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Hey all.
So I've been sitting on posting this for a while now in fear of how it would be received but thought it was worth saying. I wanted to talk about backseat gaming, what it is, and things you should do instead. Not everyone likes to be critiqued but everybody wants to win. I understand where people are coming from when they do it, but there is a better way of going about it.
What is backseat gaming?
If you've ever been in a clutch situation where all your teammates are spectating you and your teammates are telling you to "use your ult" or "rotate!" or "reload!" that is backseat gaming. They are taking a backseat but they're trying to control you and tell you what to do. I'm sure we've all experienced it and unintentionally did it to others. It's a habit derived from our passion to win.
However, when you tell someone what to do, in the very best case, they will end up just mindlessly listening to you, following your instructions and not actually playing. They won't get better as a player and they will not react as quickly as they would if they could play on their own (which aggravates everyone further). You're hurting them not only in the current game, but also hurting them grow as a player (a little exaggerated but the point is clear). The only time it's acceptable if there is a relationship between you and the player (you're a mentor, etc) and they're okay with it.
With that being said, I wanted to call out two things people should do instead as a part of "backseat gaming etiquette"
1. Focus on giving informational callouts when you're dead
Rather than telling people what to do, tell them what is happening and let the player make the choice. When the player is in the moment, they have a better understanding of what is happening around them and what they want to do. It's important to not interfere with that unless they're clearly going the wrong way (bomb is planted at one site and they are traveling to the other).
Some examples:
| Situation | Rather than say... | You can instead say... |
|---|---|---|
| Player needs to reload because they have few bullets left. | You should reload! | You have X bullets left. |
| Player is an attacker with bomb and should go to A site because everyone was spotted on B site and A site should be free. | Go A site! | They were all B so you can go A. |
| Time is running out and the player needs to plant the bomb as an attacker. | Plant the bomb now! | Time. (or X seconds left) (let them realize time is running out) |
| Player has utility they're not using and it would help if they used it. | Use your [utility]! | You have [utility] up. |
| Player is defending and is in a 1v1 against an attacker with little time left to plant the bomb. | Play safe! Hide! | They don't have time to plant. |
If they don't listen to you, it's unlikely they would've listened in the first place. If they lose because they didn't act on what you said, they will learn. We can't control how our teammates play. We can only enable them to play better. Playing for them isn't the way. If they are receptive to what you say, you can try telling them what to do but it's best to start with only informational callouts.
2. If you have feedback, save it for the end of the round
Sometimes, you really want to give feedback regardless. Maybe you notice a bad habit (someone keeps peeking mid and getting popped, etc) or you want to give general advice on how to approach a situation (they tried to go for kills when they could have played for time). All constructive feedback should be saved AFTER the round has ended. It is unlikely during the round the player will be able to adjust so quickly. Rather, let them play the round out and give the advice after. The player can reflect on the mistake and choose whether or not they want to listen to the feedback or not.
tl;dr do not tell people what to do; tell people what is happening (if anything) and let them make the choice. also save any feedback for after the round. Hope this makes a difference in your everyday play <3
If you have thoughts on how to give better comms and make the experience better when playing with teammates would love to hear :)
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