I'm merely bringing up another similar story with a different outcome that garnered different reactions. I think it's an interesting to discuss the similarities and differences.
I think it's quite different, because of the difference in intent.
Intention is to obtain large amounts of assets, which is a normal gameplay gain for the swindler. The resulting harm to an individual, was a by-product which cannot reasonably be predicted, due to the game environment.
Swindling, fundamentally, there is the thing about Trust. The game environment repeatedly mentions about Trust, and how trusting the wrong person is hazardous. Therefore, you cannot reasonably trust people you do not know to be telling the truth when they say "X is an unbalanced person".
People sometimes kill themselves in poker games because of losing heavily. Do poker players get paranoid that one of their opponents might be in that situation ? I don't get the impression that's the case.
Comparison to the Mittani's thing, where the intention was to target a specific person, for no gameplay reason, other than to make them quit the game, and possibly harass them into killing themself.
There's no real way to make that into a positive thing publicity wise.
Morwen makes a point too, about the attention. There's people I've encountered, who have talked (in ooc channel) about how people should lay off them abit, because of them being "depressed" about a direction that RP went in. I think there was one thing where someone had a thing, and someone else saw them ingame doing something different, and called them out IC, and the person complained OOC, and said it was so unfair people were picking on them. It was bad.
I would feel bad, if someone killed themselves, but things like that happen. I've had friends and relatives, who I have said things to, or not said things to, and then, before anything else can happen, someone dies. It is sad, and I go "i should have done X", but life goes on. I can't be relentlessly nice and upbeat 110% of the time, and neither should I.
And people threatening to kill themselves, well, it makes me angry, because they are saying that other people, shouldn't get to enjoy a game, because of Them. Well, that's very selfish. Especially when they're not serious. Because people who are genuinely that upset, aren't generally that talkative about things.
I dunno. vOv