Blizzard Announces Changes To 'Overwatch' Reporting System

Changes are coming to Overwatch's oft-maligned reporting and penalty system. Blizzard announced that it will be "issuing increased penalties to players in response to verified reports of bad behavior," which could result in the title's worst trolls being suspended or banned from the game.

Reporting systems are paramount to multiplayer games like Overwatch. The team-based shooter often requires players to communicate with each other, especially in the Competitive mode, where people try to prove their skill at the game. Blizzard can't monitor every Overwatch player, so if someone is deliberately throwing games or abusing other players, it's up to the community to report that behavior to the company.

The problem was that reporting other players often felt like shouting into the void. Overwatch didn't let you know what happened as a result of your report, and in our experience, many people have escaped repercussions even if their misbehavior is reported. The worst punishment Blizzard doled out was silencing a player in the in-game communications tools, but that did little to deter people from trolling or throwing.

That's changing. Blizzard announced an improved reporting and penalty system in the Overwatch forums. Here's what the company said:

We believe that our in-game reporting and player penalty system is one of our most important features, and it’s something we want to invest in significantly over the next year. To this end, effective immediately, we will be issuing increased penalties to players in response to verified reports of bad behavior. In Overwatch, that means anything from abusive chat, harassment, in-game spam, match inactivity (being intentionally AFK), and griefing. If you see someone engaging in any of these types of behaviors, report them. Players in violation will be silenced, suspended, or even banned from the game as a result.

But the company doesn't plan to stop there. It said that other changes, "including scaling competitive season bans, a notification system that will alert you when a player you’ve reported is actioned, and functionality that will allow us to more aggressively penalize players who attempt to abuse the in-game reporting tool," will debut in "the next several months." The result could be a drastically different atmosphere in Overwatch.

Blizzard also said it plans to bring a similar reporting system to Overwatch's console versions. This is something Xbox One and PlayStation 4 players have wanted for a while. Right now there's little console gamers can do to prevent abusive chat, report griefers, or let Blizzard know when someone is cheating. There's no timeline for this new reporting system on consoles, so Blizzard's claim has to be taken with a grain of salt.

These updates could prove to be more important to Overwatch's longevity than the introduction of new heroes and maps. Even the most fun games can become tedious if you constantly play with jerks, cheaters, and people who get their jollies by ruining someone else's fun. (Unless we're talking about a Zenyatta ruining a Genji's Dragonblade by popping Transcendence. That's just a good ol' fashioned counterplay.)

And make no mistake: Blizzard wants Overwatch to stick around for a while. The game recently celebrated its first anniversary, and the company just announced the first teams in the Overwatch League, which is supposed to be the game's equivalent to the MLB. An improved reporting system won't solve all of Overwatch's problems, but it will at least help the community be positive instead of being mired in toxicity.

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NameOverwatch
TypeOnline, FPS
DeveloperBlizzard
PublisherBlizzard
PlatformsPC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Where To BuyBattle.netPlayStation StoreXbox StoreAmazonGameStopBest BuyWalmart
Nathaniel Mott
Freelance News & Features Writer

Nathaniel Mott is a freelance news and features writer for Tom's Hardware US, covering breaking news, security, and the silliest aspects of the tech industry.

  • sinaptic
    This is great first step. Depending on where this goes, and if it actually makes a difference, I may actually have to try this game.

    Toxic communities are why I don’t play anything anymore where you’re dependent on online randoms for the opposition and/or teammates. I have better things to do than get verbally abused by some kid with too much free time whose entire picture of self worth is based upon being a “pro” at a video game.
    Reply
  • theyeti87
    19985482 said:
    This is great first step. Depending on where this goes, and if it actually makes a difference, I may actually have to try this game.

    Toxic communities are why I don’t play anything anymore where you’re dependent on online randoms for the opposition and/or teammates. I have better things to do than get verbally abused by some kid with too much free time whose entire picture of self worth is based upon being a “pro” at a video game.

    Toxic community is exactly the reason I left League of Legends. I've been playing Overwatch since it came out, and from my personal experience the toxicity in Overwatch is far less than LoL.

    Happy to read about the reporting system changes. I don't frequent the report tool, but I certainly call a spade a spade.
    Reply
  • Brian_227
    I also am very sensitive and bad at video games, and I openly weep when competent people try to tell me what to do. This new system sounds perfect for me.
    Reply
  • number1guy
    19985482 said:
    This is great first step. Depending on where this goes, and if it actually makes a difference, I may actually have to try this game.

    Toxic communities are why I don’t play anything anymore where you’re dependent on online randoms for the opposition and/or teammates. I have better things to do than get verbally abused by some kid with too much free time whose entire picture of self worth is based upon being a “pro” at a video game.

    Overwatch has a good community already. The "toxic" behavior is almost non-existent.

    LoL is another story. LoL has the worst, most vile and toxic community in all of gaming. Yes, even worse than CoD.
    Reply
  • cats_Paw
    I always wonder why people believe "toxic" communities are something strange. In real life there are plenty of assholes and you have to learn to deal with that fact.

    Sure, Blizzard can set penalties for very bad offences, but I am a bit worried about those who will get caught in the crossfire.
    That usually is the largest percentage of the playerbase (the ones who make a few mistakes, but overall make the community great).

    Btw, I hope I am wrong and this is a great move, even thou I dont play Overwatch.
    I play games for over 20 years now and online communities are a mixed bag, you just learn to ignore the annoying ones.
    Reply
  • 4rtd0t4
    Number1Guy obviously don't know about Dota 2 Community...
    Reply