Trolls: The Toxic Members of Gaming and the Internet

Trolls - What they are, how to deal with them, and are you actually a Troll yourself?

Raise your hand if you have ever avoided State Chat or community rooms because of not wanting to deal with the trolls. Raise your hand if you have ever had to deal with trolls in your inbox, comments, or DM.

Did you raise your hand? I cannot see you, this is an article, not a video chat, put your hand down. If you did not raise your hand at least mentally, you are lying. If you spend enough time in the game or the internet you will encounter trolls.

Trolls can quickly create a toxic environment that no one wants to be a part of. So we need tools to combat that. Since your troops unfortunately can only be deployed against other bases and not the actual trolls, today we will be talking about what trolls are and how to combat them in chats.

Let’s Talk About Trolls

We are going to get real, real here. It is 2021, my friends, some people have way too much time on their hands and trolls are everywhere. They slide into comments, DMs, chat rooms, and more.

The goal of a troll? To provoke and upset others in online forums. This means that games like Mobile Strike are prime breeding grounds for trolls.

Now before any of you get offended, remember I said we are going to get real, real here. If you expect me to hold back, well, then you really do not know me that well!

One of the reasons that games like Mobile Strike are breeding grounds for trolls is because people like to feed the trolls and are very reactive. When you react (or feed the trolls) they get what they want. They get the satisfaction of knowing they were able to provoke you and upset you. They also get attention.

Nothing feeds a troll more than attention. If you want to understand more about trolls check out this fun doodle video from YouTube.

Other common names for trolls include keyboard warriors, that guy who lives in his mom’s basement (is that trolling?), and possibly some other stuff as well.

Understand the Difference Between Trolling and Trash Talking

The line between being a troll and good-natured trash talk is a thin one. Trash talking, if done in a way that is repetitive and used to incite negative feelings in the other person, quickly crosses the line to qualify as trolling.

For the purpose of helping define the difference between trolling and trash-talking, we will reference trash-talking as banter. Otherwise known as Cin likes the word banter better because it has fewer negative connotations.

Banter is common in mobile games. You have enemies and frenemies and banter happens. The heart behind banter is good-natured. Studies have actually shown that good-natured teasing can increase positive feelings between people.

Bantering can quickly go wrong because of the lack of non-verbal communication. However, often when someone realizes they have caused harm they feel bad and seek to make it right through an apology.

Note: It is very rare that you will see a troll offer a sincere apology because they are usually not actually sorry.

You Might Be An Internet Troll If…

At times we all can have a little troll in us. Know the signs and then know how to combat the trolls. Thank you, Jeff Foxworthy, for your famous line that we are adapting for the purpose of this article today.

If you say things from behind a keyboard that you would never say in real life, you might be an internet troll
If you commonly get kicked, banned, or silenced in online forums and rooms, you might be an internet troll
If you enjoy getting a rise out of people, you might be an internet troll
If you do not read the entirety of a post before posting a negative comment, you might be an internet troll
If you always resort to insults, you might be an internet troll
If you dox people to win arguments, you might be an internet troll
If you comment on something just to argue with people, you might be an internet troll
If you purposely try to anger people, you might be an internet troll

Six MSHQ Tips to Help Combat Trolling in Your Community

Are you ready to fight back against the trolls? We have some great tips and tricks to help you with dealing with the trolls you encounter in the game. However, before you dive in check out this epic troll battle from The Hobbit.

MSHQ Tip One: Do NOT Feed the Trolls

Do not feed the trolls loosely translates to ignoring the trolls. Sounds easy, right? It should be but trolls are experts at getting reactions out of people. There is a reason trolls get more replies to comments than others.

However, if you do feed the trolls it simply feeds into what is happening and causes it to go on and on. This creates a toxic environment that no one wants to be a part of.

There have been many times when I have encouraged people to ignore the trolls. The inevitable response I get is, “But Cin, we tried, they just kept going.” If this is your response I want you to take a step back and consider a child. Yes, I am in fact getting ready to compare a troll to a child.

Have you ever met a child that engages in negative behavior because of the attention that behavior gets them? The best way to deal with this behavior (unless it is a behavior that puts the child or another person at risk) is to ignore the behavior.

However, if it has been long enough and your child has learned they get a response from you when they engage in that behavior they will keep pushing and pushing for a response. Trolls are like children. They have learned when they engage in these negative behaviors they get a response.

Many believe that if they continue long enough, someone will eventually react, and often they are correct in that assumption. It takes a concentrated effort of not responding to show that they do not have the power. Really that is what this comes down to, a power struggle.

MSHQ Tip Two: Use the Block Button

If you struggle with ignoring the trolls then use the block button. It has been put into place for a reason! If I am being honest there have been many times where I have fed the trolls out of anger. This never helps. It simply keeps the negativity going and eventually you border on trolling the troll.

MSHQ Tip Three: Stronger Together

Your alliance, our community, we are all stronger together. Working together against toxic behavior and creating a space that is safe is important. When we start turning on each other the trolls have won.

MSHQ Tip Four: Do Not Allow the Trolls to Bait You

Ultimately, the goal of the person trolling is to bait you. Do not allow this! As soon as you become angry and upset they win.

MSHQ Tip Five: Remain Calm and Use Logic

Some of the best defenses I have seen against trolls are people who have the ability to remain calm and use logic. If the troll cannot anger you and you have a response that is logical and disproves what they say every time, then your troll will quickly lose steam. It is hard to troll when you are not being successful in baiting people and the logic thrown back at you takes the power out of your words.

MSHQ Tip Six: Use Humor

Humor is a great weapon in many situations. A note on this: do not let your humor resort to the level of trolling. Trolling happens everywhere, not just mobile games. Many people have been able to use humor effectively to respond to trolls. This defeats the troll’s goal of making you angry and throws them for a loop. Check out this tweet from JK Rowling, I absolutely love her response.

MSHQ Bonus Tip: Remember It Is a Game

At the end of the day, you need to remember that Mobile Strike is a game. If you are not having fun, you are doing it wrong. Trolls can quickly suck the joy away, do not let them. If we do not band together as a community to discourage toxic behavior then the trolls win. I do not know about you but I hate when toxicity and negativity win. We have the power to shape the community we want. Do it.