So lately, I've had a few people question why we have rules such as no cursing in our servers for a rated M game (CS:S, but I think this pertains to any game you'd like). Many people do not seem to understand the concept that cursing may be unpleasant for other players, and that we have people who play in our servers that are under the age of 18. Also, regardless of age, most people prefer not to listen to obscenities yelled or typed repeatedly, especially when there is absolutely no reason for it other than to express anger.
Now that I have covered the context, I will explain the method of deterrence. (Please excuse this if someone else has posted this already, but this is entirely of my own thought)
ESRB (the suits who rate the games we play) takes into account ONLY what is in the game itself. Thus, for our clan's sponsored games (which are almost purely based on multiplayer) are rated for things such as: blood+gore, language, themes, violence, etc. However, the rating does NOT take into account other people who play with you, where ESRB covers their backs with either of two statements: 1)"Game experience may change during online play" OR 2)"Online interactions not rated by the ESRB." (there may be more, but these are the only ones I have seen).
Therefore, we have unarguable justification (along with the fact eGO runs the servers), right on the box. Though ESRB was likely covering their backs in case the rating went from a T to M/AO, the responsible folks at eGO have done the opposite and changed an M rating to the T (or lower, depending on division).
Now I understand that people should not be arguing with how we run our own servers, but not everyone is perfect. However, telling them that "the gaming experience HAS changed" (or something of the sort that doesn't sound as lame) tends to prevent any more haggling over server policies.
I feel a bit pretentious for writing the above statement, but I think that this is a useful tool for any member of eGO, as maintaining peace within a server should be a priority.
And to all who read this, thank you for your time.
Now that I have covered the context, I will explain the method of deterrence. (Please excuse this if someone else has posted this already, but this is entirely of my own thought)
ESRB (the suits who rate the games we play) takes into account ONLY what is in the game itself. Thus, for our clan's sponsored games (which are almost purely based on multiplayer) are rated for things such as: blood+gore, language, themes, violence, etc. However, the rating does NOT take into account other people who play with you, where ESRB covers their backs with either of two statements: 1)"Game experience may change during online play" OR 2)"Online interactions not rated by the ESRB." (there may be more, but these are the only ones I have seen).
Therefore, we have unarguable justification (along with the fact eGO runs the servers), right on the box. Though ESRB was likely covering their backs in case the rating went from a T to M/AO, the responsible folks at eGO have done the opposite and changed an M rating to the T (or lower, depending on division).
Now I understand that people should not be arguing with how we run our own servers, but not everyone is perfect. However, telling them that "the gaming experience HAS changed" (or something of the sort that doesn't sound as lame) tends to prevent any more haggling over server policies.
I feel a bit pretentious for writing the above statement, but I think that this is a useful tool for any member of eGO, as maintaining peace within a server should be a priority.
And to all who read this, thank you for your time.
I'm gonna use those from now on.
