Shoud TNT starting considering catering to it's adult members?

[annikarose]

The Castle of Eliv Thade has the word 'libido' in it.... INAPPROPRIATE! :laughingsmiley:

[Kaana]

anyway, apart from the filters there are other things that annoy me.. like the fact that you cant pretend that 2 of yr neopets are in a relationship for example. dunno just strikes me as odd.

 

 

You're kidding. That's four of my dream pets stories down the drain...

 

I swear I've seen people linking pets to other pets on their look ups with stuff like "I love you!!! <3333333". And what about all the plot romances?

[lilshadowdweller]

When I was younger, I had my Neopets "dating". I stopped that now, due to the clear rules set by TNT. Too much work to have them be in a relationship regardless. I always thought that rule was somewhat silly. Kids play with Barbie and Ken and nothing bad happens from it. -.-;; It's like TNT wants to think all relationships surround sex. :/ When I had my pets dating, I was 12! I wasn't doing anything to bad, I just found it fun and imaginative. I'd make up stories of my Neopet having a date and nothing else. -_-

 

I understand that they make these rules and that "there are many reasons", but that answer doesn't justify the no dating thing to me. @__@ Blah.

[picky_nut]

The words filter is the main reason of why I don't go on the neo boards. It would be really nice to have a little bit more freedom in what we are saying. We can't even send outside links or pictures in neomail! When I started playing on my older account, I was 9 years old and I had to send them a letter to be able to use the neomails and the forums. I understand that they are trying to protect the younger players, but still... It's really annoying when you can't send a neomail without being stopped by the filters. By the way, is it possible to turn off the scripted chat on keyquest? I find it annoying...

[Kaana]

The thing about sending consent letters when you're under thirteen is to do with COPPA - a law regarding kids talking over the internet. If they don't get permission from your parents, TNT gets in trouble. So that one's not their choice.

[Wolf Child]

When I was younger, I had my Neopets "dating". I stopped that now, due to the clear rules set by TNT. Too much work to have them be in a relationship regardless. I always thought that rule was somewhat silly. Kids play with Barbie and Ken and nothing bad happens from it. -.-;; It's like TNT wants to think all relationships surround sex. :/ When I had my pets dating, I was 12! I wasn't doing anything to bad, I just found it fun and imaginative. I'd make up stories of my Neopet having a date and nothing else. -_-

 

I understand that they make these rules and that "there are many reasons", but that answer doesn't justify the no dating thing to me. @__@ Blah.

 

A lot of those relationships /did/ revolve around sex, though, believe it or not. I remember way back when iLovetheRain on NAF had to shake her fist at all the 14year olds who were rping sex scenes aloud on the forum. It makes sense... A large percentage of the age demographic playing neopets is that group that's either just hit puberty or just beyond it ((and now, with the age of puberty beginning at ages like 8 and 9 rather than 11 and 12, that demographic has expanded)) and that's about when young people start exploring themselves, and exploring their sexuality. I understand why neopets would have to take such a strong stance against it - you have so many kids and there's such a high risk of THOSE kinds of people showing up and taking advantage of it, which is why it's also such a bad thing to attempt to urge people off the game entirely.

The major problem though, is that when you restrict far too much it becomes ideal for people to begin branching off site for just communication purposes. Personally I'd create a language filter that turned all the words into flowers and then just monitor conversations that set off flags. Having an automated system that automatically freezes individuals without understanding the context, or whether or not it was a bad word/situation to begin with, means you're just firing the cannon at anyone who blinks wrong. TNT is in an extremely defensive possition; and like a cornered animal, it bites. If they'd just relax a bit I think they'd find that their users are a lot more trustworthy than they think, and that there are better ways to handle this than swinging at anything that moves - but that would also require hiring a real customer service center and we all know that that isn't going to happen.

Basically, neopets needs to be reworked from the ground up ((it's OLD. It needs even the most basic maintenance for gosh sakes, just look at the disaster that is premium. XD I got a friend to join neopets recently and she was like "who designed this website! A blind monkey?!")), but Nick is - like anything else connected to wallstreet - far more interested in padding it's pockets.

 

Did you guys know that neopets was originally intended for college kids? Probably my clearest memory was when 'kiss the mortog' first came out... I was making frogs explode in blood and gore all over the screen while a budweiser add played in the bottom left corner of my interface. xD'

[Trig]

Personally I'm not sure how the whole two neopets dating each other thing would work, but I definitely understand why sexual RPing isn't allowed on the boards! I never really encounter language filters in neomails, but I also never really send neomails, so maybe that is why.

[Kaana]

My plan was just to have two pets linked to each other on their lookups, and maybe one fluffy story per couple on both their pages. 'Cause fluff is fun to write, and I don't feel like I have enough excuses to do it :3 Plus relationships are a fun way to do character development. It's all just silly anyway, and completely one-off in the sense that I would write it, put it on the page and never touch it again.

 

Sexual RPing??? I actually felt like I had been slapped in the face when I read that. I have been sat here for at least ten minutes trying to think of something to say, but I still can't quite comprehend it. Especially eight year old kids.

 

I also agree with everything wolf child said about communication restrictions and redesigning the site (are you reading this TNT? I heard you sometimes look at the fan forums, just to see what we're saying. Hi!)

[Wolf Child]

My plan was just to have two pets linked to each other on their lookups, and maybe one fluffy story per couple on both their pages. 'Cause fluff is fun to write, and I don't feel like I have enough excuses to do it :3 Plus relationships are a fun way to do character development. It's all just silly anyway, and completely one-off in the sense that I would write it, put it on the page and never touch it again.

 

Sexual RPing??? I actually felt like I had been slapped in the face when I read that. I have been sat here for at least ten minutes trying to think of something to say, but I still can't quite comprehend it. Especially eight year old kids.

 

I also agree with everything wolf child said about communication restrictions and redesigning the site (are you reading this TNT? I heard you sometimes look at the fan forums, just to see what we're saying. Hi!)

 

I don't think you'll get hit for that so hard if you're careful with it. The Faerie's Ruin plot ends with the Kougra kissing the Ixi square on the mouth xb but I'd avoid anything that could be misconstrued as sexual. No sex before marriage on neopets - and the neopets can't get married ^_~

[eightbitdimwit]

At some point, TNT might have to choose between the two, or be left with only one of them. I know plenty of adult members (myself included) who've pretty much given up on socializing on the main site, in some cases because we just can't deal with the filters and the punishments for completely innocuous things. My latest warning was for mentioning that I had sleep paralysis a few times, which is apparently too horrifying and too personal for Neopets.

 

I've also seen plenty of boards complaining about the lack of activity. It's gotten so quiet over the years. Older members are, I think, much more likely to be active posters making discussions that will last, which in turn will attract more posters, but once conversation moves beyond:

 

"I LIKE HANNAH MONTANA EL OH EL!!!111"

 

"ME TOO BFFJILL!"

 

"I LOST MY FIRST TOOTH TODAY!"

 

You have to start fearing the hammer coming down at any second. I also remember that a lot of fun little things my friends and I used to do on the boards, like chat about an old game called Pokemon Crater to meet friends who were on both sites (our chats were always on Neopets), got us in trouble. So much has been taken away over the years.

 

If the downward spiral gets too steep, it might just crash. Without the ability to make meaningful friendships, enjoy a real sense of community, and be introduced to new concepts and viewpoints - I 100% believe that's what the current moderation does - people aren't going to invest as much or for as long. Honestly, the place feels kind of hollow since my old group of friends left, and there's not much I can do to replace it unless go off the main site.

[Sakabato]

The funny thing is that I hear both DJ Skellington and El Picklesaur cursing in the TNT Staff Smasher game, but then again, both of them were former staffs and the game was made during the days when it was more catered to adults back then.

[lilshadowdweller]

That's why we seek out boards like these. They fill that little void or sense of community. So I'm hearing that adult-wise, the content isn't bothering anyone, but the extreme senorship is. I think TNT is kind of kicking themselves with it. Don't get me wrong. I understand only talking Neopets on Neopets. But I like talking about reality, too. A little bit. I noticed, while I agree entirely with all points made, that the website says on the bottom of my screen: Nickleodeon, KIDS, ect. So it kind of seems like despite what people have pointed out as obvious adult content, they find themselves more of a kid geared site.

[annikarose]

If the downward spiral gets too steep, it might just crash. Without the ability to make meaningful friendships, enjoy a real sense of community, and be introduced to new concepts and viewpoints - I 100% believe that's what the current moderation does - people aren't going to invest as much or for as long. Honestly, the place feels kind of hollow since my old group of friends left, and there's not much I can do to replace it unless go off the main site.

 

I totally agree. I've tried to get into the Neo chatboards since I've come back, but they are hopelessly inane. Besides Habi gifting and faerie quests, I try to avoid them.

I've made up my mind. The boards should definitely have a board for adults, by which I mean a couple of things. No chat speak or off topic posts, and less harsh filters. My reasons are these:

1. Most of the sexual RPing sounds like it was done by kids or immature teenagers in the first place.

2. Adults who care about keeping that board are going to be vigilant in censoring anything truly inappropriate. In that case, kids who lie about their age to get into the adult board would then find a group of people who want to have mature discussions of issues related to Neopets.

[Nataluna]

what frustrates me is the nm filters, i understand boards because currently they are open to everyone over the age of 13, but neomails between players >18 (thats the legal age for everything here) should have less restrictive filters. often i've had to delete and re-write whole messages because i have no idea what the filters have picked up on.

[sakura_blossom221]

I've never really had a problem with the filters, but I can understand why some people have problems with them. I pretty much agree that Neopets does cater to an older crowd to an extent. There is content that is more fit to an older demographic.

[Trig]

Here's my thing, I definitely understand board filters and only talking about Neopets on Neopets, but I think when it comes to Neomails it should pretty much be free reign. Now, I still think there should be SOME sensorship because you will get those people that will send random neomails that are rude, but other than obvious things, there shouldn't be an issue.

 

I've also noticed that everything's gotten quieter in the past few years. In my guild, we seperated into an adults guild and a child guild, and now hardly anyone posts on the adult guild because we are all so busy and just don't have the time. Not to mention I'm never on the actual neoboards because they kind of scare me...to be honest, I won't even look on the boards that aren't about habitarium or faerie quests because I just don't see the point.

 

I do think neo is largely kid focused- but in terms on content of the site they aren't doing a terrible job engaging adults as some games are challenging, and things such as avatars, allow adults to work for something that is a little bit more difficult.

[annikarose]

Here's my thing, I definitely understand board filters and only talking about Neopets on Neopets, but I think when it comes to Neomails it should pretty much be free reign. Now, I still think there should be SOME sensorship because you will get those people that will send random neomails that are rude, but other than obvious things, there shouldn't be an issue.

 

They could easily take the filters down (or part-way down) for NMs between Neofriends. Seems like a pretty reasonable way to respond to this issue.

[Sweetdang]

They could easily take the filters down (or part-way down) for NMs between Neofriends. Seems like a pretty reasonable way to respond to this issue.

The problem with this is, small kids can add EVERYBODY. This would lead to them being open to pretty nasty stuff.

 

Sigh, filters are blegh. I remember that Angelo tried to send "the pen is" to some one, because he was talking about a pen on Neo, and it didn't send. It didn't even register to me when I was screening through it!

 

That being said, while filters are annoying, I think that there are ways around them, so I don't really find a problem there.

[lady_ryl]

The filters are way to strict, especially on the neomails. I also dont like that you cant chat someone you met on neopets, or email them. I understand that they are trying to protect the little kids, but isn't that thier parents job? personally I am 43, I started playing 7 years ago when my then 15 year old started playing and i want to see what she was up to online. now i also have a 15 and a 12 year old playing neopets, they are also on facebook, I monitor thier use to make sure that they are only chatting friends and playing games. I'M THIER MOM IT'S MY JOB!!!!!

[April]

That's a good point. But, some parents don't do that job. And should a child's life be endangered just because their parents do a terrible job?

 

TNT is just trying too hard. I understand why, but honestly, there are words that don't even seem dirty to me when I use them and then it won't let me neomail. That's ridiculous.

[lady_ryl]

they really need to take a look at the items they have on thier site. they filter stupid stuff like cucumberand yet have an item that looks like a little animal standing inside a very big condom. I can't remember what it was called, i came across it yesterday in a shop while i was buying something else.

[heather99]

The thing is, it's a money thing. If they limit parts of the site from younger kids, then they possibly lose revenue. They over-censor to avoid being sued, and avoid having parents see something inappropriate and ordering kids off the site. If there was some sort of scandal, they'd lose players, and therefore money. That's my guess about it, anyways.

[Milo]

I sort of like this idea but I think they should think about adding a sister site that you can sort of "graduate" to or something. It would open them up to new marketing opportunities so would be worth their interest, imo.

[annikarose]

The thing is, it's a money thing. If they limit parts of the site from younger kids, then they possibly lose revenue. They over-censor to avoid being sued, and avoid having parents see something inappropriate and ordering kids off the site. If there was some sort of scandal, they'd lose players, and therefore money. That's my guess about it, anyways.

 

That is definitely the reason behind it. On the other hand, if you go too far the other way and censor everything, you might annoy people enough that they stop playing. Obviously we all play even though we're annoyed, but I wonder how many players have left who primarily liked using the boards.

 

That's a good point. But, some parents don't do that job. And should a child's life be endangered just because their parents do a terrible job?

The problem with this is, small kids can add EVERYBODY. This would lead to them being open to pretty nasty stuff.

 

I don't think anyone's life is being endangered... take down the filters and kids might get sent some suggestive, possibly graphic sex stuff (probably by other kids)

or harrassed. No kid is going to run screaming into a therapist's office because they saw the words "pen is" without the space.

 

If you lower the filters to semi-filtered between NeoFriends, then the really nasty words are blocked and harassers are left with only innuendos that little kids might not even understand.

[April]

 

 

 

I don't think anyone's life is being endangered... take down the filters and kids might get sent some suggestive, possibly graphic sex stuff (probably by other kids)

or harrassed. No kid is going to run screaming into a therapist's office because they saw the words "pen is" without the space.

 

If you lower the filters to semi-filtered between NeoFriends, then the really nasty words are blocked and harassers are left with only innuendos that little kids might not even understand.

 

The thing is. Adults can go on Neopets, knowing it's a kids site and lure kids off it.

The only reason I know that because someone I knew used to do it. Though, as a kid, I didn't see anything wrong with him having children as MSN contacts. :/

 

But a child's life COULD be endangered. And Neopets staff could get into a lot of trouble for that. I think you're giving the world too much credit. Most adults go onto children's sites to talk, and act like 'the best NF ever' and then suggest talking off site. Children seldom realize that even without giving their personal information, like address and stuff, how easy it can be to find them.

 

A girl was once found because she said the name of a park she played soccer in and her soccer jersery number.

 

This is why I think that it shouldn't be lowered. But if some how, there was a way to prove one was over 18, then I feel it should be lowered. There's a premium only board, why not an 18 only board?