Publisher Plaion has backed away from the rules previously set for the Warhorse Studios game and is now asking users to behave (with less rather than more success…).

Originally, a zero-tolerance policy against discrimination of any kind, including racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, and other toxic behavior, went into effect on January 17. Hate speech and harmful ideologies (white supremacy, neo-Nazism, harassment) were also banned. Violators could be temporarily or permanently banned.

Then Plaion withdrew the rules and replaced them with shorter, less detailed guidelines. “Over the past few days, we’ve listened to your feedback and updated the Community Guidelines to better reflect the kind of place we all want to be. We’ve made them clearer, simpler, and shorter to keep things fair, respectful, and focused – thank you for joining us on this journey,” says Deep Silver (a subsidiary of Plaion) in a new message.

These are the new guidelines. Respect others: Treat everyone fairly. We’re not trying to stifle free speech, but ad hominem attacks that criticize others for their choices – whether in-game or in conversation – have no place here. Stay on topic: Keep discussions focused on Kingdom Come: Deliverance. No spoilers without warning: Use spoiler tags or clearly label posts with details. No spam or self-promotion: Irrelevant posts or promotional content will be removed. Follow Steam’s guidelines: These guidelines are in addition to the Steam Community Guidelines.

The problem is that the general, simple approach to moderation is not working these days. Evidence of this can be seen in the many posts that now litter the forums, including racist comments, complaints about bisexual characters, and posts about the “truth” about Mali. At least one NPC in the game is said to be from Mali, which is presented as a safe and developed nation… there are also complaints that developer Warhorse Studios has caved into the DEI culture war bogeyman.

Source: PCGamer