Hello everyone! I hope everyone’s had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and that you’ve all been well since the last blog I posted. I’ve been quite busy lately, and I haven’t been able to blog as much as I’ve wanted to. Fortunately, I have more than a few blogs that I have in the works, so hopefully I can come up with some quality blogs soon enough. Onto the video games though, the game that’s been occupying the majority of my gaming time is League of Legends. Yes, I understand all the reservations that people hold against the game, but it’s a game that I actually really enjoy, and it’s been fun playing more of a genre that I hadn’t really played before League.
One of the things that is an important aspect of League of Legends is the ability to friend other summoners. This works in a similar manner as many other video games, and is a nice thing to have when you want to organize a game with friends after school. However, one thing that’s gotten me thinking lately is when someone tries to friend me that I don’t know at all. This will usually occur after a game, and I’ll get a notification saying “So and so wants to be your friend on League of Legends.” I don’t accept any friend requests from random people, but it’s been a thorny issue for me.
One of the hot topics in video games in general is the concept of security in gaming, and with the increase of internet-based games, the decisions that we make regarding that both multiply in frequency, and importance. From people worried about the government spying on them via Kinect, to the usage of real names in gamer tags, every gamer thinks about the idea of security in gaming in a different way.
Personally, I’m someone who has found myself sacrificing more and more security as I’ve become more modernized in my gaming habits. I might not use my personal name on this account, but it has plenty of facts about who I am, and I know that I use my real first name on my Twitter account, on which I interact on a daily basis with fellow GIO members. Now don’t get me wrong, I love getting to know the fellow GIO’ers on Twitter, but it always makes pause and think if I’m making a smart decision. I follow one main social media rule, which is to only post something that you would be comfortable showing your grandparents. However, even following this, I always think to myself, “I don’t REALLY know these people.”
Back to League of Legends though. I’ve been playing since June, and I really enjoy the game. I use an alias on there for my account name, and I have only friended people I know in real life, or that I know from GIO (if you comment with your user name for League of Legends, feel free to add me on there. I’m Jameloon3, and I’m a level 22 summoner. See what I mean though about security decisions?).
About a month ago, I got a badge from the game community deeming me as a “good leader” on the game. It’s been an honor to get that badge, but since receiving it, after almost every player vs. player game, people want to add me to their friends list. While I’m flattered by the request, I usually turn down the request, stating that I don’t add people I don’t know. This usually feels really awkward, and it leaves the other player saying that “it’s an anonymous name, and that they add people randomly all the time. It’s just a part of the game.” When I hear this, I agree, but I just can’t add them. It’s kind of the last line of security that I hold on to. When I play multiplayer, I enjoy actually knowing who I’m playing with, and I feel like if I added anyone, then the point of gaming with security would be null and void in my case.
How does everyone else feel on this issue? Am I being too uptight about this? Too lax? Where is the point that you draw the line? Is it on real name, location, knowing the player, something else? Leave a comment and I’ll be sure to respond as soon as possible. Thanks for reading!
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That's Not My Name
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