Street Fighter and Sexual Harrassment.

[Nachimir]

Disheartening: One person has come back to me so far, as outraged as me, but with bosses saying "Yeah, we're not writing about this at all". Capcom say "Not our views guys!" and everyone winks.

Heartening: Every time I've looked in the Giantbomb comments, including clicking onto random pages, there are more people denouncing it than defending it.

Including the ones on this update about Aris trying to do damage control:

http://www.giantbomb.com/news/aris-aris-bakhtanians-releases-statement-on-recent-comments/4007/

It's cool, guys: His statements don't reflect his statements.

[dibs]

"What is unacceptable about that? There's nothing unacceptable about that."

A person said that.

You obviously don't understand freedom of speach. Obviously.

I'm so glad that my major interaction with the online community was throuhg my WoW guild. i was one of the younger players (at 27) so any of that sort of shite got called out pretty quickly and dealt with in an appropriate manner (or an epic gquit from the gobshite).

Playing LoL a bit now, there doesn't seem to be much sexism, but "fag-tard" (+ combos) and "uninstall and kill yourself" seem to be pretty par for course. I usually just hit ignore on them and report them after the match. The odd thing is, if you don't ignore them, the same people telling you to kill yourself will later compliment you to the nines for a single good play. They don't seem to have any breaks on their emotional rollercoasters.

[ThunderPeel2001]

You obviously don't understand freedom of speach. Obviously.

Explain it to us, won't you?

[dibs]

I get to say what you want, and if you try to stop me you are a communist.

it was a joke, a paraphrase from a movie i can't remember

I can't recognise 2nd level trolling

[Orv]

I'm third dan in trolling.

Fuck this guy, whoever he is.

[Roderick]

This sexual harassment thing is just plain disheartening. And weirdly relevant in the light of recent discussions we've had here on the Thumb.

[Henroid]

"My statements don't reflect Capcom or myself."

... what

[Orv]

"My statements don't reflect Capcom or myself."

... what

Third-person schizophrenia?

[ThunderPeel2001]

"My statements don't reflect Capcom or myself."

... what

I do not exist. You did not hear anything. I was never here.

[Sal Limones]

There's a video in this article for whoever's curious as to the exact nature of the shit he was saying to Pakozdi, nonstop, on the first day. She quit on the 5th day, so it was probably FIVE WHOLE DAYS OF THIS.

http://penny-arcade.com/report/editorial-article/sexual-harassment-as-ethical-imperative-the-ugly-side-of-fighting-games?

It was hard to watch.

[Sno]

Having been a casual observer of the fighting game scene for a while now, a lot of these community figureheads have struck me as real pieces of shit, none of this is new. Kind of glad to see some of it finally catching up with them.

[Ben X]

There's a video in this article for whoever's curious as to the exact nature of the shit he was saying to Pakozdi, nonstop, on the first day. She quit on the 5th day, so it was probably FIVE WHOLE DAYS OF THIS.

http://penny-arcade.com/report/editorial-article/sexual-harassment-as-ethical-imperative-the-ugly-side-of-fighting-games?

It was hard to watch.

At first when I watched that, my heart sank as she laughed along with it. Then I got about 9 minutes in and she's given up on laughing and subtle hints about it being creepy, and just started saying "don't say that" (which of course he ignores).

I only wish she'd managed to do something like take his team all the way to the final then blatantly throw the fight while telling Aris to go fuck himself.

I almost got a bigger shock from Henroid saying this, though:

WWE. That's right, professional "it's not fake" wrestling.

Henroid, am I to understand you think WWE isn't fake?

[Armchair General]

This is exactly why we should act against 'casual' remarks (i.e rape jokes) - over time they become accepted as part of the culture and we should resist that as much as possible, frankly, fuck that.

I've rage quitted many a game of Left for Dead because of arguments with ill informed knuckleheads, it was one of the main reasons I came to Thumbs in the first place (hence the other thread). Idiotic shit like this very nearly made me turn my back on internet gaming completely, I felt like I had outgrown gaming as I had no relationship to these people ganging up on the character Louis because he was the black guy for example, I mean what the fuck? Really?

I'll be the first to admit that I make jokes about everyone and everything and have laughed at lots of inappropriate things but I know where the line is and I don't think it's hard to see where that line is drawn, is it?

Anyway, good work Nach, even if it doesn't make an impact on this guy, it may make Capcom and others draw up some codes of conduct for people in the future or something

Footnote: I think it's interesting that the recent furore over the avenger controller seems to have gotten more column inches than this shambles. I guess gamers could unite against a common enemy whereas this is the enemy within. Be nice to see some Wired.com or Forbes article though DENIAL...

[Sal Limones]

At first when I watched that, my heart sank as she laughed along with it.

I've done this. If you are the sort of person who laughs when you're nervous, you'll definitely find yourself reacting this way when you're in a room full of men who seem to tacitly accept the fact that this weird guy is all up in your business guessing your bra size and asking about your thighs and smelling you.

Basically it's a version of flight in the fight-or-flight scenario where you're intimidated to the point of passivity. When you're scared like that the last thing you wanna do is escalate the situation.

The end where she goes "OK COOL JUST SMELL ME SO I CAN GO" makes me so sad... and then he says something like "I hope she's gone to cry in the bathroom" which is PROBABLY WHAT I WOULD DO :C

[Lu]

Henroid, am I to understand you think WWE isn't fake?

It's still real to him, dammit

[Nappi]

Aaaaaaaaargh, what is this shit?

I find this too depressing to follow closely, but the random quotes from that Bakhtanians character just boggle the mind. How can a creature with a dozen brain cells or more act so incredibly stupid? Jesus.

Anyway, well done Nachimir! I hope something good comes out of this.

[Korax]

A bit of a follow-up/response from Shoryuken: http://shoryuken.com/2012/02/29/back-to-basics-getting-beyond-the-drama/

It's a generally good piece, but this but got to me:

My biggest disappointment this weekend is that when Aris said that rowdy behavior and sexual harassment was “one in the same thing” with the fighting game scene, no one called him on it (especially Jared, who knows better).

Looking back at transcriptions from that livestream:

Rea: That’s really unfortunate [inaudible]...the way it is right now' date=' they want to enjoy fighting games, but they’re so incredibly turned off by [the language'].

Rea: Can I get my Street Fighter without sexual harassment?

Rea: So, ensuring that we alienate any and all female viewers...that’s the ethical thing to do?

Rea: When I go to SoCal regionals and I see a Phoenix [from Marvel vs. Capcom 3] on main stage getting blown up and there’s some dude in the audience just yelling “Bitch! Bitch!” every time she gets hit and then she killed and goes “Yeah, rape that bitch!” Yeah, that’s totally acceptable! Really? Really? You’re going to tell me that’s acceptable?

How exactly is that not Jared calling him out?

[Patters]

You obviously don't understand freedom of speach. Obviously.

I'm so glad that my major interaction with the online community was throuhg my WoW guild. i was one of the younger players (at 27) so any of that sort of shite got called out pretty quickly and dealt with in an appropriate manner (or an epic gquit from the gobshite).

Playing LoL a bit now, there doesn't seem to be much sexism, but "fag-tard" (+ combos) and "uninstall and kill yourself" seem to be pretty par for course. I usually just hit ignore on them and report them after the match. The odd thing is, if you don't ignore them, the same people telling you to kill yourself will later compliment you to the nines for a single good play. They don't seem to have any breaks on their emotional rollercoasters.

I've not really encountered anything like this in LoL, the closest being called a noob because I'm doing badly. Maybe the US server has calmed down compared to the EU one. Though occasionally I will insult my team, but this is only when I know them, to those I don't know I'll only give friendly advice if they are making mistakes.

In contrast to this, if I'm playing Halo against or with pubs I have ripped them a new one if they are racist, sexist or generally awful human beings. Or purposefully thrown games when I have been partnered with them.

[Gwardinen]

I actually stopped watching the video because it made me sad and a little uncomfortable. I often ask myself whether that's the right thing to do though. I wonder if I should subject myself to things I find unpleasant to try to understand them better.

Anyway, yeah, important things have already been said. Hopefully this being news and so on is one step closer to nobody feeling intimidated or unwelcome in the games industry and its spin-off communities and cultures.

Edit: Actually I found something I had to share. The new Penny Arcade Report guy, Ben Kuchera, wrote a post about this which included reference to a comment from the Shoryuken forum:

"The comments go and on, and very few make for enlightening reading. “I bet money that Miranda wouldn’t have been so offended if Aris was better looking, that is the sad part,” another member wrote, and I’m not even sure who to pity after reading that post: Aris, Pakozdi, or the person who decided that thought should be shared with the world."

That's just... bizarre. Right? If I'm not nuts, that's the weirdest thought I've heard all day.

[Sal Limones]

I actually stopped watching the video because it made me sad and a little uncomfortable. I often ask myself whether that's the right thing to do though. I wonder if I should subject myself to things I find unpleasant to try to understand them better.

Anyway, yeah, important things have already been said. Hopefully this being news and so on is one step closer to nobody feeling intimidated or unwelcome in the games industry and its spin-off communities and cultures.

Nah man don't bother, it's just depressing.

[MScoutsDCI]

I've been (was) following a neogaf thread about this whole issue. The amount of people over there who are just mentally incapable of discerning the difference between sexual harassment and normal trash talk, while not surprising, is still really disheartening. I actually got myself banned (a right of passage?) for commenting on the ridiculousness of someone else getting banned for actually making sense.

The thread is pretty much dead now, but there are some great replies from Shawn Elliott and his buddy Rory trying to inject some sanity starting around page 15 or so...

[Nachimir]

This from Pakozdi:

https://twitter.com/#!/Super__Yan/status/174340858362077186

I may have come off as a huge douchebag but I don't regret my decision one bit. I also think Capcom handled it well.

This from the Neogaf thread:

It's worth noting that Miranda deleted some of her Twitter messages. I have to say the ones just before she got the situation "resolved" were kind of alarming, particularly the one she sent to the Allods community manager begging him/her to read their PMs because she needed help.

This from Capcom:

This particular issue was brought to our attention and has been addressed.

That kind of language from Capcom makes me wary. It's non-specific and reeks of double-talk.

[Sno]

This is a few days old now, but maybe it's interesting.

http://shoryuken.com/2012/03/01/hurtful-speech-time-to-take-a-good-look-in-the-mirror/

This seems very indicative of how divided that scene is over this whole issue.

[Nachimir]

Excellent to see, thanks Sno. I wish Capcom had the balls to treat it this seriously:

We cannot continue to let ignorant, hateful speech slide. The nasty undercurrent in the scene isn’t a joke or a meme. It’s something we need to fix if we expect to continue to grow, but more importantly it’s a moral imperative. I don’t want to be a part of a group where it’s ok to bully or make fun of others, and I hope you don’t either.

[Choidoken]

I know I'm really late on this, but as part of the Fighting Game Community, there are alot of uneducated players out there making us all look bad. Our stream monsters are no angels, either.