So I see quite a few posts coming up on the various forums about players stating that they have been falsely reported, or reported for a reason which they don’t think is fair (Not changing hero etc).
I personally think that the current report system with all the options available and the text box just isn’t as practical as the “Avoid Player” option we used to have.
You can essentially report a player for one of the reasons that fits the relevant category, however it doesn’t stop you been paired against that person either on your team or on the opposition several times over.
The way I see it is that if you report a player its should be obvious to the game that you wouldn’t want to be put in the same match as them ever again (why would you want to subject your self to being abused again?).
If Blizzard really want the report information and the specifics, why not just include an avoid player option in the same menu. I think this would be better both for the player who is actually doing the report but also the player on the receiving end of the report. I the reported player in fact hasn’t done anything wrong in the eyes of Blizzard i.e. they weren’t hacking or abusive, then there accounts wouldn’t be suspended.
I cannot see a downside to adding the avoid option as this surely would give both sides of the report what they want.
The report system works automatically. Once enough reports were sent, the player gets penalized automatically. Blizzard only checks the validity of those reports when appealing to lift the penalty.
That would give a different meaning on “avoid player”. When reporting a player, you claim that the player did something wrong and “should be punished”. “Not liking a player” is definitely not a reason to report someone to get penalized.
The reason for that is UI design principles. “Avoid player” is a minuscule feature that has an impact on you yourself. “Report”, however, is a devastating feature that has a huge and negative feedback on other players. Reporting is something you should do with caution while “Avoid Player” is something little and as meaningful than a friend request.
In order to emphasize the “danger” of reporting someone, you make the usage of that feature tedious. First, you have to click on the little button. Then, a new window pops up asking for more details. Then you pick an option and confirm. Then you have to write something and then you can send the report.
Making a feature tedious on purpose shows the consumer that this feature is extremely important and shouldn’t be used recklessly. The same technique is used in game design when deleting a save file. When deleting a save file, the game asks you if you are sure and sometimes ask you again if you are really sure. After all, it’s your whole progress you destroy with just a few klicks.
That is due to a conflict with the “avoid player” feature. You can avoid only a limited amount of players per day (or week?). If you avoid a player automatically when reporting someone, people start exploiting it by falsely reporting others they want to avoid.
In order to make that work, you need to be able to avoid a limitless amount of players.
I think this is the exact reason why I think the system would be better, as its not our responsibility to decide the outcome of other people, but it would be good to be able to improve our own experience.
What exactly do you mean with that? The “avoid player” function already allows us to improve our own experience by telling MM which players shouldn’t be in your team. How does moving it as a report option any better?