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There appears to be no real objection to the list of "acceptables" and "unacceptables" that have been presented below over the course that this question has been setup. This is a last call for any additions, removals, or concerns on an updated FAQ.

We started off with a FAQ building question, one which we really didn't use, because our needs and style evolved to invalidate it. The FAQ has been updated a few times, but only to add small bits for shopping recommendations. A recent game rec brought to mind that the FAQ isn't really that clear, and the word choice doesn't really help. Fact is, applies to repositories in general.

I wanted to do some revisions, mostly in the line of the Seasoned Advice FAQ. They talk about the categories of allowed questions, then cover a bunch of cooking-related questions that are not on-topic. That looks just like what we need.

But... our list of "What you can ask" is... terribly non-descriptive. It highlights 3 classes of platforms, without saying anything about the kinds of questions you can ask about those platforms. So, I can't even make as smooth a transition. And rather than hammer this all out in secret, I figured let's work on fixing this together.

How would you describe the kinds of questions we can actually field, in simple bullet points? How do you define the kinds of questions we handle, outside of the basic "Puzzle solving and level/boss strategies" which would probably be our first bullet point? What can we do to demonstrate what is acceptable in a way that can lead into a simple "What about other gaming-related questions" that we can then list off the kinds of unacceptable questions?

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  • For your information we can only edit the text above the "Please look around to see if your question has already been asked" sentence, and only on the main site (not this meta). Also, have a revision history.
    – badp Mod
    Commented Feb 21, 2011 at 18:57
  • Hah, I suppose I should've mentioned that. Thanks, @badp.
    – Grace Note StaffMod
    Commented Feb 21, 2011 at 18:58
  • If I could I would set What kind of questions can I ask here? to Questions about game play or issues that occur while playing games.
    – tzenes
    Commented Feb 21, 2011 at 19:10
  • What's going on with this question? Why are there 3 CW answers? Perhaps we should just suggest individual do / don't items, upvote what we want and downvote what we don't want.
    – Oak
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 17:50
  • @Oak I want people to suggest how the FAQ should look. I posted my CW answer to indicate our current scope, but what I'd like to see is people contributing how the FAQ should look like, either built from that scope or from other experiences. It can come in the form of a whole element to just some portion of it. That's how I initially planned it. I don't really agree with individual "Do / Don't". We have a history of issues with those kinds of polls, haha~, and a lot of these aren't actually up for debate. What I'm asking for here is writing.
    – Grace Note StaffMod
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 17:51

3 Answers 3

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Gaming – Stack Exchange is for passionate videogamers from all platforms, including consoles and handhelds. If your question generally covers …

  • game mechanics, as in understanding how a videogame models reality
  • game strategy, as in planning your action to master a certain aspect of a videogame
  • game tactics, as in executing your plan to clear a particular section of a videogame
  • game plot, as in understanding what is going on in a videogame's story
  • game communities, as in interacting with your fellow gamers
  • game resources, as in finding lists or wikis or support for a videogame

… and you're not looking for…

  • game recommendations, as in choosing the videogame you should play next. There's chat for that.
  • game catalogues, as in finding videogames or mods satisfying whatever criteria. There's Wikipedia for that.
  • game speculation, as in asking us to read the future for you. There are news sites for that.
  • game piracy, as in getting help with your pirated copy of a videogame. There are .nfo files for that.

…then you are in the right place to ask your question!

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  • ...my attempt to capture both sides of a [game-rec] makes it sound like we don't allow [identify-this-game], however. If you have suggestions, you know where the edit link is.
    – badp Mod
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 16:49
  • 1
    Listing, repository, catalogue...
    – Grace Note StaffMod
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 17:33
3

Off the top of my head, here is a random smattering of items, unorganized and not proofread, that we do and do not allow based on what living questions we have on the site. Use these to help construct your own thoughts. And feel free to suggest any that I've missed that you see while browsing in the site. This post is meant to document not what we should or should not allow, but just be a general overview of what we actually have.

I'm also not listing Identify This Game in either category. I don't think it needs to be explicitly put in the FAQ, much like Code Golf was never in the FAQ for Stack Overflow.

DO

  • Puzzle solving and level/boss strategies
  • Learning specific in-game moves and maneuvers
  • Meta game strategy and in-depth
  • Game mechanics - how do things work really?
  • Resources for gamers (This one really needs to be shaped up)
  • Gaming aids like charts and maps
  • Gaming terminology
  • Story and plot of games
  • Game software/hardware troubleshooting

DON'T

  • Shopping advice of any sort
  • Repository/list of games or mods under any criteria
  • Adult game questions
  • Mod development and map editing (goes to game dev!)
  • Game development in general
  • Piracy-related questions
  • Questions pertaining to gaming-related merchandise
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  • @Grace I'm confused by the Resources for Gamers part of the Do section; can you link to a few examples of what you meant there?
    – Mana
    Commented Feb 21, 2011 at 19:46
  • 1
    @Mana gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/5762/…, gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/16639/…, and gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/15424/… cover the general gyst of these. Basically, questions about resources that gamers can use for their trade. Yes, it's hopelessly vague. That's why it needs to be shaped up.
    – Grace Note StaffMod
    Commented Feb 21, 2011 at 19:49
  • Thanks, @Oak. I don't think people consider playing mods to be "modding", but "mod development" is indeed much more defined terminology.
    – Grace Note StaffMod
    Commented Feb 22, 2011 at 14:02
  • Your conversations about Modding made me think; I don't know whether or not it actually needs to be explicitly defined, but it may be worth including some mention of "Getting mods to work on your system" in the "Troubleshooting" point.
    – Margaret
    Commented Mar 1, 2011 at 1:34
  • @Margaret Very interesting point. To me, for the various definitions of mods (from equivalence with patches to equivalence to full games), getting them to work counts as software troubles. But I'm not entirely opposed to the explicit mention.
    – Grace Note StaffMod
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 16:39
  • Added a point about gaming merchandise, even though it's probably related to shopping advise.
    – Kevin Yap
    Commented Mar 3, 2011 at 17:34
0

Gaming – Stack Exchange is for passionate videogamers from all platforms, including consoles and handhelds. If your question generally covers …

  • computer video gaming (Windows, Linux, OS X, …)
  • console video gaming (Xbox, Playstation, Wii …)
  • handheld video gaming (PSP, DS, iPhone …)
  • retro video gaming (NES, SNES, GB …)

… then you are in the right place to ask your question! Just make sure you…

  • don't ask game you should play next,
  • don't ask if there are any games/mods satisfying whatever criteria, and
  • don't ask us to read the future, and
  • don't ask for help with piracy,

otherwise, we won't be able to help you.

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  • Whoops, I forgot to actually put my suggestion here.
    – badp Mod
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 16:09
  • I'll put it out there, that I'm not really a fan of needing to update the FAQ for available platforms as time passes.
    – Grace Note StaffMod
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 16:28
  • @Grace I tried to be less specific about that, but I guess it'll be a necessary evil eventually.
    – badp Mod
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 16:37
  • 1
    This is why I'd actually prefer to talk about the subjects of gaming rather than the platforms. We already say we're about all platforms with the whole "passionate videogamers from all platforms, including consoles and handhelds". That way, we won't have to update over time. ♪
    – Grace Note StaffMod
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 16:38
  • @Grace I tried that in another answer.
    – badp Mod
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 16:48

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