I believe this is actually what they’ve done.
The emote only says: “X spits on the ground” now.
From what I’ve seen anyway - not on the PTR myself.
Agree, but the issue here is (as said) removing the offensive use of an emote probably takes 5 minutes whereas dealing with how you police player language and interaction is much more complex and will take time.
For me the principle focus for “dealing with toxicity “ in WoW will be player language and interaction. The spit emote is a small start but the main thing is offensive language and there are no easy solutions because for me,. The ideal solutions requires a somewhat active GM or Mod team so reports are dealt with by humans (judgement) in a somewhat rapid fashion so only genuine cases are dealt with and the response is rapid. But will blizzard do this? No idea, as it’s quite the cost, but it is the ideal solution.
Automated methods will not work, they are too prone to abuse and false flags. They need people to deal with this that’s the bottom line. If they’re committed to dealing with it that’s what they will do. Anything less is just looking for an easy solution rather than an ideal one that works for the players.
It’s easy for me to sit here and say it but implementation is another beast! But:
- human moderated report reviews
- a sizeable team for rapid response
- clear and meaningful punishments for violation, including attempted false flags.
That’s what is required in my opinion.
I’ll use a group I hosted a week or two ago as an example. I pugged a ToP key with 2 members of my community plus 2 ransoms to infill, whom were pregrouped. By the second pull they were starting to have a go at one of the dps in the comm. I told them to focus on the play, this was advertised as a chill key, so drop the attitude and just get in with it. They responded by calling the party member they were targeting a “extremely rude term for female genitalia” and said then directed choice words at me for defending this individual. I told them to stop right there, apologise or the group ends now. They doubled down and so I kicked them and my key was canned. No key is worth that level of toxicity. I reported them both and they continued to whisper me expletives until this was done.
Both deserved a lengthy ban in my eyes if no less than two weeks ideally more, as there is no need for that aggressive tone in communication. A silence for 3 days means nothing.
1 Like
You know if spit goes, slap should too as should rude in fact anything negative, including the blood spillage the knives, weapons and endless stabbing and beheadings are ok. Fk sake man its a game and we express our emotions. I am Alliance and if some horde douche ninjas my prize I am going to swear the cuss out of them.
Equally, flip side, I am often finding myself helping them perhaps unknowingly stopping to kill things or taking away some aggro. Yin/Yang. Cannot have one without the other.
This obviously is a small slice of a much bigger problem in society, everyone is offended, insulted and victimized. Hek, lets burn all the d/mn fiction books about slaves, america, columbus, mexicans anything that is bloody or negative that we no longer can or will thing is ok.
I do not want a game that is fluffy, I am an adult. The rest of the world needs to learn, tolerance.
But wait… I do not approve of any physical harm, hatred, sexual harrasment or deviance. As a furry, bisexual, guy I am a target, I should not have to live in state of concern if am like or if my life is going to get me slapped in the face. No one should. I am over simplifying the statement we need to be nice to each other and a game or book is fantasy, two things separate.
I like Warcraft, i have moments where I want to chuck my laptop out the ffing window but I come back for curiosity and game play.
With the major re shift in staff, can we all just ask, pray that what follows is better. Sure they are going to rename sh5 but if becomes to fluffy I am out, it will be just farmvile or neopets.
here is me offering my thoughts to any person suffering at the hands of wrong doing and my love to you the warcraft community. Peace brothers & sisters. Peace.
1 Like
Agreed. For that kind of toxicity that would indeed be the solution.
But I don’t see them doing that because it costs money and it will continue to cost money.
But don’t exclude one of the major sources of toxicity in the game: results based mindset.
They should remove mythic content. Nerf all content so it can be done by everyone. Ban all mods that add gameplay based things. No ratings, no visible dps and/or healing meters and such.
2 Likes
Oh wow, that would be really dull? I like a challenge, what would be the point if it was too easy? My real and only issue is that of scaling/level/gear.
1 Like
Do we actually know how often this emote is used? You can moon as well but no one has a problem with get a behind shown but spit is not tolerable?
This is more money driven with nice free advertisement on the side but the loyal fanbase is getting more and more disappointed.
Let’s see what New World brings as I am getting more and more fed up with Blizzard. Often lag, every day an update, more then before servers seem to break down. And we pay for that as well.
It’s just yet another really dumb thing Blizzard is wasting their development resources on, which we pay for. Blizzard is focusing on the wrong issues and implementing bad solutions constantly.
1 Like
Sure helps to get rid of a lot of people that are toxic, with how many are upset at it.
Let me know when you learn the meaning of the word, but I have a feeling you’re one of those people afraid of the ‘evil sjws’ or whatever.
Not talking about just game, in general. You’ve probably done nothing anywhere in life to combat it.
Fantasy, and /spit is still in the game you just can’t use it at other players. Just like you can STILL curse!
Gasp! But, if you use said curses at other players you can be actioned for it.
Alright, let me try this in real life on you. Let us see if you then feel offended 
I am also pretty sure we gona start to se banns to people saying toxic things much faster now, what actualy would be a good thing, becuse there realy are people in game that honestly should never play an online game at all, due to how they behave.
1 Like
I’m pretty sure the media and what not doesn’t care about the /spit being removed, I mean they do… but not in a “good job blizz” way.
I barely saw anyone getting offended by it, maybe 10 people and that’s it, kinda ironic how they do things for the small amount of people instead of listening to the majority of the playerbase.
1 Like
You had my curiosity. Now you have my attention.
I know. And even though I don’t have a performance based mentality when it comes to WoW, I don’t think that would be a solution.
It’s just to show that if Blizzard REALLY want to do something about toxicity in the game, the game would no longer be able to be WoW, basically.
The good comes with the bad sometimes.
I really doubt anyone would quit over something that insignificant.
It’s more about the precendent it sets. What will they remove or limit next?
Then your feeling is wrong.
I’m firmly a ‘middleground’ kind of person.
Either extreme to one or the other side of this debate is bad imo.
Combat ‘it’? Please explain. What would this ‘it’ be?
Just like the spit is fantasy and not real. 
2 Likes
That’s a stupid thing to say honestly.
What if someone would ‘backstab’ you irl? What if someone would burn your home?
What if someone would start a race cleansing irl?
Come on.
4 Likes
And that is why it was a joke
Not really the time for jokes tbh. Not on these matters anyway.
That’s how normalizing starts. Make a joke. Downplay things. Move on.
I don’t want to sound like an old cranky dude (because I’m all for joking about everything -people should not get offended, they can think it’s not funny; which is absolutely fine), but sadly it is the truth.
I see. (…)
Trying to get good press out of removing /spit is definetly what blizzard would do. They are woke hypocrites after all.
Instead of fixing their work environment, gettting proffesional and focusing on improving games, they focus on stuff like this like corrupt politicians do.
2 Likes
Its a game mot real life. You should be able to tell the difference, I don’t mind getting my corpse spat on anyway, what do I care I’m dead.
Oh to be the air around his head ;(