I don't do a lot of competitive multiplayer gaming. When I do, it's usually Street Fighter, Left 4 Dead 2, and more recently Modern Warfare 2. The reason I don't play a lot of competitive multiplayer is not because I don't enjoy it, it's because people are dicks.
 
Recently I've run into more and more assholes on Xbox Live than ever before. One of the more infuriating incidents was when I was playing Street Fighter, and about halfway through the second round, the other player stopped moving. We both had a sliver of health left and I figured his controller had died, so I thought "I've been there before, I'll just step back and wait for him to plug it in," and sure enough after about 10 seconds he had plugged it back in, and without giving any notice he threw a fireball at me and won. I later went on to win the final match, and was berated by two separate, terribly misspelled hate messages from the guy. 
 
So what's my point? Being nice, helpful, or supportive online to other players is usually either met with silence or hatred, so I figures why even bother anymore. Then I realized why you only hear asshole 14 year olds when you play Call of Duty, it's because everyone else has gotten tired of them like me and stopped trying all together. What kind of an online experience is this? I don't have a lot of friends who game IRL, so it's hard to play with people that I like in parties. Am I the only one who feels constantly oppressed on XBL? Is it at all better on the PSN?