I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again — and probably keep saying it until it finally sticks.

Toxic behavior in gaming has got to stop.

Competitive or not, there’s no excuse for tearing down fellow players just because they’re not performing at your level. Calling someone trash, telling them to uninstall, or raging because they missed a play doesn’t make you elite — it makes you part of the problem.

Here’s the truth:
Gaming is for everyone.
Yes, everyone. That includes new players, casual players, people learning a new character, or someone just having a bad day. Not everyone is grinding to be top-tier, and that’s okay.

Games exist to bring us joy, challenge us, and create community. They’re supposed to be fun. They’re supposed to bring us together — not push others away because they don’t meet some imaginary skill threshold.

I admit, I’m not that good at competitive games, specifically battle-royale style shooters like “Call of Duty” or “Valorant”. As a matter of perspective, I suck at them! My aim is not great, and I keep getting sniped by better players every time I play. But I play them, not for fame or to be the next Ninja or Shroud, but to have fun and enjoy myself.

Case in point, one of my first experiences playing “Halo: Infinite”. I played horribly and at the end of the match, one player called me out and asked if it was the first time I played. He asked me. Having recorded the experience, I turned it into a funny fail video. But that was one time. Other times and other games were a much different story…

Imagine playing “Marvel Rivals” and being called out for your bad gameplay during a ranked match. While this normally doesn’t get to me, the player’s next statement caused me to log off from the game. In addition to telling me how much I suck at the game, that player said I should uninstall it! Deeply offended by harshness of the comment, I simply shut the game down….not just the match, but the entire game.

I never felt so low in all my years of gaming.

I was disheartened, of course. I put out a rant on “X/Twitter”. I never touched ranked mode in Marvel Rivals again…and I never will.

This leads me to my most recent toxic gaming experience.

Playing the new “Splitgate 2” game, I entered a match but had issues with my mouse control. And yes, I wasn’t playing that well to begin with, but that’s beside the point. At the conclusion of the match, a player on voice chat said something very derogatory. Something I will NOT repeat as it is very offensive.

I left the game, just like Marvel Rivals. Then, extremely disheartened and aggravated by the experience, I uninstalled most of my first-person-shooter battle royale games, keeping only Valorant and Fortnite, since my experiences with both have always been positive. I also posted a rant on X/Twitter, which led me to writing this article.

So instead of screaming at your teammates or typing rage-fueled paragraphs in chat, try something wild:
Help them.
Be encouraging. Offer advice. Teach instead of tearing down. Imagine how much better the community would be if we all lifted each other up instead of stomping each other out.

You were new once too.
Someone was patient with you. Be that person for someone else.

Let’s build a gaming world where everyone feels welcome to play, learn, and grow — no matter their skill level.