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[IbizaPocholo]

Back 4 Blood Records Voice Chat

The recently released co-op zombie shooter game Back 4 Blood makes it clear to players that it is recording what they say in voice chat.

gamerant.com

When players boot up Back 4 Blood, they are greeted with a message that says that "Voice chat is recorded and used for moderation, user safety, and to operate and improve the services. By using chat, you agree to this use of data." Basically, anyone that decides to play Back 4 Blood online and use voice chat must also consent to having their voice being recorded. While this is being used to curb potential abuse, some players may still be uncomfortable about having the game record voice chat.

It's unclear if this extends to people playing Back 4 Blood in party chat as well. One would think that it wouldn't, but when playing Back 4 Blood in party chat, players will discover that they are hearing two voices at once whenever their teammates talk. This is because it seems like voices are coming out through game chat as well as party chat simultaneously by default. To fix this, Back 4 Blood players have to go into the audio settings and turn the mic volume all the way down. The implication is that Back 4 Blood might be picking up player voices even when they're in their own party chat. Whether or not that's an accurate conclusion or it's just some weird audio thing is unclear at the time of this writing, however.

 

[Kagey K]

Yep we had to leave the party last night, because we could hear ourselves twice.

Seems that B4B overrides party chat in a similar way that CoD did a few years ago. Means anything that you say is being recorded while playing the game.

 

[kingpotato]

I have heard the odd party chat echo, but I thought it was a bug.

Don't really find recording voice chat for moderation as all that controversial.

 

[CrashNBurn_281]

Just mute the other players in the game chat if you are in a party already. It will stop the echo effect.

 

[ManaByte]

Oh little Timmy can’t scream f-bombs and n-bombs. What a tragedy.

 

[TexMex]

Oh little Timmy can’t scream f-bombs and n-bombs. What a tragedy.

There are innumerable perfectly legitimate reasons to not want to consent to having every conversation you have in a game being recorded and stored by a company beyond wanting to say the N word. Stop.

 

[MGHA]

I might want to run for President one day. I can't have any chances of them blackmailing me with my audio.

 

[Anime-Vix]

There are innumerable perfectly legitimate reasons to not want to consent to having every conversation you have in a game being recorded and stored by a company beyond wanting to say the N word. Stop.

What reasons? If you are playing with close friends, just use party chat or discord if you’re paranoid. I’m not sure what you could possibly be talking about during a match that would make you uncomfortable being recorded.

 

[TexMex]

What reasons? If you are playing with close friends, just use party chat or discord if you’re paranoid. I’m not sure what you could possibly be talking about during a match that would make you uncomfortable being recorded.

You can’t possibly be this obtuse.

 

[ZehDon]

Oh little Timmy can’t scream f-bombs and n-bombs. What a tragedy.

Try wording it as: "am I prepared to give up my privacy so little timmy is punished for dropping n-bombs"?

We're increasingly seeing nation states, namely China, crackdown on online speech and they're not fucking around with it. A few years ago you might have been able to convince me this type of recording was necessary for full context for moderation, but today, the slippery slope that leads to every game recording every word all the time and that being forced to be available to states when the game is available in specific countries isn't one I'm happy to indulge. I'm not trading away my privacy just to punish a 13 year old for saying fuck in an online game when it leads to darker places. And I'm not giving them a fucking inch.

Fuck this noise.

 

[MagiusNecros]

Sounds like Spyware you can't turn off or have a choice to not use. Not even an agree or disagree option on the terms. It's very much if you use voice chat they record you and drink your data and information like a fruit smoothie.

 

[Droxcy]

Try wording it as: "am I prepared to give up my privacy so little timmy is punished for dropping n-bombs"?

We're increasingly seeing nation states, namely China, crackdown on online speech and they're not fucking around with it. A few years ago you might have been able to convince me this type of recording was necessary for full context for moderation, but today, the slippery slope that leads to every game recording every word all the time and that being forced to be available to states when the game is available in specific countries isn't one I'm happy to indulge. I'm not trading away my privacy just to punish a 13 year old for saying fuck in an online game when it leads to darker places. And I'm not giving them a fucking inch.

Fuck this noise.

Phones already tracking our locations trends & siri or google AI, websites tracking your ad trends, video games hearing and recording your voice yeah this country might as well be China. Which is already trending that way anyway (not a tinfoil hat person)

 

[MrFunSocks]

I guess now would be a bad time for you guys to find out that both Xbox Live and PSN store all your voice chats too?

PSN for example: https://www.playstation.com/en-au/legal/psn-terms-of-service/#do-we-track-what-you-do-online

Xbox for example: https://privacy.microsoft.com/en-us/PrivacyStatement

I have no problem with this. If you want to discuss things that can get you arrested or in trouble, maybe don't do in the online chat of a video game that you didn't create.

 

[Phunkydiabetic]

Oh little Timmy can’t scream f-bombs and n-bombs. What a tragedy.

You can't be serious.

 

[Robb]

I don’t use voice chat on any console or game. But I don’t like stuff like this and I’m not sure why anyone would.

At least it’s easy to opt out and just not play the game. Or use a different type of chat.

 

[Pull n Pray]

I have heard the odd party chat echo, but I thought it was a bug.

Don't really find recording voice chat for moderation as all that controversial.

They shouldn't record party chat. Neither should Sony / Microsoft. I have a close friend that I game with and we sometimes discuss personal things. We don't need big brother listening in.

 

[Xaero Gravity]

Uh oh, I spewed a bunch of sexist jokes and racial slurs while playing last night. RIP in peace me, it was nice knowing you guys

 

[Negotiator101]

You can’t possibly be this obtuse.

Something to hide pal?

 

[Negotiator101]

They shouldn't record party chat. Neither should Sony / Microsoft. I have a close friend that I game with and we sometimes discuss personal things. We don't need big brother listening in.

Like what?

 

[TexMex]

Something to hide pal?

Do you really believe that the only reason someone wouldn't want their personal conversations recorded is that they are an incredible racist?

 

[Negotiator101]

Do you really believe that the only reason someone wouldn't want their personal conversations recorded is that they are an incredible racist?

Just a joke.

 

[Arun1910]

There are innumerable perfectly legitimate reasons to not want to consent to having every conversation you have in a game being recorded and stored by a company beyond wanting to say the N word. Stop.

Unfortunately every game pretty much does if you read the terms... but no one does.

 

[Mr Reasonable]

Why do the devs/ publisher want to do this? Are there other games that do this?

The wanting privacy = being a racist/terrorist/criminal argument is the one used by authoritarians, unless you can trust those in power absolutely, you should resist any erosion of your privacy. And you cannot trust those in power absolutely.

 

[M1chl]

Is the Tencent involved?

 

[Oddvintagechap]

Then they have hours of my friend putting porn while he plays seige. Tragic.

Thank god I dont longer sell drugs through PSN.

 

[Radical Dreamer]

Oh little Timmy can’t scream f-bombs and n-bombs. What a tragedy.

Expected from corporate disney whore. Can't you realise where eventually this will lead up to thanks to this stupid "i dont have anything to hide, i live in glass house" attitude? I can deal with comments thrown my way for being "poor polack toilet cleaner", I'm sure most black people can deal with retards throwing nigger at them too. Just mute/report, go on with your life.

 

[nkarafo]

Damn, some people actually defend this shit.

That's impressive.

 

[reksveks]

Any form of moderation need some way to store the data, as long as the end user is well informed and has the option to opt-out (which in this case they do by not playing the game) then I don't see the issue.

I also think the slippery slope argument is a tired one, we already have socially accepted forms of moderation. You ain't able to incite racial hatred in public.

Just mute/report

How do you report something that isn't 'saved/stored'?

 

[cormack12]

I think they need to be clear because unless you turn mic and voip volume down to 0, it still puts you in game chat causing a horrible echo. More importantly though people are saying things they believe are in a private party chat rather than game chat. I'm still not sure if my party chat can still be heard in game, I just know I've stopped the echo though. You know if I'm saying stuff in party chat like 'MrKingSniperz just set the alarm off the fucking moron', that's probably something I could get banned for if it came through to game chat when really I think I'm bitching to my mate privately.

 

[ManaByte]

I guess now would be a bad time for you guys to find out that both Xbox Live and PSN store all your voice chats too?

PSN for example: https://www.playstation.com/en-au/legal/psn-terms-of-service/#do-we-track-what-you-do-online

Xbox for example: https://privacy.microsoft.com/en-us/PrivacyStatement

I have no problem with this. If you want to discuss things that can get you arrested or in trouble, maybe don't do in the online chat of a video game that you didn't create.

Strange how people are ignoring this post.

 

[ZehDon]

I guess now would be a bad time for you guys to find out that both Xbox Live and PSN store all your voice chats too?

PSN for example: https://www.playstation.com/en-au/legal/psn-terms-of-service/#do-we-track-what-you-do-online

Xbox for example: https://privacy.microsoft.com/en-us/PrivacyStatement

I have no problem with this. If you want to discuss things that can get you arrested or in trouble, maybe don't do in the online chat of a video game that you didn't create.

Unless I've missed a press release, today Microsoft still adheres to standard anonymisation practices for data retention. They recorded non-anonymised voice chats in the past, but claimed they stopped doing so around a year ago. All voice recording currently is not used for identification or policing. For example, they collect voice information on Xbox in the same manner as, say, Microsoft Teams, wherein they use voice sampling to improve their voice technologies, not for moderation efforts that require users to be identified. So, they don't scan the content to police their policies - or at least they claim so. This also applies to voice messages users can record on Xbox Live.

Sony, however, absolutely records their users voice chats, and this is expressly stated by Sony as part of EULA for their PlayStation platforms. They started this policy around the same time Microsoft ended theirs, around a year ago - I believe we even had a thread on it when it happened. In the case of Back 4 Blood, they can't anonymise their data like Microsoft does, because it is expressly used for policing their policies: your data can't be anonymous for this system to work. So, they're open about like Sony is - which they legally have to be.

Speaking personally, I don't use voice chat on PlayStation, and run Discord for virtually all of my gaming chat - though Xbox Live parties still get use from time to time. I've been using Discord for around eighteen months or so, and Sony's move was certainly a nail in the coffin of PSN Parties getting used, at least in my circle.

 

[Fake]

More stupid than that are people defending this.

 

[nemiroff]

I guess now would be a bad time for you guys to find out that both Xbox Live and PSN store all your voice chats too?

PSN for example: https://www.playstation.com/en-au/legal/psn-terms-of-service/#do-we-track-what-you-do-online

Xbox for example: https://privacy.microsoft.com/en-us/PrivacyStatement

I have no problem with this. If you want to discuss things that can get you arrested or in trouble, maybe don't do in the online chat of a video game that you didn't create.

As fast as western society is turning by the wind what you personally think is acceptable to discuss with your friend today might get you in trouble tomorrow. I think the few people who gets harassed for real should have tools and the help to fight against it. But when it comes to blanket spying on everyone it's reprehensible as fuck.

 

[ÆMNE22A!C]

As fast as western society is turning by the wind what you personally think is acceptable to discuss with your friend today might get you in trouble tomorrow. I think the few people who gets harassed for real should have tools and the help to fight against it. But when it comes to blanket spying on everyone it's reprehensible as fuck.

It's a slippery slope indeed

Totalitarian Tiptoe ​

 

[SquillieDee]

Expected from corporate disney whore. Can't you realise where eventually this will lead up to thanks to this stupid "i dont have anything to hide, i live in glass house" attitude? I can deal with comments thrown my way for being "poor polack toilet cleaner", I'm sure most black people can deal with retards throwing nigger at them too. Just mute/report, go on with your life.

disagree... smh

 

[MrFunSocks]

As fast as western society is turning by the wind what you personally think is acceptable to discuss with your friend today might get you in trouble tomorrow. I think the few people who gets harassed for real should have tools and the help to fight against it. But when it comes to blanket spying on everyone it's reprehensible as fuck.

It's not spying lol

 

[Dr.Morris79]

MS and Sony must think i'm a mute by now then. Happy with that.

 

[DenchDeckard]

So, playstation and Xbox are doing the same thing...but this is a problem, because?

 

[ClosBSAS]

Lol please do.record me.tonight...imma give you a night u wot forget.

 

[Revolutionary]

Yep, turned off in-game voice the moment I saw that warning.

 

[ÆMNE22A!C]

So, playstation and Xbox are doing the same thing...but this is a problem, because?

No problem mate, carry on.

 

[VN1X]

You know I love most of you cunts but honestly this whole "I have nothing to hide"-schtick has gotten so stale when comes to privacy related matters. It's beyond retarded.

I don't want turn this into a meta-discussion (so feel free to ignore this part of the post) but you're literally talking on a board that removed its Politics subfolder because of "unsavoury people clogging up actual discussion". Like, cmon'. I love NeoGAF but we all know why that part of the forum was removed lol.

 

[ÆMNE22A!C]

Lol please do.record me.tonight...imma give you a night u wot forget.

 

[ÆMNE22A!C]

You know I love most of you cunts but honestly this whole "I have nothing to hide"-schtick has gotten so stale comes to privacy related matters. It's beyond retarded.

I don't want turn this into a meta-discussion (so feel free to ignore this part of the post) but you're literally talking on a board that removed its Politics subfolder because of "unsavoury people clogging up actual discussion". Like, cmon'. I love NeoGAF but we all know why that part of the forum was removed lol.

Same goes for all platforms that are privately owned. And that's OK unless said platform (YouTube/Facebook) is integrated in our day to day lives globally to such an extent corporations dictate what can or cannot be said.. yeah...

Social media has integrated our lives (not me because I'm awesome, not really) to such an extent; be it a base for communication, information and THE general means of informational sharing for a worldwide consciousness, it shouldn't be privately owned.

But yeah good luck with that lol

Also, nobody gives a fuck until they do. Around that time it's to late.

Most people don't care about privacy due to ignorance, not caring and/or misguided and apathy trust in those that maintain their information. It's also hard to be actively thinking etc about that stuff when you're working a double shift to get by.

All in all it's quite transparent when you know. Oh well.

 

[MiguelItUp]

Not defending this at all, but my understanding is that this isn't really "new" per se. A number of other titles and platforms have done and are doing the same thing.

Typically I just turn it all off anyway and use Discord. But even then, who knows how "safe" Discord is. There are claims that it doesn't record, but I don't think anyone is really too sure.

 

[ÆMNE22A!C]

Not defending this at all, but my understanding is that this isn't really "new" per se. A number of other titles and platforms have done and are doing the same thing.

Typically I just turn it all off anyway and use Discord. But even then, who knows how "safe" Discord is. There are claims that it doesn't record, but I don't think anyone is really too sure.

You're fucked either way but I'll take solace thinking all this is a warm up for our children and their children especially.

 

[kingpotato]

They shouldn't record party chat. Neither should Sony / Microsoft. I have a close friend that I game with and we sometimes discuss personal things. We don't need big brother listening in.

Then don't use someone else's server where you have to agree to someone else's TOS.

 

[ÆMNE22A!C]

Then don't use someone else's server where you have to agree to someone else's TOS.

Way to miss the point

 

[kingpotato]

Way to miss the point

Well please help me understand then.

 

[TexMex]

Strange how people are ignoring this post.

It has been discussed here previously (when this article dropped: https://www.polygon.com/2020/10/15/21517451/ps4-ps5-record-party-chat-audio-moderation-firmware) and people feel the same way.