The truth behind the toxicity within the smash community

This is a very interesting topic indubitably, the smash community is indeed toxic but how does it differ from other fandoms? Depending on some look at it this could be a good thing. One reason is everything has its pros and cons, after all it's not perfect. There's a saying that goes don't fix what ain't broke and if it isn't broken then that doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement. Regardless of the matter there's a deeper meaning within the community that needs to be exposed.

The idea of the game was developed by Masahiro Sakurai (videogame director/designer) and it was a simple fighting game. Seeing that it had potential he decided it was best that it would represent multiple Nintendo titles for atmospheric purposes. Since the beginning he has always put the consumers first and this was a prime example. This would result in a largely positive reaction as many were happy to see iconic characters in action. So where exactly did it go wrong is the biggest question.

For starters, the competitive nature within the community. Everyone loves a good competition but there are times when it gets out of hand. Going as far as to continuously defeat someone over and over with little remorse can set people off. Another thing would be the "Competitive Trash Talk", it starts off as a joke then turns into verbal abuse which eventually leads to physical fights. Though this is seen in other gaming communities it is not something that should be taken lightly.

Speaking of abuse, during the month of July this year there were reports of sexual misconduct. However this was not the first time this would occur, this would go as far as between 2014-2015. As if the community wasn't hurting enough this only made things worse. Top smash players (who will not be named to save drama) that became widely known for the game not only tarnished the reputation of the game but also nintendo. Nintendo did of course respond by condemning these actions but it didn't change much.

Back to what was said before about how sakurai made the game more atmospheric to players has become more subjective. As the years would go by videogame characters from all over would be added. Though there wasn't a problem at first it wouldn't take long until the fandom started making requests. It's understandable that people want to ask for characters but they have to understand not everyone can be added. Unfortunately the way most the fans react when a character of their choosing doesn't make the cut is to complain or threaten sakurai which is ridiculous considering how hard he works.

In addition to the toxicity, spamming is both one of the biggest and oldest defectors within the community. Now nobody is expecting everyone who plays smash to be a pro but they do expect them to have some dignity. It's one thing to do it literally as a last resort but to do it deliberately takes the fun out of the game. Just imagine you're playing against someone and they spam one move throughout the entire fight and win, that would be enough to make anyone upset. So if you're one of those people who does this, please stop.

Lastly, the online features play a big role in the community's behavior. It's both a blessing and a curse depending on who's doing what. Players use the opportunity to gain skills and find better competition which is fine. What's not fine is when players begin to quit during a live game because they simply couldn't handle it or better yet disrupt the connectivity and create lag. Yes there are indeed people like this but nonetheless this is to be expected from a toxic community.

Subsequently if the toxicity continues to grow which it will unfortunately, a few things could happen. The biggest scenario is that there won't be another smash game since no one is ever satisfied there wouldn't be a need, not to mention nintendo invested too much in Ultimate. Another scenario is that sakurai/nintendo cease the dlc character deals and it's clear why. Last but not least, should this happen then accounts will be banned, keep in mind sakurai has already taken the liberty of blocking some of the naysayers so this wouldn't be a problem. Hopefully this issue does get resolved but it's going to take time, in the meantime thank you for viewing this.