Community Code of Conduct
(updated Jul 7, 2023)
These rules apply to the forum and anywhere else the community interacts (Direct Messages, Discord, etc.). Repeated behavior can result in temporary suspension or a ban.
Hate Speech
Discriminatory slurs or bigoted language targeting users, staff, or people outside of the community, including but not limited to sexism, racism, transphobia, homophobia, ableism are prohibited. Making attacks against users based on their identities, including religion, is not tolerated.
Harassment
Making threats or attacks, or suggesting suicide to other users for any reason, including difference of viewpoint, is not tolerated. Do not use this forum to organize or harass others outside of the site.
Inclusiveness
Understand and be considerate of the viewpoints and experiences of others. It is possible to be funny without being hurtful. When others set boundaries, respect them as much as possible, even if your posts or behavior are otherwise following site rules.
Reporting Behavior
If you see a post you feel is violating the rules or code of conduct, flag the post to let moderators know to investigate. There is no need to respond directly to posts that violate rules - this typically will only aggravate any issues.
If you encounter any behavior outside the forum affecting it’s users, feel free to reach out to forum staff directly with concerns.
Forum Rules
These rules apply to the content of threads and replies on the forum.
Post Formatting
Creative use of topic formatting and layout is encouraged, but make sure to account for accessibility of the content you want to share. Double or Triple posting in a topic is fine if there is sufficient separation of ideas, but when replying to multiple posts at once, condense them if possible.
Content Warnings
Use discretion and try to add proper warnings to potentially harmful content, particularly violence or sexual assault. This applies to images, language, and the content or plot of games and other media. If you are unsure of the topics that may warrant content warnings, the guide for wikipedia editors may be useful. This site can be a place to discuss difficult topics, but acknowledge that not everyone has the same experience or tolerance for them. Please follow the code of conduct rules for inclusivity and respect other’s set boundaries, especially when discussing in a thread started by another user.
When writing a post, spoiler text can be added by clicking the gear icon in the top of the text editor and selecting “Hide Details”.
Spoiler Text looks like this
This text will be hidden
Advertising (Plug Policy)
This rule is currently a bit more relaxed, as the situation with social media platforms is very unstable.
The general conceit of the plug policy is that you should not treat members of this site as a source of your “audience”. It’s understandable that for game development, a significant factor is marketing, and indies rely on each other for support and signal boosting. The best way to achieve that is to actually participate in discussion and gain the trust of other users, instead of only attempting to direct them towards your social media. Be memorable and helpful, and others will remember to help you.
The hard rule of the plug policy is that your posts should not solely contain links to social media or other locations related to projects, unless explicitly allowed by the thread topic. When creating a devlog, make sure links to those places are readily accessible in the original post, and don’t flood your own thread further. A link to a tweet you made does not count as a devlog update. You may use social media post links to bring videos or other game content into your updates, but you must include editorial, or requests for specific feedback.
Images and Media
If you can, try to host media (images, gifs, videos) off-site and link them in. The host server has a decent 40GB of space, but that can be eaten quickly when taking backups into account.
Leaks and Piracy
If content is not yours to share, or not public, don’t share it. Uploading or posting links to pirated or cracked products is prohibited.
Attribution
When sharing public media created by others elsewhere on the web, make sure it is easy to find the credits and source of that media. Don’t crop out artist signatures.