While new players may not remember but the Tribunal was a disciplinary system that Riot Games introduced to League of Legends nearly a decade ago. It was a separate platform where players could pass judgement on their peers and vote to punish them for their toxic behavior.
Riot Games, however, decided to take down the Tribunal a few years after release, citing inaccuracy and a promise for improvements. It appears that the system is all set to return in an evolved state.
In a recently published patent, Riot Games describes a method to manage user-behavior in online multiplayer games through user-based arbitration system. The filing basically describes what the Tribunal was several years ago.
A multi-user online system enables a first user to report a second user’s behavior while online. The system receives the report and merges the report with the second user’s recorded interactions with the online system related to the report to create an arbitration file. The arbitration file is then made available to a third user to review the arbitration file and determine whether action is warranted.
There is something different though. The Tribunal rewarded players for taking part and making accurate judgements. The patent reveals a reward section as well but in a different way. Riot Games is also considering to add an in-game reporting feature for positivity. In other words, players can report their peers for being helpful or encouraging. Such reported players can be voted to be rewarded in the newly suggest Tribunal.
A couple of years ago, League of Legends’ communications lead Ben “Draggles” Forbes stated that the Tribunal will not be coming back any time soon. He noted that the system was “slow and inefficient” and “sometimes wildly inaccurate” since the promise of a reward had led to biased judgements.
While the system may not be included for League of Legends, there are chances that it could be tested for Riot Games’ other games like Valorant released recently. Nothing is for sure however, if anything gets confirmed, we will be sure to bring it to you.
Source: USPTO
