Overwatch's Scott Mercer says addressing toxic players "is an issue across Blizzard"

Blizzard knows that Overwatch, like every other competitive game online, is full of toxic players who make the experience worse for everyone around them. But it's especially disappointing in Overwatch, because the game attracts a wider audience than most shooters. Despite Blizzard acknowledging the problem shortly after launch, "15 months later, the company's attempts to address the situation have proved painfully slow and ultimately ineffectual," as we recently wrote. At BlizzCon today, we spoke with principal designer Scott Mercer about changes coming to Overwatch, like new hero Moira and new map Blizzard World, and we also asked about the development team's plans to deal with the worst members of its community.

"For us, that's one of our highest priorities, improving those systems," Mercer said. "We know directly that when someone's berating their teammates, they're flat-out disrupting the game for others. We need to address those in as direct a way as possible."

Mercer said that the team has "a multitude of initiatives internally" that they're working towards as ways to address toxic behavior. He cited a pilot program that emails players when their reports have lead to action against offending players, and mentioned plans to integrate that into the game client itself.

"It's super important for people to realize that accurate reports are super meaningful," Mercer said. "If you do see someone being aggressive, being harassing, whether it's language or their actions, completely throwing games, any kind of toxic behavior, reporting does work. It's the best thing we can do to make the Overwatch community a better place to play."

We asked if Blizzard was dedicated to hiring more staff specifically to help make the community a better place, as Riot Games did for League of Legends. While Mercer didn't confirm that directly, he did say that tackling the problem doesn't begin and end with Overwatch.

"I think something that's important to understand is that this is an issue that's not just an Overwatch issue. It's something that across Blizzard, we've become very, very mindful of," Mercer said. "On Overwatch we have a lot of the same issues as Heroes of the Storm does. We both have these player vs. player team games. People acting aggressive, harassing others, unfortunately that happens on all of our games. So we've been reaching out, not just within the Overwatch team, but also to the other teams. We have groups within Blizzard that are trying to help address this for all of Blizzard.

"… It's definitely not the kind of thing where there's one silver bullet that will magically address all the toxicity issues. It's something that's going to take time. It's going to take continued vigilance, by not just us on the Overwatch team but across Blizzard. So far it's been that process of reaching out to teams across Blizzard, whether it's our global insights team, our customer service team, the customer support tools team. We've all been trying to work together, really trying to sit down and say 'How can we make our games a better place?'"

You can follow along with all of our BlizzCon 2017 coverage right here, and expect more news, interviews, and hands-on impressions over the next few days.

Bo Moore

As the former head of PC Gamer's hardware coverage, Bo was in charge of helping readers better understand and use PC hardware. He also headed up the buying guides, picking the best peripherals and components to spend your hard-earned money on. He can usually be found playing Overwatch, Apex Legends, or more likely, with his cats. He is now IGN's resident tech editor and PC hardware expert. 

Latest in FPS
A soldier looks out over the Verdansk map, as a single tear rolls down his cheek.
The original Verdansk map is returning to Call of Duty: Warzone, to celebrate which we get a soldier crying to Nat King Cole
FragPunk codes - A close-up shot of a mercenary wearing a mask with glowing eyes.
All FragPunk codes and how to redeem them
An evil-looking demon with red eyes and horns
You can theoretically beat Doom: The Dark Ages without using a gun, but 'You'd have a hard time, that's for sure,' says the game's director
Official Doom Guy art superimposed over Vault 666 Fallout-themed background.
Fallout-themed Doom mod Vault 666 has multiple endings, an OP Dogmeat companion, and a Ron Perlman-impersonating narrator so good, I was worried it was AI-generated at first
The Doomslayer in armor
Doom: The Dark Ages won't end with the Slayer in a coffin waiting for the start of Doom 2016: 'That would mean that we couldn't tell any more medieval stories'
Doom: The Dark Ages art
'I think only the shotguns are the same,' says Doom: The Dark Ages director, otherwise the guns are brand-new or significantly transformed
Latest in News
Fallout New Vegas Key Art
The Fallout season 2 leaks continue with videos of the New Vegas set, including a sign for Mr. House's casino
Gallywix wears an uneasy smile as he's confronted by Xal'atath in WoW: The War Within.
World of Warcraft guild uses exploits to get world 'first' on the game's new raid, gets banned, puts its name backwards and does it again
Photo of BlizzCon 2023 main stage
BlizzCon 2025 isn't happening, meaning the event will miss its 20th anniversary, but it will return in 2026 to 'meaningfully elevate this iconic celebration'
Shohei Ohtani wearing Samurai Shohei outfit in Fortnite
The best baseball player alive is coming to Fortnite, and so is his dog
Mech in dry dock with person standing on catwalk underneath
How long can a live service game last? Theoretically, 'forever,' says Mecha Break developer: 'The last game I was in charge of has been alive and well for 16 years'
A computer screen with program code warning of a detected malware script program. 3d illustration
Coder faces 10 years' jailtime for creating a 'kill switch' that screwed-up his employers' systems when he was laid off