The Caps Rule

[Stryfe]

Several of us a while back had been going over some of the rules, and it has come to several of our's attention that we could go a bit lighter on the caps. I say we should make it 3 words, at least. Not only I think this, but Kija and others as well. Any other thoughts?

[Mettool]

Most of the rules are well and good, and were put in place because the game had such a big playerbase back in the day.

But we average maybe 15-20 people at peak hours, and some of the rules, including the caps rule and most of the swear filters, should be enforced less or taken out alltogether.

The game, basically, is now a chatroom. If the overall population were to drop below 15 people at peak hours, it would seem like a cruel dictatorship to heavily enforce every single rule to just a handful of people.... people would hate us and we would gain a terrible reputation on BYOND.

So I think we need to go over all of the rules and pick and choose which ones are needed and which ones are not. There's players that still fear the admins on this game, and there's still backseat moderators. We need to eliminate those components immediately. And we can only achieve this goal by easing up and granting out players freedom... not by making new rules and watching everyone with a hawk's eye.

So... Instead of making it three words... let's make the limit more than one line. Three is nothing.... And you certainly cant say "I'M THE JUGGERNAUT, BITCH" with a 3-word limit

[Kija]

I think it depends. Sometimes I think people get too worked over it, trying to get every single word or letter. There are many times though where people do use over use capital letters, creating an annoying amount of spam.

I am in favour of making the rule a bit lighter, but I still believe all rules should be enforced equally, regardless of the amount of people online. If we started to play favourites and became a game of few rules, then we would really have a terrible reputation on BYOND because all the spammers and idiots would be allowed to do what they want, lowering the place into a more chaotic state. I think that by enforcing the rules, we would have a better reputation because we would have a less chaotic game, where people could enjoy themselves without the worry of the people that would be there if were fewer rules.

So far, I believe we have done well with the rules to keep the game clear of those sort of people. Most people know what not to do, and the game is much better for it. You do not see idiots spamming "Stfu" because they cannot. Those sort of people are usually banned or leave after finding out that their behaviour is not possible here.

I do not think the majority of people fear the adminstrators. We have been very kind to the players and even play the game along with them, without the use of special powers to cheat our through. I believe that they most show us respect because we have been good people not because of our ability to ban them if they slip up. This can vary depending on the person, but I believe that is the case for most.

Even with lower players, I do not consider the game a chatroom. Pretty much everyone online is playing the game and usually having fun doing so. And most people are not speaking over worldsay during those times, so it can hardly be called a chatroom. But I would like to get some more updates out soon, so people would be more willing to come back and try new things. It is why I want to get Vallatio done soon, and hopefully get the new map out soon as well.

From the rules I have seen so far on the rule list, I do not see much wrong with them. Most of them are just about respect, which is a good thing. The main rule I can see being changed right now is the capital letters limit rule. It can possible be lightened a bit. The advertisement rule seems to have caused some conflict and different points of view on though. Some people have complained that they were only discussing a game and were said to be advertising and to stop speaking about the game. I cannot say what really happened because I was not there, but I think we should set down some more clarifying details on the rule, such as would it be okay to say "I like that game; I think you should try it sometime." compared to "Go play that game now!" or just say "I like this game."

[Stryfe]

So...who edits the rule now?

[Mahn]

Faru would edit the rule/rules on the website when something is AGREED upon in alteration of it/them. Of course, it would also be edited in the game's "rules" html file.