Hacker News Reader

Comment by colinmhayes | Hacker News Reader

League of Legends requires a phone number to create an account on the korean server, and there's reasonably widespread belief that that rule is a huge part of why the korean server is regarded as the best in the world. In 10 player competitive games being held hostage by a bad actor sucks. On other servers players who get banned just make a new account which leads to the game not even banning anyone since "oh they'll just make a new account." But in Korea if you get banned 3 times you're totally cut off, so people behave better.

View on HN

> League of Legends requires a phone number to create an account on the korean server, and there's reasonably widespread belief that that rule is a huge part of why the korean server is regarded as the best in the world.

I'd attribute their gaming culture over their dystopian digital surveillance tbh.

I would not, and I think characterizing it as "dystopian digital surveillance" is disingenuous. Operators of free to play games only have so many mechanisms to make bans matter, and people behave differently if they know there are negative consequences. Overwatch has a significant toxicity problem as-is.

> I would not,

None of the games I play have this problem. So you're wrong. I'm not claiming that this proves the problem is culture specific, just knocking down your counter claim.

> None of the games I play have this problem.

ooh! if you know of popular free to play games with no toxicity, im absolutely in! which games are these?

I humbly disagree. The problem is that a single can grief, smurf, boost, and otherwise ruin the game for 9 other players, and then immediately create another account.

It is a huge problem in League of Legends especially at the lower ranks. I’ve almost quit several times due to it. They’d have a much larger player base if implemented worldwide.

similarly japanese servers in mmos have typically been regarded as being high quality despite having no entry barrier other than language.

I thought the (all games) Korean servers required actual citizen ID, not just a phone number (though the two could be linked, I'm not familiar).

My understanding is that your phone number is linked to your ID somehow.

But it takes less than a minute to get a new phone number is that really enough of a barrier?

They only except certain providers, so no Google phone, prepaid, etc.

> No prepaid

Great, so I will never play your game.

It's amazing how many oblivious, ultra consumer, pro- getting scammed, pro-monopoly, pro- proprietary protocol, people are on this so-called hacker forum. The policy you are asking for is literally one of the highest things I've ever seen that go against the hacker ethos. If you pay more than $10/mo for a smart phone in the US (prime audience of this site), you are getting scammed, no even then it's a scam as you're getting something only worth 0.001 cents.

Being able to play competitive video games is not the hacker ethos. If you don’t want to comply with their rules that’s fine.

I guess because what I wrote seemingly doesn’t agree with your viewpoint I am all of those things.

Not sure what the cell phone bit is about.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com