Re: So Adult Games...
I can see Fleahop’s point that having so many games tagged as Adult gives a bad impression of the site. Regardless of what is actually contained in the games, or what rationale led the GM to choose that rating, all a visitor to the site can see is ADULT, ADULT, ADULT, all down the page, and everyone knows what ‘Adult material’ means, don’t they? (nudge nudge, wink wink).
That perception may be mistaken in our context, but it is the common perception nevertheless - particularly to a newcomer who is not familiar with our usage of the term, and I can see how it may turn away potential members.
If your multiplex cinema gets a reputation for showing mainly X rated movies, and being frequented by a bunch of old men in raincoats, you might not be comfortable going there, or allowing your kids to go there, even when it advertises a Disney. Having too many Adult-rated games can threaten our family-friendly reputation.
I think the site would benefit if, instead of hiding behind a label, GMs took responsibility for the content of their games. If you want a game that has no graphic sexual content, just a smattering of language, and limited gore, then make your game Mature, and enforce its content. Don’t make it Adult ‘just in case somebody does something I don’t want them to do’.
If you rate your game Adult, you’re sending a message to players that Adult content is OK, and of course they’re going to push it. The argument of ‘see, that post would have got me moderated if I’d labelled this game Mature’ doesn’t hold water. And in any case, there are things that players can post, even in an Adult game, that can get you moderated, so you’re still not safe, even hiding behind the Adult tag. (You’re also making the tacit assumption that the moderators are incapable of discerning who’s at fault).
I’ve been playing on this site for over seven years, I’ve never run an Adult game, and I’ve never had someone post something that was inappropriate for the level of game I was running. Either I’ve had a run of very mature-minded players (despite not banning minors) or the folks who run Adult games ‘just in case’ are plain paranoid. If any ‘incident’ did occur, I would deal with it, and if it got reported to the moderators before I’d dealt with it, I have every confidence that they would support me in dealing with it, rather than going overboard and beating me up for it.
If you want to post explicit sexual or criminal activity, make an Adult game. If you want to post sickening gore or potty-mouthed language, make an Adult game. If you want none of those things, make your game Mature, or even General, and help to clean up the perception of Rpol to potential members.
As a linked topic, I’m very much opposed to the blatant ageism displayed, promoted, and even revelled in, by a number of Rpol GMs. I’m likewise opposed to the abuse of the Adult label to support and promote that ageism. That, in itself, is something that visitors may find offensive. It’s another aspect of Rpol’s public image that we may want to examine.
Over-18s do not have a monopoly on reliability or good behaviour.
Yes, teenagers have school or college responsibilities - and adults have work responsibilities.
Yes, teenagers have parents making demands of them - and adults have husbands, wives and children making demands of them (and parents too).
Yes, teenagers can be fickle - so can adults.
Yes, teenagers can get stroppy - so can adults.
Yes, teenagers can find it difficult to string three words together - so can adults.
By all means remove people from your game who harm it with their lifestyle, behaviour or capability, but there is absolutely no rational reason for GMs to discriminate on the grounds of age. That’s just bigotry. It’s not what the Adult label is for - or it shouldn’t be, IMO.
How is ‘I don’t want kids in my game’ different from ‘I don’t want women in my game’, or ‘I don’t want Quinces in my game’, or ‘I don’t want Nectarines in my game?’ Surely the Adult label is there to protect innocents, not to enforce GMs’ prejudices.
Sensible teenage players have enough problems finding a decent game here as it is, with the restrictions imposed on them from the outdatedly prudish international censorship system (which, of course, is beyond the remit of our moderators to relax) without making things more difficult for them by prejudicially banning them from games they ought to be able to participate in.
Just my 2 coins.