Four Professional "Overwatch" Players Have Been Punished for Toxic Behaviour

Another day, another toxic professional gamer gets in trouble.

If you know a thing or two about online gaming (or just gaming in general), you might know that it can sometimes feel like a cesspool of sad individuals who get a kick out of saying offensive things.

But when it comes to professional gaming, there is an expectation that behaviour of that sort should be left at the door.

But, for four players in the professional Overwatch League, that wasn't the case.

It's been revealed that the Overwatch League has reprimanded four players over their use of anti-gay slurs and racist comments.

"Taimou" was fined $US1,000 for using an anti-gay slur while "Silkthread" was fined the same for account sharing, which is when you let another person log into your account to play purchased games.

"TaiRong" was given a formal warning for sharing an offensive meme on his social media account, while the worst offender, "xQc" was suspended for four matches and fined $US4,000 for multiple offences including using offensive language against his peers in the league and on social media, as well as using a particular emoji that has evolved to indicate a racist slur.

The Overwatch League released a statement explaining they were against this anti-social behaviour.

"It is unacceptable for members of the Overwatch League to use or distribute hateful, racist, or discriminatory speech or memes," Overwatch League's statement read.

"We are committed to building a community around the Overwatch League that is welcoming and inclusive for all players and fans, and we hope that these disciplinary actions demonstrate our seriousness in that endeavor."

Read more:

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But while some were questioning whether the punishment was too harsh, many others were praising the action.

It's not about 'taking a joke'. This is a job and they are representing the League. The Overwatch team is not asking for them to be uptight and professional, they're asking for the players to be respectful while they are a part of the competition. It's simple.

— HamuHamu — ✩ (@NlCOCHll) March 10, 2018

Taimou, TaiRong, Silkthread, and (surprise) xQc getting disciplined by the Overwatch League. Good. Not sure why some of it took so long but this continues to send a good message. If you wanna play in OWL, you don't get to be toxic. #OWL2018 https://t.co/b8zc3XbbgY

— Eric Ravenscraft (@LordRavenscraft) March 9, 2018

I’m relieved to see Blizzard taking action against the toxicity of some OWL players, but we also shouldn’t have to wait for the media to hold them accountable every single time before they do. https://t.co/f95kWk9QUV

— Jared Rea (@jaredr) March 9, 2018

While Overwatch League's policing of toxic behaviour is unlikely to stamp the culture is out, it's important that they continue to remind their players that it's unacceptable.

Photo: Blizzard Entertainment