There are a lot of subjects that are often considered taboo and because of this I’m trying to decide what subjects are not a good idea to include in the anime school sim I’m working on. The game takes place at a high school with students aged 13-18. My goal is to make the game as personalized to user intended experience as possible. But at the same make the game acceptable and suitable for both teens and adults. I don’t plan to include nudity, graphic violence, rape, or drug use but I am curious about how people would react to other aspects such as: 1) Being able to pursue relationships with members of either sex. 2) Sex (no actual sex scenes) 3) Cross dressing Are there other subjects that you would feel would not be appropriate to this type of game? And does it make a difference if it is implied or explicit? What would your reaction if after pursing a girl for half the game you discover that she is actually a man? Would it bother you to see a have to interact with a same sex couple?

Another trio about this game....


I don't think 1 will bother anyone. 3 shouldn't bother anyone, since it's an anime style game. 2, however, is a big no-no. Don't forget - your characters are mainly minors. It won't bother me personally, but with all the fire the game industry is drawing, I won't recommend doing something like this.


Another subject you don't want to touch is card fighting :-) Just in case. I don't want to see any card fighting if I try out your game.

Personally, I think that anything and everything is appropriate.

For most people though, I think you should probably stick to the Sims as a guideline. It I'd think would let you get away with all three.

Another thing to consider is implimenting a rating system for your gameplay elements. That could allow you to enable/disable things depending on your target audience or release a seperate 'NC-17: Adult Situations' version.

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Original post by TechnoGoth 1) Being able to pursue relationships with members of either sex. 2) Sex (no actual sex scenes) 3) Cross dressing

All in Fable.

I wouldn't really have any problem with any of those things, but it depends strongly on what target audience you are aiming for. Here in Australia, the Sims got a MA 15+ rating from the sexual content alone, which if you were aiming for children or young teens would hamper your image with their parents.

If I were building this game, due to the fact that your characters are students I probably wouldn't include any sex in the game (even if its purely implied), as that's a bit too risky (in terms of either being banned or risking a lawsuit), and would damage your chances of being seen to be acceptable for kids. Cross dressing really should be fine with any audience (it's like pantomime). Most people won't have a problem with being able to pursue relationships with members of either sex (however some people may, but your game will probably be not so blockbuster successful that it will attract those sorts of people's attention).

And I personally don't mind card fighting [smile].

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Original post by TechnoGoth What would your reaction if after pursing a girl for half the game you discover that she is actually a man?

Is that not how MMO games work already?

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Original post by d000hg Quote: Original post by TechnoGoth What would your reaction if after pursing a girl for half the game you discover that she is actually a man? Is that not how MMO games work already?

You mean the entire intrawebnet since online chatting became popular?

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Original post by TechnoGoth There are a lot of subjects that are often considered taboo and because of this I’m trying to decide what subjects are not a good idea to include in the anime school sim I’m working on. The game takes place at a high school with students aged 13-18. My goal is to make the game as personalized to user intended experience as possible. But at the same make the game acceptable and suitable for both teens and adults. I don’t plan to include nudity, graphic violence, rape, or drug use but I am curious about how people would react to other aspects such as: 1) Being able to pursue relationships with members of either sex. 2) Sex (no actual sex scenes) 3) Cross dressing Are there other subjects that you would feel would not be appropriate to this type of game? And does it make a difference if it is implied or explicit? What would your reaction if after pursing a girl for half the game you discover that she is actually a man? Would it bother you to see a have to interact with a same sex couple?

I wouldn't have a problem with a game dealing with any kind of subject, at all. However, you need to be carful with subjects such as the ones you mentionned. They have to blend really well into the gameplay. Take homosexuality as an example. It's fine by me, but a game where I have the ability to drag anyone into my bed would just break the game for me. Not everyone is bissexual. Same goes for stuff like cross-dressing. Some people enjoy it, most don't. Your game should reflect that. (Yes, even in a semi-fictionnal world. As long as it contains an "highschool" at least.)

"Anime highschool sim" usually means "Hey look I'm watching hentai but I can't assume it so I disguise it as a game." Seems like you're trying to break from the mold; which is good. Just don't fall into the trap of having such a game without hentai, or nobody'll play it. If we made a poll on who dealt with cross-dressing in highschool, who would raise its hand ?

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What would your reaction if after pursing a girl for half the game you discover that she is actually a man?

I would find it incredibly stupid. 13 years old do not cross-dress and pretend to be of another sex in public for their whole highschool life. They also participate in physical education classes where they might be naked in front of an arbitrary number of their peers. If this subject is important to you, a setting change would be in order.

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Would it bother you to see a have to interact with a same sex couple?

No. But unless I chose to become friends with them and succeed, I shouldn't see them making out every minute.

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Original post by TechnoGoth Are there other subjects that you would feel would not be appropriate to this type of game?

Yes. Something like this would probably be an inappropriate subject.

Nothing should be taboo in games. If video games are going to be legitimized as a true artform then they need to be accessible from every imaginable stance, viewpoint, perspective...no matter how questionable the subject matter therein. (except in the case of pRon)