a smaller show, Reddit is fine; Discord for the same show tends to be whinier; and the 4chan (which I only see links for) has lots of "Look at how bad and nasty I am! No, I'm super nasty! Lookitmeee!"

I'd say that "big" makes it easier for people who are by nature hostile and toxic to get that franchise on their radar, and then once hostile people get active that will make the group less attractive to people who are less argumentative.

[usedcars]

I dont think SL is toxic just some of the people perhaps however if you never meet anyone from SL then youcan avoid that 

[Gopi Passiflora]

Well, I admit I can be a bit of a troll and add to the toxic environment. I've done my fair share of trolling in Second Life in the past. Mostly though, I only troll certain types of people (mostly people I have some sort of grudge against or who are annoying in some way.)

But judging by your original post, you don't seem like the type of person I would target. At least, I don't think so and I hope I wasn't the perpetrator in your situation. If I was, please forgive me. I also hope your issue gets resolved quickly and that you will find Second Life to be a better place to hang out.

I wish I could apologize for my trollness in general in Second Life but I'm probably past the point of forgiveness....

[Extrude Ragu]

I usually have a good time whilst playing SecondLife .

The best thing to do is just engage with the people you have a good time with, and disengage with the people you don't.

The forum is another can of worms though...

[Purr Waifu]

SL is only as toxic as the people you hangout with. Clean out your friend list and put up some rules about how much drama you want around you and you'll have a much better experience ^^

[Silent Mistwalker]

46 minutes ago, Purr Waifu said:

SL is only as toxic as the people you hangout with. Clean out your friend list and put up some rules about how much drama you want around you and you'll have a much better experience ^^

Been there, done that more than a decade ago. Still run across toxic people in SL occasionally. Whenever I leave home mostly.