Pokémon UNITE player behavior evaluation system draws attention–bans for repeat offenders

Publication date of the original Japanese article: 2021-06-24 22:47 (JST)
Translated by. Jacob Ritter

On June 24, The Pokémon Company made Pokémon UNITE available to play as a network test version in Japan. While only a test version, enough features are included to give players a substantial experience of this free-to-play MOBA title. It also features the Fair Play Points system, where you can earn rewards or be penalized based on player behavior. This system in particular is garnering attention amongst the gaming community.

Pokémon UNITE is a 5-on-5 strategic battle game jointly developed by The Pokémon Company and TiMi Studios, the development division of Tencent Games. TiMi Studios has worked on another MOBA game called Arena of Valor, and Pokémon UNITE follows suit with the MOBA style genre.

In Pokémon UNITE, you can earn experience points to increase your Trainer Level, which will in turn unlock more rewards. It also includes other popular elements of free-to-play games, such as a battle pass, player rankings, player profiles, and other social features.

Amongst all these features, the community seems to be paying particular attention to the Fair Play Points system. Each player begins with 100 Points, which will increase or decrease depending on player behavior and determine rewards earned or penalties incurred.

Poor sportsmanship will deduct from you total Points; for example, “being idle for an extended time during a match” will knock you for -5 Points. On the other hand, positive behaviors will net you more Points, such as “+2 Points for completing a random match.” However, you can only gain a total of +5 points per day, making it difficult to comeback from repeated bad behavior.

You will earn rewards based on your current Fair Play Points. If you can maintain 90 Points or above, you can earn 20 Aeos coins, used to purchase items such as Unite licenses (required for unlocking new Pokémon) and more. However, if you have less than 90 Points, then no reward for you.

Moreover, those with less than 80 points will not be able to participate in ranked matches, and those with less than 60 Points will be banned from standard random matches, as the penalties become harsher the fewer Points you have. With less than 60 Points, your only option to regain them will be to earn +1 Points per battle against NPC opponents. As the name implies, the Fair Play Points system aims to encourage sportsmanship and good player behavior.

TiMi Studios has also introduced a similar system to their previous MOBA title Arena of Valor called Credibility Score. While the name differs, it functions to serve the same purpose as Fair Play Points.

However, in the Credibility Score system, players’ rankings are also influenced by reports from other players, with a greater range of possible points to lose as opposed to points to gain. For example, you can lose up to 10 points for abandoning a match, but will only gain 1 point for completing a match. In contrast, Pokémon UNITE’s Fair Play Points system offers more opportunities to gain Points, seemingly tailored to a wider audience of players.

Similar systems exist within other games of the genre as well. Take League of Legends, arguably the face of the MOBA genre, for example. Its Honor system aims to incentivize positive behavior among the community–just like Fair Play Points–but instead, incurring penalties will decrease your Honor level. The Honor system offers relatively bountiful rewards for good sportsmanship, so increasing your Honor level adds a lot of spice to playing with positivity.

On social media in Japan, Fair Play Points appears to have a wholly positive reception. Some comments include: “This will weed out toxic players.” “If only other games had a system like this.” “I wish League of Legend’s Honor system worked this way.”

In the MOBA genre, players tend to rant and spew hatred towards other players. But with Pokémon UNITE donning the Pokémon name, it’s expected to attract a wider range of players in comparison to a typical MOBA title, including younger children who might fall victim to the toxicity of older players. Perhaps it is the Fair Play Points system’s goal to protect this subset of players that is earning it so much attention and respect from the gaming community.

Currently, you can earn 40 Aeos coins after completing one match, with 20 coins as a Fair Play Points reward. Whether this award seems appropriate is likely to vary from player to player, but given that Pokémon UNITE is still in a testing phase, there’s a possibility it will be adjusted in future updates. We’re looking forward to seeing how the Fair Play Points system impacts the player-base once the game is officially released.