about discrimination...

just as a side note... this game IS rated T .. right? which according to the rating standard is:

Teens - Games with the T mark are for older kids, ages 13 and up. These games often have violent content and can contain strong language.

correct me if i am wrong..

As said above, I think you are over reacting on this. There is a massive difference between trash talking and bigotry. Rare isn't looking to needlessly ban and lose players, they are looking to rid the seas of hateful and intolerant people.

@limbicfanatic thats what i mean... there is no way you can be racist to someone if you are not even sure who they are... that is exactly my point... whatever you say in that game or in any other game... is not referring to any real person. unless we are going to start pushing to defend the rights of animated beings aswell

@omnipotence13 yeah but since there are no clear rules on this.. i rather not to interact anymore since we can clearly see that whatever you say nowadays finds some sensitive ears... allthou i think it would be just more logical to USE the profanity filter which already exists, and ban yourself from voicechat if you are sensitive to being offended.. but thats just my opinion tho. i myself have been told to leave the server since my spoken english is not percet, and i have a latino accent since i AM venezuelan... but i just tell them to F. off and thats it... i dont care since whatever they say about me speaks more about themselves than about myself. the only reason why i have and will always open tickets about are Bugs and Cheating... that IS worth reporting... like i said.. it is a PIRATE game.. people is expected to behave like animal ruthless idiots. i think anyway.. just an opinion.

@limbicfanatic said in about discrimination...:

@Danutti

There's a pretty big difference between yelling at someone to go away, that they're a terrible person, that their skills are terrible, etc. versus using a racial slur (or any other slur related to their sexual orientation, ethnicity, or disability). In a nutshell, if the other person has no control over something, don't use it to insult them.

To go into more detail, certain groups of people in the US (and all over the world, but I'm going to use what I know as an example) have faced systematic oppression and discrimination from our society for generations, resulting in reduced opportunity and inequality. If you're among the privileged class, you often aren't aware of these injustices and don't see the problem with "friendly insults".

I'm not blaming you, simply pointing out that you probably have a blind spot in your worldly outlook; might be a good idea to look into this topic.

sure it is worth going in deeper in the matter... thats why i started the post... expecting to hear from other players opinion and expecting clarification from rare aswell...

@danutti said in about discrimination...:

@omnipotence13 yeah but since there are no clear rules on this.. i rather not to interact anymore since we can clearly see that whatever you say nowadays finds some sensitive ears...

They are a business. I am confident that they aren't trying to lose business. This thread seems to be trying to create a conflict where there isn't any. If you are that worried about getting banned, I suspect your language and treatment of other players is likely something that justifies a ban? No one is going to get a ban for friendly banter. Rare is anti racism, sexism, homophobia etc... none of which is friendly banter.

@omnipotence13 thats why i oponed the post for... clarification.. since saying they are taking discrimination very serious... i do not know what they will take as discrimination and what they won't... im not tryin to create conflict, just trying to understand what it seems to be a VERY BROAD description. since anyone could feel discriminated based on their own criteria. hope you and whoever reads the post undestands what i mean.

@danutti said in about discrimination...:

@omnipotence13 thats why i oponed the post for... clarification.. since saying they are taking discrimination very serious... i do not know what they will take as discrimination and what they won't... im not tryin to create conflict, just trying to understand what it seems to be a VERY BROAD description. since anyone could feel discriminated based on their own criteria. hope you and whoever reads the post undestands what i mean.

That's fair. One thing to note is that they said that they would review every piece of evidence. This means that they are looking at context etc. I have personally seen some pretty brutal behaviour on the seas, and often coming from some pretty young kids. This behaviour wasnt directed towards me, and I wouldn't say I am easily offended, but I would not tolerate that sort of stuff coming from my kids. I also wont let my kids play outside of a party chat after hearing some of the stuff there.

Game is T for teen, but you can not rate online play.

My issue is how or what do they define as “discrimination”.
In the past I’ve been locked in the brig on a random joining ship because of

• my name, refuse to dress in black, not tucking, because I’m Xbox player on a pc galleon.
  To me this hurts a little, why? But I’m an adult and so I ignore and move on. Someone curses or yells, I do it as well

But since it’s a video game and pirates theme. I act like one. Making up jibberish words one would hear in movies because that seems fair right? But, everyone so touchie....

@nightmare247365 said in about discrimination...:

@Danutti I think the rule of thumb you should follow are the following 2:

1. Can I say this in front of my Grandmother/Friend's Grandmother etc. It does not matter and should not matter if you are directing a slur or discrimination towards a player or their animated character. It is unacceptable in game play.

2. Do not be a jerk. Again if you are yelling to scream at someone because you need to spend a night with someone's mother or yelling at someone to do something horrible to themselves. (Content edited for the forums.)

My thought is if I would not want to hear that about my family member or myself I do not say it. No matter if it is in jest or not. If you are that concerned about what you say or being banned then you should take a look at what you are saying and prevent saying it.

then you will need to list the complete set of things you would and would not say in front of your grand parents... for me, i dont take that as a good rule of thumb for 2 reasons... 1. my gran parents are not alive... 2.if they were and decided to play a game rated T, they should know what to expect, like someone upthere said "in a pirate themed videogame"

Ya'll are over thinking this way too hard, just drop the slurrs from your vernacular if you already haven't. You can still swear and call people doodooheads. Just keep the slurs and homophobia out, its not that hard.

@burnbacon i hear you mate... we are on the same boat! we need clarification if it is possible, to better understand this policy announced today

@doctorfork i did mean "restraining my self from voicechat and interaction" was going to deteriorate my gaming experience.... since i do not know where the limit between gatting banned or not is.... i thought i explained myself eough, but it sure seems like i didnt... so i am glad to clarify, which is exactly what i am asking for with the post... clarification so i know what the rules are.

Honestly, the same criteria for inappropriate / discriminatory language has ALWAYS been in place with this game (and with Xbox games text and voice chats).

It's not about saying anything other than specific words, insults, and such that come from hate speech and bigotry. I think we all know what words those would be, and know what phrases are attached to oppression and mistreatment of certain people.

Also, about it being a Pirate Game - that does not mean that we are supposed to ACTUALLY act like pirates. We get to act like pirates within the game mechanics - we sail, we shoot, stab, attack, steal, etc... but that's the extent of it. You can say "ARRR" all you want. And you can call people "Scurvy ridden landlubbers" or whatever, lol, but it's just a game and it doesn't cross over into ACTUALLY being offensive, aggressive, sexist, bigoted, hateful.

It's just a game. Have fun and try and help others (even those we're killing and sinking) to have fun as well.

It's not that hard and you don't need to worry - unless you use obviously unacceptable insults - that were ALREADY something that would get you banned if anyone reported you for it.
:)

basically it looks like people are going to be able to weaponise rules that were already in place since day one. rare have openly welcomed political discussion to both the game and the community, and its likely that anyone that doesnt toe a particular line and parrot certain sentiments will get their own 'struggle session'.

facts and stats be damned, feelings rule these seas.

People, it’s not that deep...it’s just a video game. Relax a little and have fun!

@oathpower said in about discrimination...:

@danutti said in about discrimination...:

@limbicfanatic thats what i mean... there is no way you can be racist to someone if you are not even sure who they are... that is exactly my point... whatever you say in that game or in any other game... is not referring to any real person. unless we are going to start pushing to defend the rights of animated beings aswell

If you say racist things they are still racist regardless if you say them to someone specific or not.

thats why the post says "about discrimination" and not "about racism"... because i dont refer to the players that go around the seas calling people anything offensive regarding race....
That is exactly why i think clarification is in place, since feeling discriminated is entirely up to peoples feelings, which are more and more susceptible with every day that goes by, a matter which if it keeps on advancing in this direction, we might someday be reported by some animal-activist players for cannoning their ship, when their Digital cats are on board, and who know what will happen those of us who have shot them off the cannons aswell! (sarcasm intended to pin the point... just as clarification!)