Respectfully, internet forums just aren't fun to be on, and I don't see eye to eye with probably the majority of people who post here. Not that I need an echo chamber, but more so the fact that I don't think there's any value in the conversations to have outside of this very brief one. I'm not gonna spend the time to defend my point of view, nor do I necessarily care to persuade anyone to "my side."
I don't think its dwelling. Morbid curiosity more than anything. I still don't understand why a thread like this exists, nor why I have any significance in being highlighted. Maybe I myself am just blind to my own status but I am unironically aligned on the belief that I am a nobody who just posts on an internet forum.
I'll be honest, I enjoyed Era and I enjoyed the fact that it constantly highlighted social issues within video games and explored those topics in depth. I still fully support many of the Era communities that are marginalized and highlighted those issues for discussions.
Viewing video games through a critical lens and being able to put a spot light down so many different avenues of interest and how they tie back into the real world, etc. adds a layer of enjoyment that just doesn't seem to be there when you look at video games through these child-like goggles that so many people do and who only consume them at face value. If that makes any sense?
Ultimately, I disagree that Era doesn't want to chat about games or have a good time. Era wants to be a place where being critical and highlighting those issues doesn't get swept under the rug or dismissed, and that's an important space to have, because at the end of the day - We all want to be heard when we think we have something good to share.
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Anyways,
I am not going to be a GAF regular. While I fully recognize that the majority of posts about me are just taking the piss (and they're funny!), there are many posts that I've seen over this last year of randomly visiting that I can't condone, and as I'm sure you're all aware, being on the moral high horse is my personality.
Cheers!
Respect for showing up and providing your thoughts.
From my perspecive I very much agree with you on principle but disillusioned in practice from what I experienced on ERA vs GAF in the past year. I'm for discussing issues in videogame industry and how it relates to society. If games are an art form then it is only natural that they reflect modern societal tendencies so it is a great topic and such discussion elevates the whole medium outside of fanboyism etc. We should discuss sexualised female designs and minority representation and crunch etc.
But first of all, it can't be the only thing we talk about. I like Jim Sterling but his constant negativity is draining at some point. You need a balance of being aware of certain things, pushing for better things but also remember that games are also about escapism and a fun hobby especially when real world is already quite an unfair and shitty place (and I speak from a position of white cis male hetero middle-class privilege ). Cyberpunk devs may have issues with some transphobic elements in the past - but isn't it enough already to have a pinned thread where people can engage? Why are people not allowed to be excited about the game in an underrepresented genre, RPG of massive scope etc. without being constantly reminded of CDPR alleged transphobia and crunch in the OT of all places? It's weird and let's be clear - people didn't just get warned for being excited but permabanned. You can't have any quality discussion with this mindset, and it only got worse over the past couple of years culminating in this Cyberpunk, in my opinion, fiasco.
Moreover I very much am in disaccord with the ever-increasing victim mindset and need for safe space for minorities of every shape and color all intersecting across the whole forum space. It's an ever increasing tendency and simply not feasible in practice. You cannot segregate transgender, black, white, cis, dumb, wealthy, poor, slav, asian communities and respect everyone's wishes across the whole forum. It's a no-win situation for anyone and once again it stifles discussion and consensus, not helping it. The idea of multicultural diverse society is that you butt heads and strive to make the best solution that may not appease everyone but would work for large majority, not tiptoe around everyone's feelings to create the least offensive milquetoast solution that usually ends up being bland, forgettable and unsustainable as it stifles creativity and artistry. If people need a safe space (and yes it can be helpful for some posters and communities), it can be a seperate Discord channel or a single community forum thread, but the game OT, performance threads etc on a gaming forum should not be taken hostage or influenced at all by that, it should be about game. That's the idea of a forum - you can make a thread for anything and choose to engage where you want. So if someone thinks CDPR is tranphobic - that thread is helpful and people can engage and listen to transgender commuinity. But it doesn't mean that TransERA who choose to go to OT now need to remind everyone how offended they are. It's the OT, if you think the game is transphobic why did you choose to go there in the first place? Why is Kyuuji playing the game and engages there if her thoughts on CDPR are so clear? The sexualised women thread has its place and purpose, it's highlighting egregious pandering to male audience that may limit the medium's growth. Such threads can even be tagged as serious and moderated against trolls. But that's all that needs to happen: provide some space for this discussion and let the posters to also engage with some more controversial or even hostile opinions in other more global threads because otherwise growth is simply impossible. And allow some goddamn fun.
PS. Thread like this exists because it's also important to have a laugh and highlight the hypocrisy of certain fringe elements on ERA.
