Today, the Overwatch community is rejoicing for the release of the second PvE game mode in the game called Uprising. The new mode works similar to the previous Jankenstein's Revenge but with more complex details including a moving objective point. Aside from the event, game director Jeff Kaplan and his team are also preparing for another content in Overwatch, but instead of a new feature, it would come as a new capital punishment.
Overwatch : Plans To Penalize Smurfing And Boosting
According to Jeff Kaplan, before taking any steps into creating the appropriate punishment for these two behaviors, there should be a distinct definition between "smurfing" and boosting. This is what the game director has to say about the two's "rough definition":
Smurfing is the act of one experienced player, buying a second account to reset their account progress and internal matchmaking rating. Boosting, on the other hand, is the act of one or more experienced players, engaging in Competitive Play for the sole purpose of carrying the game in an attempt to increase the other player(s) skill tier.
In the Overwatch community thread, Jeff Kaplan said, "Boosting is bad and we are very actively working on preventing and punishing this behavior. Rules like the 500 SR differential in Comp above Diamond exist because of Boosting. There is nothing about Boosting that is acceptable and we want you to know that we are taking great efforts to minimize the impact on "fair" players."
'Smurfing' Still Not A Big Issue, Says Jeff Kaplan
However, the game director pointed out that although "smurfing" is a behavior that still pervades today, "it still isn't really that big of an issue." He then continued that skilled players that are using smurf accounts tend to rise up to the competitive ladder very rapidly, which further reduces its impact towards the overall community.
Moreover, there are also some cases where a player is assumed to be smurfing when in fact, he is not - suggesting that players sometimes play a lot better than they tend to and vice versa. He concluded the thread by saying that capital punishment will come for boosting but the team will make some leeway for "smurfers." Regardless, Blizzard will keep an eye out for "smurfers" and its impact in the community.
