The Three Block Rule

Several Gamesvillers have written into customer service recently, asking us to reinstate the "three block rule" in chat. If you read this blog, you know chat is a very hot topic; that's one reason why the changes we made to the chat system recently were not made lightly. Let me explain:

When we first instituted the "three-block rule" in chat, we did so with the best of intentions, figuring that if three or more people in a room blocked the same player, we would do the entire room a favor by automatically blocking that player for everyone. The block was meant to be temporary, with the idea that the rude chatters would learn their lesson and act less boorish next time around.

What we discovered over time, however, is that most rude chatters won't change their behavior–and, worse, several overly clever players were routinely exploiting the three-block rule, using it to punish innocent players or players they just didn't like. For example, if Sue and Lou were having an argument, Sue would block Lou and then ask two of her friends to block Lou as well, preventing Lou from talking with the other people in the room.

When we upgraded our chat system earlier this month, we made two substantial changes: first, we removed the three-block rule so it could no longer be wielded as a weapon against other users who may not deserve it; and second, we made blocking permanent. That second change is very important. Now if you block someone, that username is blocked from communicating with you forever, unless you choose to unblock them. We also made a change to My Gamesville so you can see a full list of the users you've added to your block list. To see your full block list go to: http://www.gamesville.com/my_gv.php

As our distinguished competition will tell you, rude people in chat rooms on games sites are a fact of life; no matter where you go, there they are. The fairest thing any of us can do is give you powerful tools to prevent rude players from bothering you as an individual, and hope that you will tell your friends and new players how to block people they find offensive. Of course, if and when rude chatters are reported to us, we will investigate and take appropriate action; but the best, most direct course of action is to use the block button to kick the rude chatters out of your life.

Thanks again to everyone who wrote in on this topic; your comments and questions about chat, and everything else, are always appreciated and welcome.

PS: To cazadoes_az and everyone who wrote in or posted complaints about tournament players in chat: we're working on something now that should help address your concerns. More information on that soon.

PPS: It looks like the "reset" button will officially pressed next week; keep your eyes peeled for updates.