UX Research
How can we create a safe environment for online video games?
Mellon: How can we create a safe environment for online video games?
A mixed-method user research study aimed to help inform design decisions for solving toxic behavior in online video games.
Team
Gabriel Castro (Me)
Morgan Brown
John Jacobsen
Robert Plummer
Role
UX Research
Skills
UX Research
Observation study
Interview study
Affinity Diagramming
Personas
Qualitative Coding
Ideation
Timeline
10 weeks
Project Overview
The problem
The popularity of online video games is continually rising resulting in an increasingly diverse community of gamers. As part of that diversity, the number of people who identify as female, LGBTQIA+, people with disabilities, and ethnicities who play online video games has also grown. However, this has resulted in some backlash and harassment against these communities.
In this project, we investigated how a technology-based solution might help create safe environments and positive experiences for online video games.
Our research process
We observed 8 participants researching how they could protect themselves from abusive behavior.
In a second round, we interviewed 9 participants about positive and negative experiences they’ve encountered while playing online multiplayer games on their own and with their peers.
The solution
We identified 4 major themes:
1. Company regulations and enforcement
2. Tools
3. Defensive behaviors
4. Advocacy and awareness.
These themes helped define the solution for protection against abusive behaviors: an online community builder, Mellon.
Our research process
Defining the Problem
In the beginning, we understood that tackling the issue of toxic behavior in players was already an abstract problem to solve. Even while companies attempt to address this type of behavior in the online player base, the stigma of the social experience still persists. So, we knew that the preliminary research phase will play a significant role for our project. For this phase, we planned to conduct a literature review and competitor analysis to help us define the problem.
Understanding the problem space
We began our preliminary research by conducting a literature review on articles, scientific journals, and statistics to help us better understand the problem space of toxic behavior in online multiplayer video games. It was our initial objective to better understand who is involved, what is the environment like, and how are users responding to the issue.
Who is affected?
Online video games are becoming increasingly popular, drawing a diverse player base. A recent survey found that U.S. gamers include 46% women, 20% Latinx, 15% Black, 5% Asian-American, 16% LGBTQIA+, and 31% with a disability.
As the diversity of gamers has increased, so has identity-based harassment, with 35% of players in the U.S. feeling unwelcome in gaming communities, rising to 47% for LGBTQIA+ individuals. Female players face the most in-game harassment and are also subjected to discrimination about their gaming hobby offline.
What is the problem?
Researchers found that negative behaviors, like sexual harassment, hate speech, and threats, are widespread in online gaming, with 70% of players reporting exposure. Many players begin to view these behaviors as normal "banter" typical of gaming culture. This normalization leads to the tolerance and acceptance of negative behavior in gaming communities.
How are users responding?
Targets of negative behavior in online gaming often use coping mechanisms like masking their identity, with female players adopting gender-neutral or male personas. Players from underrepresented groups, such as LGBTQIA+ and ethnic minorities, frequently play anonymously, avoid verbal communication, or stick to playing alone or in trusted groups to avoid harassment.
A qualitative study found that in-game support tools improved players' experiences by addressing needs for control, social support, positivity, and burden relief. Players, especially from underrepresented groups, preferred tools like blocklists and report functions, which helped manage negative behavior and improve their mood and sense of control after abuse.
How do competitors address the issue?
We found that Riot Games and Blizzard Entertainment attempt to create safe online gaming environments in their own games. These organizations follow similar approaches. They both use software solutions to help moderate negative player behavior. Discord provides a different approach by providing a place for players to form safe communties.
However, while these solutions provide tools to respond to experiencing negative behaviors, like muting, blocking, and reporting the behavior from other players, in our personal experience we have found these solutions do not address the anxiety people can feel before attempting to communicate with other players.
“How can we help create a safe online gaming experience?”
Our preliminary research helped us define the problem space, our research question, and our research objectives for the project. We gained a better understanding of the However, we were still left with many questions about what avenues to take for our solution.
What do gamers do when experiencing toxic behavior?
Since the results of our preliminary research led resulted in many open questions about what avenues to take for our solution, we wanted to better understand how gamers might react when experiencing toxic behavior. However, we found it impractical and unethical to observe people being the target of such behavior.
So instead, we created a scenario to help us observe how people might help a peer who has been the target of toxic behavior. We observed 8 participants research different ways to help cope with this issue.
Data Analysis Methods
Our findings helped us discover users reactions when dealing with toxic behavior. We learned that users would want a technology-based solution that stands up for them and advocates for their needs. Users also wanted tools and coping mechanisms to help them feel in control over their experiences.
Insights found from our observation followed 4 major themes:
1. Company regulations and enforcement
2. Tools
3. Defensive behaviors
4. Advocacy and awareness
“How can we create a safe online gaming experience across multiple games?”
Our first round of research helped us answer some initial questions we had. Most notably, we found that users would want a solution to help them feel in control over their experiences. Though early data only helped us uncover avenues for experiences in specific video games. So this left us to figure out: How can we design a tool to help ensure a safe online gaming experience across multiple games?
To understand this, we needed to continue with a second round of user research with our new objective.
How do gamers feel when experiencing toxic behavior?
Our observation study helped us understand what people DO when experiencing toxic behavior. The early findings helped us better understand our problem “How can we help create a safe gaming experience across multiple games?”
For our second round of research, we wanted to gather qualitative data on how gamers FEEL when experiencing toxic behaviors. To do this, we interviewed 9 participants about positive and negative experiences they’ve encountered while playing online multiplayer games on their own and with their peers.
Data Analysis Methods
Our findings helped us discover users reactions when dealing with toxic behavior. We learned that users would want a technology-based solution that stands up for them and advocates for their needs. Users also wanted tools and coping mechanisms to help them feel in control over their experiences.
Insights found from our observation followed 4 major themes:
1. Company regulations and enforcement
2. Tools
3. Defensive behaviors
4. Advocacy and awareness
People enjoyed talking about positive interactions with peers significantly more than recalling negative experiences with strangers.
Our research showed that positive experiences were more memorable than negative ones. Participants significantly enjoyed recalling positive experiences playing with friends over recalling negative experiences with other players online. In our interviews, our participants focused more on their feelings during positive interactions rather than the events of negative interactions.
Findings
Our recommendations based on our findings from our usability test centered around 3 themes: improving visibility of important information for task completion, updating and standardizing a purposeful design system, and improving information architecture and navigation items.
Company regulations and enforcement
"There could be instances obviously can't like not physical but like verbally just bullying people like that tends to happen a lot in video games, especially if like someone's not doing good and stuff like that, which is like not cool at all, you know?”
From our interviews, all participants mentioned having negative feelings (social stigmas) towards online multiplayer gaming communities because of current company regulations and enforcement practices a total of 11 times.
Tools
“I basically was on mute every other time and until like we had to talk.”
All interview participants described different tools they would use to reduce negative behavior in online games 13 times.
Defensive behaviors
“When I play the games they’re mostly my friends. So rather than just being on the call and discussing our day, we come on the game. We play the game as well as talk about our day. So that way both things are done.”
In our interviews, eight participants mentioned the importance of community building through video games 54 times.
Advocacy and awareness
“Yeah, I've seen it happen to my friends in the past and it's obviously, you know, if...If, like a couple of my friends are together, we'll like back up our friend. Or, we'll just, like, let it roll off their shoulders and, like, try to help them, you know, back up or just try to, like, give them positive reinforcement, but yeah.”
Interview participants unanimously agreed that abusive behavior in multiplayer games is prevalent and needs to be addressed. They believe that advocacy and awareness is the first tool to combating this behavior. All participants mentioned receiving or observing offensive conduct in chat mediums. This was brought up 37 times.
Recommendations
The findings from our user research helped us better understand a solution for our problem. We learned that while players wanted to feel in control over their experiences online, we observed most participants responded exceptionally more positively when talking about good experiences they’ve had.
We believe that a solution that fulfills the following will have a greater positive impact in the experiences in online multiplayer video games: 1) Regulates and enforces community moderation, 2) Provides tools for users to control their own experiences, 3) Fosters community and cultivates positive relationships, and 4) Advocates for positive player behavio.
1. Company regulations and enforcement
We found that people wanted video game companies to take the first steps in addressing negative and abusive behaviors in their online games. All our interview participants mentioned that gaming companies should provide support to their communities. This implied that a technology-based solution should involve gaming companies’ participation.
Additionally, our technology-based solution should educate companies on how to implement preventative measures to regulate abusive behaviors.
2. Tools
Our participants felt that they should be provided tools to aid themselves against negative and abusive behavior online. Most of our interview participants described using tools to reduce negative behaviors. A technology-based solution should support a user’s need for control over their own experiences.
3. Defensive Behaviors
Most of our observation participants felt that the most effective action to take against abusive behaviors in online video games was to stop playing games all together. All our interview participants described how they use coping mechanisms to deal with negative behavior. A technology-based solution should support a users’ mental well-being.
Observation participants expressed a need for connection with other like-minded users. All our interview participants discussed and shared experiences about the benefits of creating bonds with others. A technology-based solution should allow users to create their own communities and social networks.
4. Advocacy and Awareness
All our observation participants wanted to feel like companies were being held accountable for the negative and abusive behavior that occurs in their online games. A technology-based solution should allow users to rate and/or review companies based on the actions they take.
Lastly, all our observation participants wanted other players to be aware of how their behavior can affect others in online games. Most of our interview participants mirrored this as they discussed negative emotions they felt while interacting with other online players. A technology-based solution should educate players about what is considered abusive.
A community building tool aimed at creating safe online gaming environments.
Based on our findings, we decided the best course of action is to design a technology-based community building tool we tentatively called "Mellon" meaning friend in Tolkien Elvish.
We found that our data highlighted the need for fostering connections among users, supporting their mental well-being, and providing tools for personalized experiences to manage negative situations. Additionally, gaming companies should implement preventive measures, educate users on the impact of their behavior, and offer reassurance that they are protecting players from abusive behavior.
Designing a strategy for ideation
Now at the end of our research phase, we designed artifacts to help strategize for potential ideation stage in the future. Based on our findings, we developed 2 personas, 2 user scenarios, a customer journey map, and a priority matrix of requirements for a technology-based solution.
User Personas
We started our persona ideation by placing our participants on different trait spectrums. We then found patterns in our participant data to help develop 2 user personas. These represent the target users we would be designing for.
Customer Journey Map
We developed 2 user scenarios and corresponding customer journey maps for each of our target users.
Priority Matrix of Features
Based on our data, we created a list of requirements a solution should have to help create safe online gaming environments. We organized this list of features based on priority, with corresponding feature functions, levels of impact and feasibility. This matrix will help us strategize how we would design a solution in future work.
Takeaways
Navigating ambiguity through iterative research testing
Coming into this project, we understood that toxic online behavior is an abstract problem space to solve for. Focusing our preliminary research helped us uncover the landscape of the issue.
The biggest success we had was following an iterative research approach, by starting with an observation study first and analyzing that data. It helped us re-frame our hypothesis in our interview phase and narrow in our project as a whole.
Dealing with limitations in scenario-based observations
We had challenges developing scenario-based observations due to the broad problem scope, technological constraints, and ethical concerns. So, our study focused on participants researching defensive behaviors in online multiplayer gaming communities. While the study yielded useful findings, the data primarily reflected participant desires rather than their observable behaviors when faced with negative interactions.
In future work, we would like to develop scenarios to help us focus on observable participant behaviors when encountering negative behavior in online multiplayer games.
Focusing future tests on positive gaming experiences
In our interviews, we gathered qualitative data about participants' negative experiences in online multiplayer games. Interestingly, many participants highlighted positive experiences when playing with family, friends, or like-minded players.
In future work, we would like to delve further into positive relationship and community building within these gaming communities.