Why is ‘camping’ so ‘hated’ in gaming?

SchollA pronounced Scholar from Console ControllUs pronounced control-us writes-Alright time to get down to the bottom of why gamers hate ‘camping’. I know a lot of gamers will love to speak on this matter so LET YOUR VOICES BE HEARD.

First off, this is to promote community talk about a subject that has been unaddressed for some time now. We can finally get out all of our emotions on the matter and express our frustrations. Look at this as your letter to the ‘campers’. Will anybody out there be bold enough to defend ‘camping’? We’ll see. Here’s what I say:

[jriquelme_paraguay]

Because Camping=Cowardice

..and easy kills...

[smashcrashbash]

Exactly. Campers cower in holes and on top of buildings because they are afraid to face anyone directly and get creamed. They would rather hide and rack up points and it makes them feel as if they have 'skills'.

But put these people in a place where they can't hide and you usually see how sucky they really are. That's why I like UC2 MP. Its harder to camp without someone finding you out and raining grenades down on your head.But in giant maps in war shooters its too easy to find a place to hide and just pick people off. I personally think sniper rifles should be banned from all MP FPSs

[JoGam]

In MAG, the campers are crazy. MAG is a team-base game not everyone camps but the one that do will literally camp and lose the game for the whole team.

[Kleptic]

the term 'camping' is thrown around way too much though...

to me, camping is only a problem in shooters where developers over look how easy it is to exploit...CoD being the prime example...the map design, at least in cod 4...was fantastic EXCEPT for problems with a select number of weapons, and positions on the map that were very secluded, yet gave view of very major choke points on certain objectives...pretty much any CoD 4 player will have plenty of stories about being clipped from a kid in the corner with an RPD...as a light machine gun...is not...a sniper rifle...

but the real truth is that this is actually backwards...most players feel like they are only 'beaten' if they are confronted out in the open by another player...if you are shot from distance by an enemy you were not aware of...you immediately retaliate by screaming 'camper!!!'...I'm just saying I've been killed plenty of times by a sniper hanging back...threw a fit to the point where the kid switched load outs to actually come at me...and was just as good as anyone else being constantly on the move...

sure there are legitimate pussies that refuse to get out in open...and you can see with a kill count of 7 to 1...those actually are campers...but just sniping someone does not a camper make...there are plenty of matches that are one by a team with a few good players hanging back...

[BeOneWithTheGun]

I disagree. When I run Battlefield with friends we always have a sniper and another guy camp at a choke point or someplace that gives the rest of us cover while completing a task. This is standard military practice.

What I find ridiculous, are those that double fist shotguns and run around on speed. THAT is lame.

[Biggest]

Camping is relative. In games like MAG, you SHOULD camp. The different game modes and classes require differing tactics. If you're defending, camp. If you're attacking, advance. When playing Rush I will either camp or advance. There is no need to run around like an idiot if you're supposed to be defending the points. I get angry at people that think they're above camping and charge into the advancing team's base. Then, like idiots, they run back in "KILL ME!" lines when someone walked past them to set the objective.

In games with smaller maps, modes, and more generalized classes the camping only serves to get easy kills. In TDM/DM modes, camping is plain lazy and lame. I don't mind campers as long as they are doing what needs to be done.

[raWfodog]

But you still can't win with some people. Everybody complains about something. I remember running and gunning with a 12-kill streak in BLOPS and that pissed someone off because I was using a "pussy" shotgun. Huh?

Or how about the multiple times someone gets mad at you for 'stealing' their kills. I'm sorry that I didn't realize that you were about to kill the guy in front of me who is shooting at me.

To me, camping has its place depending on the match that you are playing. It may not be 'right' to do it ALL the time but sometimes you have to hold back, crotch down, and wait to see if someone's coming from around that corner, especially if your map indicates an enemy present.

[Autodidactdystopia]

@Rawfodog

I got a good laugh out of that +bubble

Perfectly stated.

[Jacobite]

lol bit extreme sniper rifles banned from MP FPS least some PC MP servers can limit the number of snipers. Does sniper not camp by nature.

[RedDead]

What if you're defending a target? In Team DM I agree

[Elwenil]

Yeah, there is a big difference in defending an objective and camping in a game where the objective is to hunt down and kill the enemy. Unfortunately, many gamers of this generation do not know the difference.

[Deputydon]

The funny thing is, camping isn't the plague that people try to make it out to be. You know how many times I've played a game, such as CoD, I just got done killing a guy or two so I back up into a corner to reload and a guy happens to run in front of me so I kill him.

What happens then? He sends me a message screaming about how I'm a camper. So because I kill him while not moving for about 2 seconds I'm camping?

Truth is, most people that complain about campers generally either aren't very good at the game to begin with, or they have anger issues. I'm actually someone that can't stand to sit still in a video game. The only time I'm not moving in CoD is when I'm taking a domination point. Or planting a bomb. Or waiting for my team to return our flag when I have the other team's at our base.

I've also learned, thanks to blops with the theater mode, that most people that generally scream 'camper' are generally the ones that camp all the time.

There are definitely moments when someone is 'camping' but personally, I'd rather get killed by a camper with a sniper rifle not moving in a ghillie suit, than be killed by a sniper running around quick scoping.

Honestly sniper rifles shouldn't even be in CoD games because 99% of them aren't used to snipe...

[Kleptic]

couldn't agree more...most people whining constantly about campers are actually the guys that simply can't stand getting killed...regardless of how it happens...

that is the plague of competitive multiplayer in general...the way you killed the guy isn't right unless you did exactly what he does...The way I play multiplayer shooters is exactly the reason i can't hunt IRL...I simply can't sit still with a gun without getting insanely bored...used to play hundreds of hours of cod 4 and killzone 2...and all the clan matches I'd get involved with had my team mates demanding i be on a primary squad of offensive players...and we'd do pretty well because we had just as many players that were much more patient and effective at longer distances...I never considered the other half of our team as 'campers', but a lot of clans we played would bitch over the mics about it...oh well...regardless of what people are saying, sniping is useful in certain situations...

[trenso1]

Exactly ive been called a camper so many times running and gunning on cod. I always scratch my head and wonder how was i camping. But honestly sometimes slcamping is justified if you kill 2 people reload abother 2 come into same door way you kill and them and this continues until 2 turns 5 what do they expect you to do? Run away and be killed or stand your ground i think people are called campers most in objective games when they are defending

[marinelife9]

I don't have a problem with campers. Just find them and kill them. (Here's a tip they'll be in the same spot the next time you respawn fyi).

[dantesparda]

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!!!

And the winner is you my friend. Im with you 100%

People need to stop complaining about campers and shot gunners cuz they are all pretty easy to kill

[xAlmostPro]

Because you pay for a game to play it, not sit in a corner every match -_-

[theonlylolking]

In many games camping is a smart way to play with a bunch of mindless rushers. If people stopped mindlessly running around the map then campers would not be a good play style.

The people who hate camping are the mindless ones. People who are not mindless check their corners, survey the area, and they DO NOT RUSH LIKE A CHICKEN WITH IT'S HEAD CUT OFF.

A good camper does not stay at the same spot for more than 2 kills. A bad rusher keeps rushing to the same spot over and over again even though you get no where.

Oh and BTW snipers do not count as campers, especially in the COD series. Snipers in COD pretty much only quick scope.

In battlefield you hardly see a camper. There are a few reasons why.

1.People in battlefield do NOT run around with a chicken with it's head cut off

2.The maps are to big to make camping even remotely useful

3.In the new ones there are destructible enviorments.

[CraigUK]

I will answer this without having to read the actual article.

People hate camping because they suck at video games and obviously aren't playing to win.

If the campers are beating you then they are technically better than you at the game. As all the game knows is kills and deaths.

If you are killing the campers then what is the problem? Easy kills from people who sit in the same place.

[Hufandpuf]

Unless you can't get to them because they are camping.

[smashcrashbash]

Exactly. People make it sound so easy. I don't have eyes in the back of my head in the game. Even in UC2 its hard to tell where the shots are coming from especially when you are being hounded by other players.

I have no time to be tracking down shots while trying not to step into proximity mines or get blasted by missile launchers or torn into by turrets or dodging grenades. Even worse the camper usually finds a place to hide where he can see the game field. He could take you out long before you can get to him. Its not like its just him your up against.

[Kleptic]

the way I always looked at camping, regardless of the game i was playing...was that a camper never beat me unless he got me at least twice...I had thousands of kills in cod 4 that were a retaliation of getting killed by a kid in the corner...then simply going to that corner in a different direction and splattering his face...if you're dumb enough to still sit still with a kill cam in cod...you're never going to break 1:1 as a kdr...

[HeavenlySnipes]

What if they are the type that camp at choke points to objectives. Maybe I should fly over the map to the other side right? Campers sit own peering (usually from a spot where only their head is sticking out) from their campsite and wait for people to come do objectives. They are not better than anyone, because if everyone played like them, no one would get any kills.

[CraigUK]

sounds like a good gameplan to me. Low risk, high reward.

[SockMaster]

Its because you get an unfair advantage for being a "little bitch" sitting in the corner or at an unfair vantage point (like on top of a building) and getting easy kills just to look good or in CoD's case "get kill streaks" which in my opinion is what makes the game addictive! (it certainly helps)

It also slows down the pace of the game and just makes it boring for everyone/frustrates people, im running around trying to find players being the the model player whilst some top C**t has been sitting in the same room for three minuets and has got so many kills for being sh*t

Not to say you cant sit in a room for a for seconds and move on, running around aimlessly to "play fair" is stupid, you have to run/stop mix it up, too much of anything is just going to ruin your game and to be fair, people can play how they like seeing as they purchased the game.

So yeah basically I HATE camping but usually you cant do much about it!

[TheDivine]

You might like to run and gun and others go slow and strategic. The only reason campers can rack up kills is people are dumb. I was in a bunker in cod and the whole other team just keeps running through the door right in front of me so i kept shooting them. I got like 9-10 kills in a row. There were 2 other doors they couldve come through behind me and killed me but no they kept coming so i killed them. I dont camp i like to move around but you have to stop here and there. In a game like socom 4 il post up and snipe for a minute or watch my teams back from an angle but i rarely ever hide out like others. I hate when the other team tries to sneak by our spawn and camp out in bushes. I take advantage of it though ive gotten like 15 kills straight from my spawn because they kept sneaking back and hiding so i stayed and picked them off. If i notice people trying to camp il camp and kill them trying to get to their camp/hiding spot. F*** it, alls fair in my eyes.

[TopDudeMan]

Okay, think about what a game would be like if EVERYONE camped. That's a good way to see if camping is right.

Everyone has their own little corner waiting for people to walk past, but for some reason no one walks past. Why? Because they're camping. If everyone camps, then no one gets any kills i.e. no one has any fun.

[MasterD919]

Moderate camping is ok...you can't move forever...sometimes you need cover.

But sitting in a corner the whole game and barely moving...just waiting for some poor schmuck to walk by? Well you ought to be hunted by a whole team.

[2pacalypsenow]

Whats wrong with camping? the point of the game is to get as many kills as possible or to defend a target . Thats playing to win you take any advantage possible to win

[JellyJelly]

I have nothing against campers. If the game is well designed you can always change your tactic to attack them. I did it a lot in BFBC2. Sometimes I kill campers and wait for them to come back, just to kill them again and rub it in some more. The ultimate humiliation. :)

I hope I get to do it in the Battlefield 3 beta.

[Fishy Fingers]

Never had an issue with them really, in fact rarely notice anyone actually doing it. Other than the god ol' days of CS:S and the AWP.

COD seems to get the most coverage regarding campers, and what many seem to deem a 'camper', I see as an easy kill.

[Kleptic]

yep...weapon balancing (grips on LMG's made insane sniper rifles...with nearly unlimited ammo)...and the fact that you could go prone in multiplayer...made a campers dream...luckily you could throw a grenade like a football, so if you were paying attention to kill cams...they never got you more than once...

[waltyftm]

I hate Campers, thats why i always give them a friendly shot up the ass for being nobs.

[A LIVING LEGEND]

camping requires thinking to overcome.It requires that skills allowing for trap detection,enemy location actually be used....
this message sponsored by Coleman.

[iNMyFiN4LH0uR]

i find camping is just a very well disguised excuse for the guy who had no intention of getting killed and needs to justify their untimely demise to their immediate party, clan members or even themselves for fear their reputation, ego or prestige might come to harm. in other words a sore loser, i hate em more than the concept of camping.

[buffycrp]

It's a tactic a real life one at that and for a realistic shooter it must be in. You just have to know how to deal with them.
That's not to say it doesnt get annoying sometimes there should be some sort of speed deathmatch where you cannot stay in one place to long or something like that. Then you have the choice and people can stop complaining for five seconds till some other game mechanic starts to annoy.

[pacosanchez88]

To clarify, i dont hate snipers, i hate campers. sniping is sitting in a specific vantage point scanning the horizon for a target, its fine with me. annoying, but legitimate.

camping is totally different. camping is sitting in one place, like a bottle neck, or around the corner of a doorway, and watching one specific spot just waiting to pull the trigger. barely any aiming.

snipers can be seen and killed if your good enough, the only defense from campers is throwing grenades in every door you go through. thats just stupid

[telekineticmantis]

and that's as uncompetitive as it get's even more than outside of noob toobs and power weapons

[Wolfmoonstrike]

I don't remember where I heard this, but I agree wholeheartedly. "If you find yourself in a fair fight, then your tactics suck" or something like that. So all those whining about campers need to suck it up and use better tactics. Because if I'm not mistaken the name of the game is "deathmatch" which means you are suppose to kill or be killed. Every time I hear someone bitching about the camper(s) all I really think is that they are pissed because somebody is playing the game to win and using whatever tactic is available.

It's always me firm belief that if its in the game then it's legal. Terrain glitching is the exception to my belief. SO quit whining about cheap tactics because these games are all about the advantage (rocket launchers, shotguns, sniper rifles, certain perks, ect.).

In fact if you think that everybody should be honorable, go play Demon's souls (or dark souls) and see how long you last ^^.

[Suicide_King]

If you're not moving you're camping. Period. EVEN if you're defending you should be moving. Campers are no better than spawn killers, complete tools.

[Suicide_King]

I love all the hate for the anti-camping comments. WHY? U MAD CAMPERS? lol

[jagstatboy]

I RARELY camp or use a sniper rifle. In COD I like to run n gun. If you hate campers so much then maybe you should get better at running around.

[A LIVING LEGEND]

non conformists are typically labelled 'campers'.
its often easier to criticise someone else than admit that perhaps ones own skills and tactics are somewhat lacking.blind corners combined with blind players=advantage.Always looking for advantage.

[soundslike]

Play to win or gtfo

If there is no counter for camping in a game, then play another game. If there is a counter and you still complain, get better.

COD: UAV, grenades, Flashbangs, Stuns, C4, remote car, grenade launcher, etc....so many tools to deal with campers

BF: Destructible cover, mortar strikes, motion sensors. No excuse whatsoever to bitch about camping. NONE.

[zero_cool]

I only hate campers when a game has no random spawn point system other wise if they wanna stay in one place that's fine by me it just makes them all the easier to track down & kill lol!

[Saryk]

Spawn camping I hate. But camping is a strategic option and should be used. I hate sniping because I suck at it. But I think snipers have it too easy, now if there were bullet drops and wind, then go for it.

[dorron]

Camping is annoying, but still if games allow it, it's legal...

[Knightofelemia]

Camping is about as useful as an ashtray on a motorbike. It wrecks the game play of people who actually have the skill to play the game the way the game was suppose to be played.

[smashcrashbash]

Like I said everyone makes it sound so easy. No matter how well you make a game people will always find a way to play cheaply. I agree that a good player would find a way to deal with them but its not that simple. People talk as if as you approach the camper that there is nothing between you and him. You have to cross over the map to find whoever it is while still dealing with his team mates. Everyone just says 'just go up to him and stop him' and then what? You keep running back to that spot to see if they are there? No matter how you look at it it's a cheap way to play no matter what. It In STF could win just by throwing fireballs with Ken or Ryu then uppercutting the person when they jumped. Sure I won but it was a cheap victory. Just because you allow it doesn't mean it isn't a underhanded, cheap way to win.

[Soldierone]

"camping" is not only "frowned" upon in gaming, its frowned upon in real life too. Snipers have a highly dangerous job. When people find snipers, they don't kill them, they torture the hell out of them for doing it. They hate it.

In video games its a talentless way to make people angry. Find a spot where people commonly run out, hide in the area most people don't look at, and pop a few people. These people suck because once you find them or they miss their shot, they have no idea what to do. Half the time you can kill them 3 or 4 times trying to run back to their spot because they haven't studied the map enough to find a logical second place to hide.

When people say "it takes skill to do this" I just turn around and do it to them, within 5 minutes they all quit. I honestly want a game where it has a consequence for people not moving out of areas within a certain amount of time. Honestly, I say this as a person playing against them and with them. Nothing is more annoying than playing domination or something, and your entire teams consists of two people capturing crap and the rest camping. Or TDM where the campers keep dying and not getting kills fast enough.

[Jacobite]

I played COD2 on the PC one night long ago I was playing on a server were you stayed to long in one spot an arrow gave your position away after say a minute lol did that not surprise a few players

[rattletop]

i like camping at times. but doing it always gets boring. it might provide some funny moments from time to time.

[No FanS Land]

you guys are gonna hate me, I'm really bad at run and gunnin', I'm more of the "aim carefully then shoot". usually I always have a sniper and a small gun, I do a lot of melee though. I love Uncharted for the melee possibilities, and the fact that It wasn't possible to camp in the beta maps, except one of the last updates.

[Kyosuke_Sanada]

Every time I read an article like this it makes me miss Quake II and III.

[Jacobite]

same with UT2003 campers never lasted long lol

[ATi_Elite]

I play mostly team based modes so when a team mate camps they are literally WORTHLESS cause they are not completing objectives and loosing the game for us so yeah campers SUCK!

Unless it's a sniper who is literally taking away a key strategic point from the enemy like an AAA gun. This is just great strategy. But someone standing in a corner with a shotgun waiting to shoot enemies in the back just to raise their K/D ratio is CRAP! Go get a flag u moron.

*WARNING* Camping in ArmaII only leads to extreme bird watching!