“We need to determine the meaning of being safe like (players) all over the world:” an ethical blog in games
We have seen it all. The main headlines that separate the harassment of developers after a large release, for the “crime” of some inductions, exceptions or design options. The exhibition comments section is full of hateful comment and abusive language in specific games and teams. Reports of complete studios are demobilized days after the title of a very expected title. We see it every day, but what can we do to change it? Celia Hodent, a UX strategy, believes that a coherent behavior blog for this industry is the answer, which is less intimidated than many believe.
Hodent began to collapse ethics in the Gharbiya Games by mentioning many similar symbols in other parts of the world. “What is important in the Ethics Blog?” The question I asked was.
As a person who always felt nervous than censorship and restrictions, I was curious to find out how a set of rules could make society safer and build better games. Its points of ethics in games really changed my view on how such a symbol made the development of games and games better for everyone.
What is the ethics code?
When I think the “code” is in any capacity, I think about the list of rules. A set of guidelines that govern how people think and behave. This is probably the reason why I realized that the Ethics Code may be limited in the creative process. However, exactly collapsed, how the ethics code will look like. These rules will create protection for players, including safety expectations in events or within a society and the player alike in buying and playing a title. It will also create strong expectations for what players buy, setting better rules about liquefy and marketing.
Most players are more than knowing the extent of the predator of some live service games. Plasting boxes, season passes, and plague societies, with a few guidelines on how they work. Often, the only current list is to suspend the player, and even recovery from societies does not always encourage companies to change or improve how they work.
In addition, the ethics code will create protection for developers and those who make games. This will include a better transparency for the company’s values, the protection of workers, diversity and influence on the environment.
At a time when anyone can lose their job for almost any reason, these types of protection are invaluable for those who pour their heart and soul in a company’s IP address. It will also create better protection for developers in trenches, breaking up harassment, and strengthening the healthiest work environments for those in the industry.
It seems great when collapsing this way, so why did it take a long time until the ethics blog is built and used in Western industry? Unfortunately, she left a mixture of wrong information and many perceived barriers that are not sure of a global set of guidelines. Hodint explained that this bias prevented companies from engaging or even returning to a potential symbol.
Thought in your mind
I mentioned above that I had many ideas about the form of ethical code in the game industry. Unfortunately, these barriers are common. Hodint said that an ethical code has not been implemented is that companies believe they are very expensive, very complicated, or very excessive so that they are not effective. There are concerns about censorship and many believe that the police to support a law will lead to legal nightmares and public relations.
There are more benefits than we can count when trying to make the industry a safer place for creators and players. “We care about the players who enjoy”, but many of this fun has been lost in recent years as hostility and anxiety from an increase.
These symbols can guarantee the safety of players and developers, but also protect companies by managing toxicity before starting them. Hodint explained that one of the largest financial burden companies comes from players who avoid titles due to matching toxicity and harassment. Safe players want to play more, and this in turn helps those who make games.
In fact, these “barriers” can be chances if we change our mindset. Instead of thinking about an expensive symbol, we can see that it is an investment. We invest in a comprehensive set of guidelines that everyone aims to adhere to, and to create an agreed group of expectations and behaviors.
Who makes rules?
The most difficult part of making an ethics blog is to determine what should be included and how it should look. Hodint explained that we need to “protect our art from moral panic”, and prepare the code content in studies and evidence/data based on science. “How do games actually affect players?” How can we provide guidelines and rules that address real problems, not perceived problems?
She explained that “we need to define the meaning of being safe like players around the world,” saying that the best way to do this is to agree to be collective in real issues, and to create solutions, then support these solutions with resources and guidelines.
The fact is that the ethics blog in the games will not be an easy task, but Hodent believes that time has come now. She concluded that “together, we can make the industry a safer and more acceptable place,” if there is any moment where you defend our values ​​in this industry, then this is. “
After my perception of this case was completely changed due to its collapse, I could not agree more.
