After years of paralysis, the U.S. and European Union have been moving to regulate social platforms.

The EU is taking tentative steps to enforce the new Digital Services Act, which came into effect for all online platforms on Feb. 17. Some states in the U.S. are trying to control how platforms do content moderation and the Supreme Court is now considering the constitutionality of this regulatory foray. Meanwhile, the U.S. Senate is edging closer to approving legislation that would compel online platforms to introduce additional child safety measures.

But these efforts to rein in social media overlook the gargantuan online gaming industry. Video games comprise the largest entertainment industry by far, grossing almost $200 billion in revenue in 2022 (more than the music and film industries combined). Today, online gaming sites offer far more than entertainment — they are social platforms that channel user communication and enable networking and community building.

Online games should be part of the regulatory discussion concerning digital platforms — but they seldom are.

Discussions of harms in gaming historically have focused on fears about the content of the games themselves. However, the social environment of games is what actually poses significant threats to players’ safety and well-being. Exposure to hateful speech is routine while doxxing — exposing someone’s........

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