There are many definitions of trolling in video games as well as many different ways to do it. Urban Dictionary defines it as “the art of deliberately, cleverly, and secretly pissing people off, usually via the internet.” Though trolling is typically associated with online forums, it also seems inescapable in video games. One can troll through dialogue and online chat systems, or using the mechanics of the game being played. One way we saw trolling in this class was in a cooperative game (when we played Stardew Valley Co-op). But trolling can occur in competitive multiplayer games as well. Examples of this include friendly fire in shooter games (or using a flash grenade on a teammate in Call of Duty), taunting (i.e. taunting on your opponent when playing Smash) or other forms of disrespecting your opponent.
In Mario Kart, the mechanics encourage you to attack and pass your opponents, however there are still ways to do so in a way that is considered trolling. My personal favorite example is this clip which went viral a few years ago. Rather than just winning the race, Rosalina decides to troll Luigi by hitting him with a green shell just as he was about to cross the finish line. Doing this was unnecessary, but definitely intended to make the Luigi player upset. In this case, trolling can be its own playstyle: rather than trying to complete the main objective (winning), one can go out of their way to sabotage others as well or in substitute. For the troller, this can be really fun but for the trolled, it could ruin their game experience or make them upset at the time.
Cook et. al. found that the major motivations for trolling are personal enjoyment, revenge, and thrill-seeking. Typically trolling is seen as a bad thing for the gaming community, but if it can lead to gratification, satisfaction, and enjoyment, are there times where trolling is a net good? One example I thought of was Unfair Mario, a recreation of Super Mario Brothers in which the game trolls you by having hidden traps, false blocks, and slippery controls. Here, the player chooses to intentionally get trolled in order to have an added challenge for the game. Though players still often get very frustrated getting trolled while playing this game, they continue to play for the satisfaction of overcoming the trolling, and some even beat the game without giving up. This type of game and other unfair, challenging games, has generated its own genre of troll games, evolving from a way to play a game into the concept of the game itself.
My questions: How does trolling in video games open up to new gameplay and possibility spaces, and can trolling be a good thing (if so, when/how)?