The Ninjas in Pyjamas Handbook

VINJETT

THE NINJAS IN PYJAMAS HANDBOOK.

Photo: Adela Sznajder

VINJETT

OUR VISION AND CORE VALUES. OUR VISION Ninjas in Pyjamas aims to be the world’s leading esports organization, both inside and outside of the game. The term we’ve come up with, “NiP Standard”, shall be synonymous with superior quality, professionalism, and sound integrity.

OUR MISSION We strive to give our followers and our community the ultimate fan experience, whether it be through the highest level of esports, content creation, fan engagement or merchandising.

We want those who follow us to take part in our legacy and the history we are making, to be inspired by the Ninjas in Pyjamas and the NiP Standard in their everyday life.

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OUR VISION AND CORE VALUES.

CORE VALUES We are passionate about our brands, businesses, products, esports and, most importantly, the people who make up our fan base and communities around the world.

Teamwork everywhere is essential. We create an environment where every Ninja is empowered to contribute and is recognized for their effort.

We are committed to drive individual growth for our players, teams and employees, creating an inclusive culture where they all can develop and enhance their performance.

We act with integrity and high ethics in all of our relationships.

We strive for the respect and protection of fundamental human rights.

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SET YOUR INNER COMPASS TO NINJA-MODE.

WHAT WE STAND FOR. EQUALITY What unifies us in gaming is that we all play the same games with the same set of rules.

Your gender is insignificant as the games we play are equal for everybody, and for some an alternative from their everyday life. You don’t know who you’ll come across in your ventures across the Internet, be respectful towards those you meet in your games and they’ll treat you with respect back. A true Ninja is welcoming of everyone, for the Ninja knows that by excluding people, the Ninja might lose out on a valuable teammate, or worse, a friend, in the future.

For the Ninja, gender equality within and outside the game is crucial for success. Equal treatment and equal opportunities regardless of gender is fundamental for not losing future ninja talent and for creating an online experience that all players want to stay and develop in.

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WHAT WE STAND FOR.

DIVERSITY In the real world, people come from different backgrounds and cultures, and have different ideas and opinions, it’s what makes us different from one another, and what makes us so great. Diversity, by definition, stands for variety, or a point of difference. One such point may come from including players from different regions into your team, or a player of a different age or gender. The point is that everybody is and should feel welcome to the gaming scene because it has something to offer to everyone, whether you’re a player, a fan or somewhere in between.

Some of the best players you will come across in the games you play will not be from your country or region, and you will need to understand that people are different culturally, just like how the games we play are different. Other cultures bring different ways of thinking – embrace this and use it to your advantage both on the server and IRL (in real life).

In order to grow as a person or as a player we must all be respectful of each other’s ethical, national, and cultural backgrounds. We can all stand to learn a thing or two from each other’s different cultural backgrounds, as well as our different backgrounds in gaming.

One of the things that makes esports great is that, even on the most basic level, everyone plays under the same circumstances. Race and gender don’t matter on the battlefield. In-game we’re all the same on the same server, regardless of our age, sex, weight or height. That’s what makes esports beautiful, everybody with an Internet-connection (and preferably a microphone!) can connect to a server and immediately start playing with new players.

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EVERYBODY SHOULD FEEL WELCOME TO THE GAMING SCENE.

WHAT WE STAND FOR.

RESPECT ALL GENDERS

INTEGRITY Integrity means to stick to a sort of moral and ethical compass and implies honesty. You stand up for what you believe in, and for what’s right.

As a player, regardless if you’re at the highest professional level or just starting out, you are a representative of how others will see you.

This means that others will judge not only you, but maybe other people from your country or region based on your actions, so please be mindful of how you act towards others. Have trust in your teammates, your organization, and fellow people online. Trust in that they will deliver in those clutch moments when they have to secure a win, and trust that they treat others with the same respect and constructive attitude that you do.

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RESP ALL CUL

PECT LTURES

WHAT WE STAND FOR.

RESPECT YOUR ”ENEMIES”

RESPECT It should go without saying: on the Internet, just like in real life, we should aim to treat each other with respect. The old saying “treat others the way you would like to be treated” goes a long way. Say hi to the people you come across in your online matches, and be respectful of both your teammates and the opposing team, just like you would to people in the real world.

Respect your teammates, opponents and your spectators. Respect stands for constructive criticism and promoting a positive environment for everybody. Rather than yelling at your teammate for a mistake, give the player constructive criticism. If your enemy does something nice in-game, compliment them too. Be the change you want to see online (and IRL!).

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FOR PLAYERS TO KEEP FOR MATCHES. MANNERS When playing a match, if things aren’t going the way you want them to, you might get frustrated. It happens to all of us, just like how we get frustrated over things in our everyday lives. This is, however, not an excuse in any way to be sexist, racist, or in other way derogatory towards teammates, spectators or enemy players. When the match gets tense, instead of blaming your teammates, reflect on what you can change in your own playstyle instead.

COMPLIMENTS Compliments go a long way, in-game and outside of it. When your teammate makes a great play in-game – compliment them on it! Confidence is a big part of online games – if you and your team have a good team mentality, where your players are confident in their roles and tactics, they’ll have a much easier time winning their matches. If you believe in yourself and those around you, you will perform better. You win as a team and you lose as a team. Simple as that.

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Photo: Adela Sznajder

KEEP IT CIVIL GUYS!

FOR PLAYERS TO KEEP FOR MATCHES.

RACISM OR SEXISM HAS NO PLACE IN GAMING. COMMUNICATION Communication in gaming is key, you as a player will need to learn the names of maps, callouts on those maps, tactics, weapons and a whole plethora of other things, depending on what games you play. In online matches you have to communicate very fast and to the point, quick information is vital for your team to react as quickly as possible to what’s going on. Keep your voice and text communication clear of racist, sexist or hurtful remarks in your matches. Nobody wants to hear them, they give zero information, and frankly they make us all look bad.

INTEGRITY If somebody in an online match becomes hostile towards you or those around you, you can mute them. If you’re in a league online, you should contact the league administrator.

A true Ninja believes in doing what’s right towards friends, family, and the people we meet online. Doing things because you believe in them, not because of peer pressure.

Help others when you can, if not for the joy of seeing someone conquer their struggles, then to promote community and respect amongst players. The player you meet in a match online tonight might become a teammate or friend further down the line if you treat them right.

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FOR PLAYERS TO KEEP FOR MATCHES.

FAIR PLAY The thought of life as a professional gamer, somebody who makes a living from playing a computer game, was practically unheard of 10 years or so ago. Today there’s a growing number of professional streamers, players, coaches and analysts. People who have turned their love and passion for gaming into a career.

With gaming comes competition, otherwise there wouldn’t be much of a sport. Competing in a game or sport at the highest level takes an immense amount of dedication, hard work and talent.

One of the things that makes gaming great is being able to measure yourself (and your team, in games) versus others of the same skill level easily. You may not get the same physical workout as you would by playing a game of football for instance, but you will work on your hand-to-eye coordination, your communication skills, your reaction time and your ability to make the best of the situation at hand, something that is very important in real life as REMEMBER well.

BE POLITE. Fair play in gaming means respecting your teammates, opponents and spectators. It stands STICK TO WHAT IS RELEVANT. for constructive criticism, and promoting a positive environment for everybody, rather than trying to HELP YOUR FRIENDS. bring down online enemies or teammates.

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VINJETT

RESPECT YOUR TEAMMATES, OPPONENTS AND SPECTATORS. 17

FOR THE PARENTS. A few years ago the thought of people playing computer or video games online for money would be absurd. But times have changed. Today there are a number of people who play games in teams online (like Ninjas in Pyjamas). They get paid to do so by esport-organizations. The same way people playing traditional sports would get paid by their teams or sponsors. These players and their teams get to travel across the world and play tournaments in great arenas for thousands of dollars’ worth of prize money. All deriving from their common passion: gaming and competing. Players from every corner of the world and of every age, having all bonded over the game they’re playing and have learned from one another.

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Photo: Adela Sznajder

TALK TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT ONLINE BEHAVIOR.

FOR THE PARENTS.

TALK TO YOUR KIDS If your child is spending a lot of time in front of the computer, talk to them about good online behavior and how to act online. You wouldn’t let your child curse, be sexist, racist or homophobic in school or in public.

Tell your child that it is okay to get frustrated when things aren’t going their way in the game. Frustration, however, is no excuse for unacceptable behavior.

PLAY TIME Getting good at something, as you know, takes time. Just like getting good at football takes practice, so does online games. Different games have different round times, or match lengths. In general, a match takes between 30-60 minutes to finish. Since matches are played online, players can’t pause the game for more than a couple of minutes.

During this time, you as a player are committed to the match, leaving isn’t always an option. Since you’re not only playing by yourself - there’s a whole team you will disappoint if you leave in the middle of a match.

The players often get penalized for leaving, leading to even more frustration. In real life, REMEMBER you wouldn’t force somebody off a football field BE OBSERVANT OF ONLINEduring the game to leave for dinner - the same BEHAVIOR. idea applies for online gaming.

COMMUNICATE. Try talking to your child about practice times or “play time”, so that you’ll both know when the CREATE PLAY TIME. next match starts. Try to make your child understand that starting a match during dinner time isn’t always the best idea. Talk to your child about priorities – school and work should always come before playing games.

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ABOUT FRIENDS

OUR FRIENDS. The Swedish FRIENDS foundation is one of the largest anti-bullying organizations in the world, with more than 20 years in the field of preventing bullying in schools, within sports and online. The esport community is one of the largest growing youth communities and a great place to meet new friends, from all around the world, and to develop both as players and as human beings. Within esports, as well as in all other sports, things happen that make you feel uncomfortable, exposed or bullied. We all need to join forces and take a stand for every player’s right to be included and treated fair and equal, and not be exposed to bullying, racism or sexism. That’s why FRIENDS are very proud and happy to be a part of this Handbook, and for the fantastic engagement from Ninjas in Pyjamas to create a better world for every player out there.

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Design: Glory Days | Written by: Casper Bringholm | Reach out: info@nip.gl