UPDATE: Soon after the incident, Buffalo tweeted his own take on events. He downplays his actions as a typical pop off, stating that he never acted in a physically threatening manner.
He also makes it a point to say that he never called Scar "boy" or spoke in a racially-charged manner. Instead, "the only 3 things I said in that entire pop off were 'ft2 boys' 'f**k you p**sy' and 'f**k you b**ch.'"
Original article follows:
This past weekend saw a fantastic set of matches among the best players of Mortal Kombat 11 in the world. The event was set to wrap up with only positive things to say, except for one unexpected outburst of bad sportsmanship by Leif “Daddy” Boisvert, more commonly known as Buffalo within the realm of MK11 gaming.
Buffalo managed to sweep his opponent Brad “Scar” Vaughn in a First to Two (FT2) style match, and then erupted in a verbal tantrum. Buffalo crowded Scar, looming over his defeated opponent, and began to berate him non-stop, yelling such things as “Let’s go, boy," which could easily be seen as an invitation to a physical altercation, or as an inappropriate racial comment.
Scar meanwhile maintained an extremely calm demeanor in the face of blatant hostility, choosing only to flip Buffalo off and remain generally quiet.
As for the cause of the outburst, the commentators were quick to state that there was a beef between the two players, pointing to a Twitter exchange from the 8th of June where Scar commented on a match that Buffalo had won, to which he replied and escalated through a number of assumptions.
Much has been said since the outburst, with most of the positive statements made towards Scar for not allowing the antagonizing actions to bait him into a physical confrontation.
Now we are left with the obvious question that no one seems to be asking: What should be done about Buffalo? There does not seem to be any repercussions heading his way, even though there should be. Although eSports are a new and rising form of competition and entertainment, there are clear rules written on the subject.
The Mortal Kombat 11 eSports Code of Conduct (Section 7) clearly states that, “All Players are expected to exhibit good sportsmanship and maintain respect for one another and for all League or Tournament staff and spectators." Furthermore, the Code states that any Player behaving inappropriately may be immediately disqualified from the League or Tournament and forfeit all potential prizes. Behavior that is considered to be inappropriate and in violation of the Code of Conduct includes, but is not limited to, the following:
- Acting in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner, or with the intent to disrupt or undermine the legitimate operation of the Tournament or League, or to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other person;
- Using any language or wearing any clothing or apparel that is obscene, foul, vulgar, insulting, threatening, abusive, libelous, slanderous, defamatory or otherwise offensive or objectionable, or promotes or incites hatred or discriminatory conduct;
- Taking any action or performing any gesture directed at an opposing Player, official or spectator, or inciting any other individuals to do the same, which is insulting, mocking, disruptive or unsportsmanlike.
So, take your pick. Buffalo's actions fall within the purview of all three of these points. Action should be taken immediately, because if not, the implication is that it is perfectly acceptable for players to engage in behavior that does nothing but harm the image of eSports, at best, and at worst subjugates players to the very toxicity that is associated with the worst stereotypes of online gaming.
The disciplinary action need not even be significantly harsh, however, doing nothing is disrespectful to Scar, who did nothing but remain professional in the face of spewing hatred. It has only been a couple of days since the event took place, and so far, we do not see anything coming down from future tournament organizers, but we can still hold out hope.
Mortal Kombat 11 is available for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.