You might wonder why, but it’s a fact that playing massively multiplayer online RPGs can be stressful for some people. This is because of some groups who seem to find glee in behaving in an untoward manner in the online community and in the game’s world. Of course, everyone deserves to have a good time so it’s important that one finds out what they could do to avoid stress when playing MMOs.

One of the biggest sources of stress in MMOs are the flamers. These are people who love to spew out profanities and insults towards other players just for kicks. They mostly prey on newbies, or people who have just entered the arena and are still trying to learn the ropes. It’s like bullying, but on a multiplayer online battle arena or MOBA instead of in school or at the office. Sometimes, flaming can get so bad that other players end up joining just to shut the offensive parties up. Hardcore gamers, however, know that it is totally counterproductive as the flaming can only get worse with each rebuttal.

So what do you do to avoid this unnecessary stress? Like the saying goes, “Don’t feed the trolls.” The best thing that you can do at this point is to ignore the flamers. Flaming usually starts at the global chat, which fortunately you have the option to turn off. If you see someone is starting to flame you, it’s best to just turn the other cheek and ignore the chat messages. If the game permits, configure the chat in a way that you can stop it from popping up and distracting you from the game.

The same goes for trolls, or people who intentionally try to make you or other players angry. Let them be. It may be difficult at first, but once you get the hang of ignoring these folks, your MMO gaming becomes a lot smoother.

You may also encounter another form of trolling that can be difficult to avoid. For example, you could be on a raid and you’ve encountered an elite player or a particularly rare monster that could drop rare items. You work hard to bring that HP gauge on that monster down and, all of the sudden, somebody else delivers the final blow and steals the kill from you! That can be frustrating, and could make you explode like a volcano.

This could be hard to do, but try thinking that it’s just a game and that you can always try again. If you encounter that kind of player, it’s best to move on and go to another dungeon so you don’t encounter him or her again.

Toxicity in MMOs is a real issue for people who are active in the communities. However, it’s difficult to eradicate totally, but you can avoid it most of the time. After all, you came to play in order to enjoy and not to stress out over someone who doesn’t even care about what the effects of his actions are.

Happy gaming!