u/Sharpnelboy

Long time Chrome user here. Been using this Browser since it was launched. Had its ups and downs, but for the most part, it's been a good browser for me....

... except for this AI promo crap. Is there a way to get rid of this or turn it off? I don't want to see this every time I open a new tab.

https://preview.redd.it/3b3zykpizyqh1.png?width=929&format=png&auto=webp&s=024715c8bd31a2d1e9bf8eb838ec241a982bf215

The reason I ask is because when I heard Shadow Realm in Genshin for the first time, I immediately thought of old school Yu-Gi-Oh from way back in the Duel Monsters days. Am I the only one?

This has been on my mind for the last week or so, and I've finally decided I need to get this off my chest.

Before I get into this, if you're not in the RP space, feel free to disregard this. If you ARE a roleplayer, I encourage you to read further.

Know first, I'm an RP veteran of almost 20 years. Been in all kinds of verses, done all sorts of interactions, both SFW and not (I'm in my 30's, just to clarify so people don't freak out.) I've had a lot of ups with RP, and I've had quite a few downs. And that's what I want to talk about.

This rant isn't directed toward anybody in particular nor am I trying to out any one community in particular. This is just something I've noticed in the RP space in general, and that is people being genuinely toxic towards each other within the RP space, whether in character or out. And I've seen this time and time again. I don't think it matters whether you're in the Dragon Ball verse, High School DXD, Kingdom Hearts, Attack on Titan, DC Comics, etc. It doesn't matter. What matters here is pattern recognition.

I've noticed that whenever things spiral out of control within any given verse, more often than not it goes south really fast, and it usually starts with one person trying to single out another individual for whatever reason. Now, sometimes their reason is justified, like said individual being up to really shady stuff behind the curtain which I can't really discuss here for obvious reasons. (iykyk) However, there are a whole slew of cases where the call-outs are not justified. In other words, just some "he said she said" statement with no real confirmation on the accuser's part. And this is just one example of toxicity that I've noticed.

But it goes deeper than this. For new people, you might not be aware, but sometimes when someone is writing out an interaction, they'll drop subtle vague hints about someone or something in particular that otherwise has nothing to do with the interaction. An example of this is when someone incorporates real life issues into their writing. Now, that's not to say that incorporating some real world elements is a bad thing. In fact, I think that can be a catalyst for a story plot or even a basic interaction. But when it bleeds into the more personal, that's when it becomes an issue. (I should also note that if you're going to incorporate real world elements into your writing, at least do so with tact.)

The first time I saw something like this I didn't really think anything of it. In fact, I wasn't even part of that issue since it happened so long ago and I've forgotten all the details of what happened. But over the years, and after navigating various spaces, I've seen this kind of behavior pop up over and over again, and the one constant throughout it all was one person trying to ruin the experience for someone else, or being so aggressive to the point where they don't give anyone else a chance to explore the ideas they want to explore, which is a form of elitism.

And this is another problem: Elitism. THIS for me is a big one. I've been on the receiving end of this a couple of times, where someone has a holier than thou attitude saying "You can't portray this character in this way! You have to write them out as the source intended!" This is the kind of attitude that I HATE. Now, if you want to write a specific character the way the source material portrays them, that's fine. You do you. But don't go trying to police others into doing the same. And I've seen this happen so many times in various spaces on various platforms. And if I can be frank, it's disgusting. Because to me, creative freedom is a right and a choice that I think all writers should have. Others might not agree with this, but that is where I stand.

And the worst part is I don't see ANYONE talking about these kinds of behaviors. Yes, there are horrible people in the RP space and they deserve to be called out. And most of us are just writers who want to have fun and do silly interactions with other writers. But when the toxicity of it all starts to boil over with no one to address it, the entire space starts to feel like a backrooms maze. It's fine at first, but once things get hairy, you're constantly on edge navigating a minefield of vitriol and unnecessary drama worrying about whether or not you're gonna be the next victim. I don't know about you, but I think more people should talk about this because I feel it's just as important as the writing itself.

tl;dr There's a lot of toxic behavior in the RP space that no one is addressing and it's becoming a problem.