Last week, Riot Games announced a new policy restricting what content creators can say when producing work involving its games. It’s the latest in a recent series of sweeping changes designed to combat toxicity, and one that could help rehabilitate the reputation of games like League of Legends, which is known for a hostile player base. But at the same time, it could risk punishing marginalized creators who already face harsh scrutiny.
Riot Games laid out its new rules in a blog post. The post goes over four updates, including clearer language around selling accounts and stream sniping. But the largest change comes first: “off-Platform conduct” and behavior connected to our IP is now subject to our Terms of Service,” according to Riot. That means that when making streams, videos, and other content about Riot’s titles, creators can still be punished for breaking the terms. For example, infractions like using hate speech or harassing other players were previously covered if they happened over in-game voice chat, but now they’ll be grounds for punishment even if they only appear in voiceover.
