I’ve tried writing replies to this thread a few times. I kept deleting them because I couldn’t get the words right. I also have a feeling like Why bother? But it’s encouraging to see Kastel’s and Aster’s latest posts.
With conversations like these, I feel like two things are happening. The first (call it Point A) is that people are talking about what’s on the tin: topics that are uncomfortable, the value of content warnings, etc. All fine and dandy. The second (call it Point B) is that a sort of “mood cloud” is developing over the community, like a weather phenomenon. When enough people say “I won’t play or recommend games about [topic]” then it can have a dampening effect on authors.
Sex is the big one for me. It’s central to a game like Midnight. Swordfight., for example, but lots of people have criticized that game’s sexual content. Even just the other week, someone posted an IFDB review saying they wouldn’t recommend M.S. due to the “needlessly transgressive” sex which serves “no purpose other than shock value.” I disagree with this assessment completely, but it’s not uncommon. And it can be disheartening, year after year, to hear the same refrain. At one point, I even considered editing the text because it felt like there was so much negative communal sentiment; I ultimately didn’t, but my inclination to write similar games has been dampened.
All my games have always had content warnings. I would never expect everybody to play or enjoy them, either. My suspicion is that people might respond to these comments by focusing on Point A, however, when it’s Point B that I’m talking about. Really, this is just a meandering way to get back around to Kastel’s and Aster’s posts again, and to provide a little context for why I appreciate what they said.
As for myself, I haven’t encountered it much in IF, but usually the only things I’ll avoid reading/playing/recommending are texts with a conservative religious slant, which I consider insidious; and the more “innocent” they outwardly appear, the more insidious they often are. I’ll still give some religious-themed media a chance (I thought Cygnet Committee was great), but it’s got an uphill battle to fight with me.