Users Code of Conduct
Mission Statement
The RetroAchievements project aims to provide tools for creating achievements for retrogames and ways to enjoy such creations. We strive to promote a healthy and collaborative community around this hobby. Everything we produce is made available for free and we will never profit from it.
Rules
There's a lot of retrogamers around the globe, spanning various different cultures, points of view, and opinions. Therefore, in order to provide a healthy environment for the community to share their passion for retrogames, we need some rules.
Short Version
This short version should be enough for most people:
- Don't be a jerk or generally obnoxious - nobody likes trolls.
- Don't use our website or Discord server to share copyrighted material or information about where they can be downloaded.
- Keep the Discord channels and forum threads on-topic (we do have a section for off-topic chatting, though).
- When a moderator/admin asks you to stop, you should stop.
- When in doubt, ask a @mod in Discord or send a message to RAdmin on the website.
Long Version
If the short version is not clear enough for you, here's a detailed one:
Examples of expected behavior
- Focusing on what is best for the community.
- Showing empathy towards other community members.
- Being respectful when expressing your viewpoint.
- Gracefully accepting constructive and respectful criticism.
- Reporting to moderators/admins cases where these rules are being violated.
Unacceptable social behavior
- Asking for or posting links to sites where others could download copyrighted material.
- Spamming messages or attempting to vandalize Discord or the website by any means.
- Advertising products, services, or other Discord servers without approval.
- Bigotry: This includes racism, sexism, elitism; intolerance regarding others' nationality, religion, sexual orientation, political beliefs, etc.
- Public or private harassment.
- Defamation, as in making false statements about a person that may injure their reputation.
- Threats of violence.
- Unwelcome sexual attention or advances towards others.
- Posting pornography, as in images or descriptions of erotic behavior intended to cause sexual excitement.
- Posting gruesome or gory images intended to cause disgust.
- Publishing others' private information, such as a photos of them or their physical or electronic address, without explicit permission.
Behavior strongly frowned upon
- Heated public arguments.
- Excessive shitposting.
- Personal attacks, as in making abusive remarks on or relating to one's person, instead of providing evidence when examining another person's claims or comments.
The moderators will step in to cool things down if arguments start getting out of hand. Check below how moderation works.
Freedom of Speech
If you just want to rant or dump derogatory comments about how we run things here, you're free to do that. But, as it's demotivating and wastes a lot of volunteers' time, we don't want it on our forums or Discord Server. There are plenty of options where you can do it around the Internet.
Keep in mind that RetroAchievements.org is NOT a bastion of freedom of speech.
If you have criticism, you're very welcome to say it, just be sure to be civil.
How Moderation Works
If you feel moderation is needed, ping the @mod role on our Discord server, or direct your issues to RAdmin, a shared mod-mail account.
The moderation goal is to assure users adhere to the User's Code of Conduct.
What a moderator should do after seeing a breach to the Code of Conduct:
Formal and diplomatic warning (no sarcasm, no threatening tone).
If the warning is ignored, the offender will be kicked from our Discord server.
If the offender continues to ignore the moderation, they'll be banned from our Discord server. If the offender has the "Developer" role on the website, their privileges will be removed.
Note: on the website there's no "kick". If the offender ignores the warning, the next step is a ban.
If you've been banned and somehow want to appeal to have your access back, send an email to [email protected] or a Direct Message to RAdmin.
What to do if you think moderation is wrong
If you think moderators are not acting like described above, send a Direct Message to RAdmin or email [email protected]. This is a shared moderation account that all mods and admins see. The issue will be discussed and dealt with fairly.
Admins/mods who do not follow or enforce this Code of Conduct in good faith may face temporary or permanent repercussions as determined by other members of the project's administration.
FAQ
When a member gets banned from the Discord server, are they automatically banned from the website?
No.
The member will still be able to use our services to play retrogames with achievements. But if the disruptive behavior continues on the website, they'll be banned from there too.
I created a Discord server because I want more freedom than what I have on the official RetroAchievements server. Can I promote my server here?
No.
Is it mandatory for achievement creators to join the Discord server?
No.
Joining our Discord server is optional. But if you're in the list of banned users there, you cannot have the "Developer" role on the website.