Summary
In its continued efforts to deter bad player behavior in online games,Xboxrevealed its new enforcement strike system across its entire ecosystem. The new enforcement system will manually review all offenses that are user-reported to not only determine if a violation of theXboxconduct policy took place, but will use a multi-tiered strike system for punishments levied on players that will limit their access to Xbox features for a time.
Lately, Xbox has been no stranger to administering bans, but for reasons beyond just bad player behavior. Recently,Xbox consoles have received temporary bans for running emulatorsin Retail Mode as a way to bypass paying for Developer Mode in order to get the emulators to run. Though the Xbox Series X/S consoles were proven to be effective in emulating PS2 games, the recent bans and the subsequent cancelation of emulators for Retail Mode have effectively put a stop to that for the time being. Now, Microsoft is turning its attention towards helping players understand what can happen if they run afoul of the rules.
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Effective immediately, the Xbox enforcement strike system will give players a clean slate of zero strikes on their Xbox accounts to start. However, offenses ranging from profanity in a public text or voice chat to cheating and harassment can generate a certain number of strikes. In a non-exhaustive list, Xbox stated that if a player is reported for an inappropriate Xbox Gamertag or Gamerpic, it will manually review the report and administer a strike for profanity. Plus, the system may suggest to the offending player thatthey can change their Xbox Gamertagto avoid another strike down the road. Strikes stay on a player’s record for up to six months before expiring, and even one strike can result in a one-day suspension from Xbox services. Players that accumulate a maximum of eight strikes will receive a one-year suspension.
On social media, response to these changes was mixed. While some players are hopeful that it will deter griefing in some games, others expressed their concerns that the new enforcement system will be abused in a counterproductive way. However, other users addressed these concerns by citing that manual reviews will be utilized for enforcing the policy. As Microsoft continues to expand Xbox Game Pass followingthe retirement of Xbox Live, it remains to be seen how much this will affect Xbox users in the short term.
Nevertheless,harassment and extremism in gamingremain a constant problem for gamers and developers alike to contend with. Only time will tell if Xbox’s new policies will influence what other companies may do in response.
