Sony Wants To Block Verbal Abuse From Voice Chat In Games

Sony has been helming multiple initiatives that want to make gaming a more secure and fun endeavor for the PlayStation community. The publisher’s latest initiative is reflected in the new patent that talks about adding an interesting voice moderation feature. As per the newly published legal document, Sony talks about a unique system that can be toggled to block all the incoming emotional outbursts and toxicity from players in many ways.

The patent named “DIGITAL AUDIO EMOTIONAL RESPONSE FILTER” can differentiate between the tones, words, and frequencies of the users during voice chat. Sony’s unique system can filter out loud remarks or emotional outbursts by either lowering the volume of the player or changing the tone. Additionally, the tone of the bad actor can be modified into an AI voice with a softer tone for a more pleasant gaming experience.

The incoming audio level can be normalized as a user starts yelling, or tonality can be removed when angry/aggressive tones are being used to produce a robotic or toneless voice,” reads the patent.

Sony argues that players may want to save themselves from angry outbursts or heated talks while gaming. A common solution to this dilemma would be to block the toxic users, but it could also make it impossible to engage in any discussions. The system wants to normalize the excessive tone or yelling without blocking the voice completely. This can help keep players engaged with each other despite the ensuing filtered chaos.

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In social network situations a prime user may wish to not be exposed to excessive emotion in the voice playback of another user in the network, or may not wish to be exposed to specific types of emotions, but nonetheless discover the content of what an emotional user is saying.”

The patent also mentions that players can possess the ability to choose whose voice is filtered by the system. For example, one user with a loud or angry tone may have his voice altered while the other speaking emotionally could have the same natural voice. This feature —utilizing AI and machine learning models— will provide additional flexibility that can make it a viable moderation option in the modern Sony gaming ecosystem.

The giant conglomerate has previously published a similar patent that wanted to remove immoral behavior from in-game voice chats. That document stated punishing the culprits with appropriate penalties for participating in those harsh acts, as it wants to protect gamers from possible triggers for mental health issues.