Back when you were young and played video games over at your friend’s house, chances are you would have traded barbs with one another especially when it is not a co-op match. Well, the advent of networked gaming has seen those verbal remarks made within a LAN or a cybercafe, and as Internet gaming explodes, it is not that possible any more to place a face behind the slurs that you hear. With Halo 4 being a big hit already since it was released on the Xbox 360, it goes without saying that there will be racial slurs as well as sexist remarks sent from one gamer to another, and what does Microsoft has to say about it? A Microsoft rep did mention that “Xbox Live indeed does not condone harassment of any kind, account and console bans are issued based on a robust complaint and evidence-based system. There is no difference in the Xbox Live Terms of Use and Code of Conduct for Halo 4.”
To get back to the book, in terms of general behavior, the Code of Conduct is as follows, “Don’t create a gamertag, profile content, Avatar action, Avatar content, or in-game content that other users may be offended by. This includes, without limitation, anything related to or suggestive of: profane words/phrases, topics or content of a sexual nature, hate speech (including but not limited to racial, ethnic, or religious slurs), illegal drugs/controlled substances, or illegal activities.”
Play nice, people!