Any good game/general geek sites that dont moan about sexism/racism/homophobia?

Vault101

I'm in your mind fuzz
Sep 26, 2010
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Genocidicles said:
Well I guess I'm ignorant then. I don't care. I don't give a fuck about how a female character's bust size reflects our society's view of women, I just want to know if the game is worth my time and money.
well sir....I do believe you should check your privilege

at least you're honest though
 

Vigormortis

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Genocidicles said:
While I don't necessarily see an issue with bringing political and social discussions into the realm of video games, I do have one place to recommend.

While it's not really video-gaming-centric, GeekTyrant is a good source for daily geek-culture news that generally leaves most political philosophizing out of their news reports; regardless of political leaning.

This is not to say that they never have discussions on some things, but most of their news items on geek culture events and product releases avoid going into politics.

Vault101 said:
well sir....I do believe you should check your privilege
Really, Vault? Really?

Come on. You're better than this.
 

Genocidicles

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Vault101 said:
well sir....I do believe you should check your privilege
check your privilege
privilege
*sigh*

Vigormortis said:
While I don't necessarily see an issue with bringing political and social discussions into the realm of video games, I do have one place to recommend.

While it's not really video-gaming-centric, GeekTyrant is a good source for daily geek-culture news that generally leaves most political philosophizing out of their news reports; regardless of political leaning.

This is not to say that they never have discussions on some things, but most of their news items on geek culture events and product releases avoid going into politics.
Thanks. I'll give it a look, seems alright so far.
 

Vault101

I'm in your mind fuzz
Sep 26, 2010
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Genocidicles said:
I could link you to further reading if you like ;)


Vigormortis said:
Really, Vault? Really?

Come on. You're better than this.
no I'm not, I am being 100% serious (well ok 95%), it might have become a punch line (for people who generally don't understand the idea of privilege) but this is one of the few times I would say that and mean it

because in op's case the fact that they are THAT incensed over someone bringing these things up in a context of a review or pretty much AT ALL (Honestly? is it actually in the reviews that much?) and they not only declare it utterly unimportant and irrelevant but want to actively avoid it paints a very clear picture of their outlook, and no people can care about what they want and I can't help that but there's really no being neutral here
 

Genocidicles

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Vault101 said:
I could link you to further reading if you like ;)
No thanks, I've been trying to cut down on visits to tumblr.


because in op's case the fact that they are THAT incensed over someone bringing these things up in a context of a review or pretty much AT ALL (Honestly? is it actually in the reviews that much?) and they not only declare it utterly unimportant and irrelevant but want to actively avoid it paints a very clear picture of their outlook, and no people can care about what they want and I can't help that but there's really no being neutral here
Do I come off as incensed and angry?

Look... It's in reviews often enough for it to be a nuisance to me. I want to avoid it, because I find it irrelevant in my decision to purchase a game or not... and I don't want to waste my time reading something irrelevant. Often I can't just 'read around it', because the perceived sexism or whatever has an impact on the final score.
 

MrHide-Patten

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Oh, this person had a problem with the violence with the violence/sexism/other things people are within their full rights to be offended by as the Lehman ay also find them offensive, especially if the reader is interested or in tune with the reviewers/critics preferences.

It's not like I can look at multiple sources, I'd need a system that can connect me to a wealth of information from all over the globe, but such tech is surely the stuff of Science fiction.
 

Vigormortis

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Vault101 said:
no I'm not, I am being 100% serious (well ok 95%), it might have become a punch line (for people who generally don't understand the idea of privilege) but this is one of the few times I would say that and mean it
Egh. The very idea behind the terminology is ridiculous. It is deservedly a punch line.

because in op's case the fact that they are THAT incensed over someone bringing these things up in a context of a review or pretty much AT ALL (Honestly? is it actually in the reviews that much?) and they not only declare it utterly unimportant and irrelevant but want to actively avoid it paints a very clear picture of their outlook, and no people can care about what they want and I can't help that but there's really no being neutral here
Sure there is. One can easily be neutral on this. If the OP doesn't want to listen to those kinds of discussions, he's more than welcome to voice his disdain with always seeing them. (though I'd argue what kind of prevalence they ACTUALLY have to cause such alarm, but that's another discussion for another day)

He's well within his rights of voicing his opinion. As are you. But chastising him for not wanting something you or I want isn't the best course of action.

Now, if the OP wants to actively silence these kinds of discussions, then we have a problem. Then I support your fervor entirely. But I do not believe that is what the OP wants in this instance.

There are better ways of approaching and responding to the topic. Saying "check your privilege" may seem like a concise and apt response, but it's needlessly dismissive, pointless derogatory, and does a disservice to the actual discussion people like you and I would like to engage in.

You are better than that, Vault. I've seen how smart and level-headed you are, as evidenced by your tenure here at The Escapist. We don't need to stoop such levels by using phrases like, "check your privilege".

[sub]For the record: I believe you and I are likely far more in agreement on a lot of things than this singular thread may be an indication of. So don't take my criticisms as an attack or disagreement with your beliefs.[/sub]
 

tilmoph

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Jun 11, 2013
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Genocidicles said:
I want news about games/movies/comics, I don't give a shit about whether or not something is 'problematic'.

Are there any major sites that keep this shit out of their reviews, previews and basic discussions? I don't want to give ad revenue to any company that thinks these things are relevant in the discussion of video games, tv shows or comics or whatever.

While it definitely is not major by any stretch of the term, I think ChristCenteredGamer might actually fit the bill content wise. Hold on, I know it sounds crazy, but hear me out.

The reviews themselves are focused 99% on the game's content; world building, graphical quality, mechanics, and execution and glitches. The whole christ-centered aspect comes in in 2 forms. First, at the end of the review, the reviewer will have a one paragraph overview covering things like level of mandatory drug-use, how the game treats sins like murder and theft (good, neutral, or evil acts), the kinds of things concerned parents and conservative christian types might care about. Secondly, the reviews have two sideboxes, one, called highlights, has strong points and weak points, which are focused solely on the game, and morality warnings, which are things of specific interest to the prior mentioned groups. The second is the keeping of two separate scores; the first is, again, the game score using a percent score, based on x/50. x Is the total of the subscores; gameplay (rated 0-20) graphics, sound (both 0-10) stability, and controls (0-5). The morality score, which again is separate and has no bearing on the game score, is again percent of x/50, and is made of violence, language, sexual content, occult, and ethical/moral, all having up to ten points.

The reviews themselves are detailed and well-written, and do a good job of conveying the in game experience of the reviewer, which, as noted, and in spite of the name, don't go into conservative/christian moral perspectives until the end "morality paragraph", otherwise being solely focused on the game itself. I think this might be up your alley, regardless of your beliefs, since the site does an impeccable job of separating moral and cultural arguments about a game from discussion and overview of the quality of the game as a game.
 
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Genocidicles said:
I want news about games/movies/comics, I don't give a shit about whether or not something is 'problematic'.

Are there any major sites that keep this shit out of their reviews, previews and basic discussions? I don't want to give ad revenue to any company that thinks these things are relevant in the discussion of video games, tv shows or comics or whatever.
If you find one, please let me know! I'd desperately like to know too. I would dearly love a gaming site without the social issues surfacing every which way.
 

Vault101

I'm in your mind fuzz
Sep 26, 2010
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Vigormortis said:
Egh. The very idea behind the terminology is ridiculous. It is deservedly a punch line.
maybe throwing out "check your privilege" isn't the best response since in some cases it relies on the assumption that they do fit that certain demographic (and one would look something like a fool if they didn't)...BUT

but but but but

Privilege as the general concept goes is I think a perfectly valid idea, and we often see it in action. Being able to dismiss it so freely indicates they aren't adversely affected by it

and yes I can't help what people wish and do not wish to see...its just an utter refusal to acknowledge something really grinds my gears

oh well...I suppose its better than being disingenuous
 

MiracleOfSound

Fight like a Krogan
Jan 3, 2009
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Genocidicles said:
I'm of the opinion that a review should stick to telling people whether or not the product is worth their time and money. .
If a game represents a person or their gender, race, social group in a negative light, it's very likely to not be worth their time or money.

It's perfectly fair for a reviewer to point this out. Unless they're docking it points it doesn't need to be an issue.

You might not care if it has elements that people find kinda shitty, but other people do.

This is you right now:

 

renegade7

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Genocidicles said:
Well usually when a site reviews a game, only one member of the site reviews of it. So if a game I'm interested in gets reviewed by the resident feminist instead of a reviewer who's opinion I actually care about, I'll have to go to a different site instead.
Part of the process of growing up is realizing that no one is ever going to align perfectly with your beliefs and that your beliefs aren't relevant to every damn thing. Just because a feminist wrote a review does not mean the review drew entirely, or even at all, on feminist ideology. In life, there are going to be people who are religious, or atheists, liberals, conservatives, moon landing deniers, and whatever else including feminists, and you're not going to have a choice about what the people around you believe, and if that's your attitude then you're going to be a miserable and lonely person indeed. People aren't defined solely by what causes they identify with. It's really shallow to think "this person believes differently than me, therefore I can't respect his opinion on anything regardless of its relation to the subject on which we disagree."

Genocidicles said:
Well why not? No one is stopping you. I'm a fan of metal, and I don't care if you think metal is pointless bullshit. It's your opinion, which you are obviously free to have.
Sure, but that wouldn't mean that it's pointless to everyone. If the Escapist was a music-related news site, then there would no doubt be some metal stuff discussed. It might seem trivial to you, but you're not the only person the Escapist serves. Some people actually are interested in the place of video games within society and that means we can't ignore the social influences of games and the social influences that effect how they are made. You don't have to read them if you're not interested, but don't come into such a large platform as the Escapist and then complain that it doesn't cater only to your interests.
 

BloatedGuppy

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Vigormortis said:
He's well within his rights of voicing his opinion. As are you. But chastising him for not wanting something you or I want isn't the best course of action.
Of course he's "within his rights", Vigor, but that's kind of a worthless assertion. That's not the only way we weigh or assess publicly stated opinions. Whether the person was "within their rights" to make them. We also consider things such as whether they are intelligent, reasoned, balanced, etc, etc. How we express ourselves in speech can reflect everything from our intelligence to our values.

"I like X, everything that isn't X is stupid and worthless" is an opinion people are within their rights to have, but that doesn't make it a particularly admirable or defensible position. No one can force the OP to not think that way, but the OP should fully expect a certain degree of censure if they state such an opinion in a public space.

I could have the opinion that modern economies should run on a barter system. It is my right to have that opinion! If I state said opinion in a public forum, and it faces ridicule or debate, I cannot really get stroppy about it. Well, I can, but that says something even further about me, and my ability to carry on civilized discourse with other human beings.

TLDR "I want less politics in my gaming reviews" is a perfectly reasoned statement. "I want less politics in my gaming reviews because that stuff is stupid and worthless" is not. Further elaborating on that position by suggesting the people who care about such things need psychiatric help is an openly ignorant statement. It does not merit impassioned defense.
 

Vigormortis

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BloatedGuppy said:
I was going by the opening post. I have not perused the entirety of the thread, so if further statements were made I was not privy to them.

I only quoted Vault's post because hers was directly above mine and I'd glanced at it while making sure my comment had posted correctly.
 

BloatedGuppy

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Vigormortis said:
I was going by the opening post.
The problem began in the opening post and only got worse from there. OP is welcome to their preferences, but if they choose a combative stance from the word go, they're going to find a lot of combat.

Vigormortis said:
I only quoted Vault's post because hers was directly above mine and I'd glanced at it while making sure my comment had posted correctly.
In your defense that was the first time I've ever seen someone use "check your privilege" non-ironically before. I assumed it was a straw-argument thrown around by those who go in terror of the wicked SJW hordes I am to understand are lurking behind every URL.
 

Vigormortis

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BloatedGuppy said:
The problem began in the opening post and only got worse from there. OP is welcome to their preferences, but if they choose a combative stance from the word go, they're going to find a lot of combat.
Well sure, but I've come to expect that sort of thing around here whenever this sort of topic is brought up. So I thought I'd just ignore the hostility, give a recommendation to a good geek-culture news site, and move on.

Vigormortis said:
In your defense that was the first time I've ever seen someone use "check your privilege" non-ironically before. I assumed it was a straw-argument thrown around by those who go in terror of the wicked SJW hordes I am to understand are lurking behind every URL.
That's the only reason I responded to her post.
 

Schadrach

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Genocidicles said:
I want news about games/movies/comics, I don't give a shit about whether or not something is 'problematic'.

Are there any major sites that keep this shit out of their reviews, previews and basic discussions? I don't want to give ad revenue to any company that thinks these things are relevant in the discussion of video games, tv shows or comics or whatever.
You can never be entirely free of that sort of thing, but there are some sites that at least try. Unfortunately, they are mostly smaller sites.

This site honestly isn't too bad, aside from the past year or two of the forums, but just don't click on those threads.

GoodGamers, TwentyOz, NicheGamer, TechRaptor all at least aren't at Gawker/Polygon levels. However, none of them are as content rich as this site, not even close. They just aren't big enough.