Why do some people deliberately lose?

[CirdanTheScout]

This is a strange situation I've encountered a number of times when playing Connect Four. I start a game with someone (usually with low karma) and they play in such a way that they let me get four in a row immediately, losing on purpose within the first four turns. What is the reason that a player would do this? Are they trying to bring their karma back up by playing a lot of games quickly? I always red thumb people who waste others' time like this, but I'm not sure if there's any other recourse. It's very annoying and I would think against the spirit of BGA, and gaming in general. Have others encountered this, and can anything be done?

[Mathew5000]

This is a strange situation I've encountered a number of times when playing Connect Four. I start a game with someone (usually with low karma) and they play in such a way that they let me get four in a row immediately, losing on purpose within the first four turns. What is the reason that a player would do this? Are they trying to bring their karma back up by playing a lot of games quickly?

Yes. Connect Four was specifically mentioned as a quick way to restore karma points, in this long thread from two years ago: viewtopic.php?t=24362

In case you're not already aware, you can change your settings for any game, so that you won't be matched with opponents whose karma is below 75. From https://boardgamearena.com/lobby choose SIMPLE GAME and AUTOMATIC from the drop-down menus at top, then click the cogwheel next to Connect Four (or whichever game you want). If you don't see a setting for "Player's reputation", then click "Show advanced options". (If you play both real-time and turn-based games, then you might need to follow this procedure once for each of those.)