Other Roleplay Pet Peeves

GoldenSlime said:

Well, if saying no comes off as an attack to them then I think I dodged a bullet. .-.
(sorry if I was short, today hasn't been the greatest day and this didn't really help but I probably should've just walked away and collected myself before responding rudely)

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Lol it’s fine I was probably not the best at expressing myself either. I do apologies if you thought I was being rude.

But yeah some folks are pretty sensitive. Being blunt does tend to make roleplaying with them hard

I am so damn sick of seeing bland female characters.

And by bland I mean hourglass "perfect goddess bodied", porcelain-skinned women with "long, flowing tresses" and a personality that can be summed up as either seductive, cheerful, and/or bitchy.

I'm not against characters who happen to be attractive, but why don't more of them have personalities that aren't based around them being hot somehow? I guess what I'm trying to say is that your character is more than just their sex appeal, and they should be done some justice by being written as actual people.

Lorkhan said:

I am so damn sick of seeing bland female characters.

And by bland I mean hourglass "perfect goddess bodied", porcelain-skinned women with "long, flowing tresses" and a personality that can be summed up as either seductive, cheerful, and/or bitchy.

I'm not against characters who happen to be attractive, but why don't more of them have personalities that aren't based around them being hot somehow? I guess what I'm trying to say is that your character is more than just their sex appeal, and they should be done some justice by being written as actual people.

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Or if you are just going the shallow route at least let them be TREATED like shallow people. The thing is there are absolutely people in real life whose sole sense of self is wrapped up in how hot/popular they are. Who are constantly trying to one-up everyone around them to prove how superior they are. They exist. THey're real people. They're also horrible, selfish, and in general obnoxious to be around.

So yeah for me it's not so much that selfish/egotistical/shallow people are unrealistic. It's when people write them as if all those traits aren't FLAWS that is the problem. Like if you want to make a flawed character at least own the flaws. Don't try to give me that b.s. about how them being super hot and super popular and super better than everyone else is somehow a good thing. No it's not. It makes your character at best boring. At worst an asshole.

AbuserxAbusee RPs are so gross. No, abuse is not "cute" or "edgy" or "cool" and, unless it's about the abuser reforming, I don't want to RP it.

GoldenSlime said:

AbuserxAbusee RPs are so gross. No, abuse is not "cute" or "edgy" or "cool" and, unless it's about the abuser reforming, I don't want to RP it.

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thank you! i was going to post this when i saw yours.

if i may, i'm going to add to this.

on my old site, there was one person who ONLY rp'd as an abused kid. they wanted the other person to rp as the abuser of a seven year old kid. it was absolutely disgusting because the site would be spammed with their requests and people who actually agreed to it.

not to mention that it was lowkey triggering but anywho. people who role play any type of abuse as some sort of sick fantasy need to rot in hell.

ps. i'm tilted a little on these topics sorry ^^"

e d e n said:

thank you! i was going to post this when i saw yours.

if i may, i'm going to add to this.

on my old site, there was one person who ONLY rp'd as an abused kid. they wanted the other person to rp as the abuser of a seven year old kid. it was absolutely disgusting because the site would be spammed with their requests and people who actually agreed to it.

not to mention that it was lowkey triggering but anywho. people who role play any type of abuse as some sort of sick fantasy need to rot in hell.

ps. i'm tilted a little on these topics sorry ^^"

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I think abuse can be used in terms of a tragic past (oh how cliche) but it has to be done right and you always have to ask your partner first.
I have a character who was abused in his past and that's why I always have a disclaimer before any RPs ever that I like to RP stuff that's dark and I never romanticize the abuse.
When I see people romanticizing it and crap like that it just burns me up.

GoldenSlime said:

I think abuse can be used in terms of a tragic past (oh how cliche) but it has to be done right and you always have to ask your partner first.
I have a character who was abused in his past and that's why I always have a disclaimer before any RPs ever that I like to RP stuff that's dark and I never romanticize the abuse.
When I see people romanticizing it and crap like that it just burns me up.

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Yeah I think the problem isn't with abuse in roleplays. It's when people who don't know what abuse is use it as lazy shorthand for "my character is *edgy* and *damaged*"

It's the same when people play mental illness or some other ethnicity. Like there is nothing wrong with pushing outside of your comfort zone or roleplaying tough situations.

Just don't use other people's pain as a cheap way to make your character more "interesting".

Although to play devil's advocate I do cut newer or less experienced roleplayer some slack. I mean I won't roleplay problematic stuff regardless but I can tell the person is just not good at writing characters or is struggling to really flesh out things than I cut them a little more slack.

Than if it's just obviously some weird kink or a way for them to get a rise out of others by being *edgy childish controversial*

GoldenSlime said:

I think abuse can be used in terms of a tragic past (oh how cliche) but it has to be done right and you always have to ask your partner first.
I have a character who was abused in his past and that's why I always have a disclaimer before any RPs ever that I like to RP stuff that's dark and I never romanticize the abuse.
When I see people romanticizing it and crap like that it just burns me up.

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I feel this so much. The thing is that I adore horror and "dark" plots in general and usually don't care for romance unless there's something fucked up about it. That means I'm entertained by (fictional) stories about stalking or "yandere" characters (possessive/obsessive to the point of physically harming the victim or those around them). But the fanbase and sometimes the original media for these stories don't seem to understand that the relationship being depicted is not romantic, and it's not love. Love is NOT manipulating the target of your affection like an object for your own whims and attempting to destroy any other source of support or happiness that they have. That's abuse.

I remember playing a visual novel where one of the romantic interests lied to the amnesiac protagonist and pretended to be her boyfriend. Then he locked her in a cage designed for a large dog and threatened to kill a childhood friend that realized early on that something was wrong. This was all justified as "protecting" her and the story was entertaining in the way all such fucked up things can be, but then the "good" ending involved the protagonist FORGIVING her captor instead of running to report him to the police at the nearest opportunity, and the fanbase ate this stuff up like caviar. I'm still baffled by it.

Edit: language

Ignoring my character's sexuality is such a big pet peeve! But, I've learned to have fun with it.
I love slow burn roleplays when I do involve romance, so I tend to have a lot of buildup.
If I do a romantic rp with someone who disregarded a sexuality of my character, I will continue.
But at that crucial moment of the first kiss - 'sorry I'm gay' along with a message to read the character profile more carefully.

I usually get blocked afterwards, but it's worth it. Maybe they'll learn to read sometime.

Though if the partner is a really good roleplay partner, I'll usually let it slide

kerokero said:

Ignoring my character's sexuality is such a big pet peeve! But, I've learned to have fun with it.
I love slow burn roleplays when I do involve romance, so I tend to have a lot of buildup.
If I do a romantic rp with someone who disregarded a sexuality of my character, I will continue.
But at that crucial moment of the first kiss - 'sorry I'm gay' along with a message to read the character profile more carefully.

I usually get blocked afterwards, but it's worth it. Maybe they'll learn to read sometime.

Though if the partner is a really good roleplay partner, I'll usually let it slide

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lol that's how you petty.

I do platonic roleplays so my characters are either non sexual or "Dude I don't care can we get back to the plot."

It is somewhat frustrating though when a partners first words are - so which part of the pairing do you want to play?

And I'm like.....it's a platonic buddy cop style romp sooooo ???

It's even funnier when it's like found family style roleplays. Like you are aware these are supposed to be siblings right?

The popularity of 'edginess' amongst up-and-coming roleplayers or casual writers, I think, stem not from a poor understand of prose writing or world building but rather from an inability to explore character dynamics or any sort of plot, world, or character elements that run beyond what's considered root traits. Even these root straits are exaggerated to extremes, for example, the tons of edgy characters with ultra-violent backstories and a penchant for suspension-of-beliefs that often go through most sites. Only to get the red hammer, of course, but that's not the point. So, why? I personally believe it's due to the popularization of violence in recent years (and from even a few decades ago), and it being seen as glamorous or badass. Nothing wrong in that, suppose. They do, after all, intend to appeal to our subconscious fantasies.

In some cases, they succeed way beyond their given mark. So, said victims (and I hope my use of this term won't cause anyone to think I support anti-cynicism) use these sensibilities, dumb them down to their own glorified perception, and then they try to turn it up to eleven. Thusly producing mutated versions of what they were actually trying to make.

That's only my two cents on the matter.

So, I do have my pet peeves. Foremost of them would be general idiocy, lack of commitment, etc. Just what you and I all hate. But, going I deeper, I also believe I have this certain dislike for roleplays or people who try to impose limits on the setting— either indirectly or just directly. In the case of the former, it's applied through alienation by the majority, and which in layman's terms, would basically be everyone playing stereotypical deities of narcissism and therefore unwilling to deign and approach your lowly, jagged, flawed, cynical misrepresentation of mankind. In the case of the latter, it's the GM forcing 'age limits' or anything like that on the RP.

I say, this is a very piss idea if you wanna to attract people who know how to get their way around characters. If you want stereotypical deities of narcissism paying lip service to other stereotypical deities of narcissism, in massive and snowy orgies, good for you.

Excuse the hyperbole, but that's just about it.

Elephantom said:

Even these root straits are exaggerated to extremes, for example, the tons of edgy characters with ultra-violent backstories and a penchant for suspension-of-beliefs that often go through most sites.

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Could it also be because it seems (from my estimation which I admit is far from perfect) that a lot of roleplayers are young (13-17) years old? It makes sense that people who are still developing their own maturity and identity wouldn't be able to accurately depict complex emotions or nuanced personalities because they don't necessarily have experience with grief or complex relationships or a solid ability to empathize with other people that develops with maturity. This was true of myself and my friends when we were kids who liked to play tabletop RPGs and fell prone to the same shallow, "edgy"/mysterious characters that are rampant in online communities today.

It can also be because of the environment that these online RPs are taking place in. I remember when I was younger my RP group was no more than 4 people for any given campaign. Now these boards have thousands of people overall and may have dozens or hundreds of people joining in one group RP. It still overwhelms me sometimes, and I think in that setting it may seem impossible to stand out and these characters of extreme personality traits or backgrounds are an attempt to be noteworthy or memorable or interesting somehow.

Cloche said:

Could it also be because it seems (from my estimation which I admit is far from perfect) that a lot of roleplayers are young (13-17) years old? It makes sense that people who are still developing their own maturity and identity wouldn't be able to accurately depict complex emotions or nuanced personalities because they don't necessarily have experience with grief or complex relationships or a solid ability to empathize with other people that develops with maturity. This was true of myself and my friends when we were kids who liked to play tabletop RPGs and fell prone to the same shallow, "edgy"/mysterious characters that are rampant in online communities today.

It can also be because of the environment that these online RPs are taking place in. I remember when I was younger my RP group was no more than 4 people for any given campaign. Now these boards have thousands of people overall and may have dozens or hundreds of people joining in one group RP. It still overwhelms me sometimes, and I think in that setting it may seem impossible to stand out and these characters of extreme personality traits or backgrounds are an attempt to be noteworthy or memorable or interesting somehow.

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Now I won't argue with that— it's true after all. You've kids who pretend they've got the longest dick in the whole damn universe. Longer than everyone's. Then they put it words.

By the time they've learned what's what, their saccharine hubris has already dealt all the damage they could deal.

Elephantom said:

Now I won't argue with that— it's true after all. You've kids who pretend they've got the longest dick in the whole damn universe. Longer than everyone's. Then they put it words.

By the time they've learned what's what, their saccharine hubris has already dealt all the damage they could deal.

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If you want to see a direct example of this in action try to give constructive criticism to any of the 1000s of teenagers writing horrible self-insert fan-fiction for [insert popular thing here] and watch them melt down. To be fair I suppose that's a good outlet for the most embarrassing years of everyone's life that at least has the chance to develop into legitimate talent, but holy crap it's a cesspool.

I say, let people have fun, if they are not harming anyone. I would say that people who insist on playing university lecturer all the time during roleplay or insist on doing it on fanfiction are just as irritating as those who keep disrupting the flow of the roleplay scene, for the sake of enjoying their overpowered or overly-broody characters.

I am a grand supporter of critique and often ask for some on my own works - but hey, cut others some slack. Sometimes people write dumb stuff just to unwind, they don't aim for Pulitzer. As long as we are not talking about group roleplay, where everyone is irritated because of This One person - as a person above said, it's a way to find some entertainment during ones embarassing years or even express ones embarassing fantasies and desires.

Clocks said:

I say, let people have fun, if they are not harming anyone. I would say that people who insist on playing university lecturer all the time during roleplay or insist on doing it on fanfiction are just as irritating as those who keep disrupting the flow of the roleplay scene, for the sake of enjoying their overpowered or overly-broody characters.

I am a grand supporter of critique and often ask for some on my own works - but hey, cut others some slack. Sometimes people write dumb stuff just to unwind, they don't aim for Pulitzer. As long as we are not talking about group roleplay, where everyone is irritated because of This One person - as a person above said, it's a way to find some entertainment during ones embarassing years or even express ones embarassing fantasies and desires.

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I think the original problem was more like - know your audience. If you want to write something silly that’s fine. But like if someone is genuinely upset by the things your “joking” about than maybe tone it down.

It’s not someone being a snotty nit picker it’s hey I don’t find an adult abusing a child funny or cute.

So yeah I think the biggest problem is when people dismiss genuine concerns as just haughty nitpicking or lecturing. I’m not saying there aren’t elitist assholes that think their shit don’t stink

But like this thing started with someone talking about Roleplays that glorified abuse.

And it’s very different thing to say - Hey this topic is uncomfortable and not something I find funny or take lightly.

Versus oh my god your such a child. That isn’t how you portray people realistically. Noob.

It’s fine to roleplay fantasies or silly stereotypes. It’s not okay to do something that upsets people and then be like “ god it’s not real just get over it “

( to be clear I’m not saying that you were doing that. It’s just an attitude ive run into with people who get all in their feelings because someone tells them to stop doing offensive Roleplays )

Parrots. People who just read this big, long, beautiful novella you wrote, and then spit back an incredibly well written... repetition of what you just said. There are some circumstances where it's justifiable, but I get very tired very fast if I'm the sole person who's responsible for progressing a story while my partner is, well, a sentient vegetable. I think we've all run into that person in group rps, or maybe even did it ourselves at one point. As someone who's DMed before, I think I would take a bunch of godmodders over a flock of parrots tbh. I could blow the parrots' heads off with a shotgun and they'd just give me a beautifully revised version of how they slumped to the ground.

geeking out said:

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Ah yes, I agree on what you say wholeheartedly. I just differ people who glorify things like child abuse - and those who call them out on it from these who roleplay things like "My character is illegitimate child of Satan, has three horns instead of two and yadda yadda, is extremelly salty about it" and those who comment on their work with long list of critique, starting with "your character is extremelly mary sue and besides, you roleplay Satan wrong because according to..."

First type has my support. Especially if they do it on public forums and other media. Second...is a bit of a pet peeve of mine, especially when they do it on fanfics, or roleplays they do not participate in.

Clocks said:

Second...is a bit of a pet peeve of mine, especially when they do it on fanfics, or roleplays they do not participate in.

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I don't mean to be "that" person, but I don't really see the problem with (constructively) criticizing fanfiction. Fanfiction can be just a fun creative outlet with no expectation of quality attached, but putting the work on public display comes with the expectation that other people will view and comment on it, and that some of those comments might not be pure praise. It's obnoxious when the person giving the criticism is mean-spirited or mistakes their personal tastes for objective standards, but otherwise what's the harm? If someone didn't want critique they could have just saved the story to their hard disk and not ao3 or whatever other fanfiction sites are popular these days.

Cloche said:

I don't mean to be "that" person, but I don't really see the problem with (constructively) criticizing fanfiction. Fanfiction can be just a fun creative outlet with no expectation of quality attached, but putting the work on public display comes with the expectation that other people will view and comment on it, and that some of those comments might not be pure praise. It's obnoxious when the person giving the criticism is mean-spirited or mistakes their personal tastes for objective standards, but otherwise what's the harm? If someone didn't want critique they could have just saved the story to their hard disk and not ao3 or whatever other fanfiction sites are popular these days.

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I think they are talking more about “critique” that is just a way for someone to act snobby and tear other people down.

Less constructive criticism and more “ you are a worthless garbage writer and here are all the reasons why....signed a better writer “

geeking out said:

I think they are talking more about “critique” that is just a way for someone to act snobby and tear other people down.

Less constructive criticism and more “ you are a worthless garbage writer and here are all the reasons why....signed a better writer “

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Ooh, I get it now. People like that are really gross and they don't seem to grow out of it, either. I still encounter grown adults with that same attitude in my programming courses or team projects. Ick.

I don't know, if it's too late for me post my pet peeve but here it is: RPers who choose to play rude characters and get too "in-character"; end up being genuinely rude, cruel people. I hate it when people do that, it's like if you don't like me, don't RP with me. I'd rather just ignore you from the get-go, then deal with bullying via RP. It's happened once or twice on this site, but this site is tame compared to my first ever RP site.

Mages who intentionally avoid defining the source, restrictions, trigger mechanisms and limitations of their magic. these are all highly important when playing a mage and trying not to get accused of godmodding. it is very much like saying you are a "Superhero" but intentionally not listing your superpowers on your character sheet so you can intentionally Deus Ex Machina on the fly.

What I call thesaurus plucking. Now, the thesaurus is a tool, and there is nothing wrong with utilizing it, but it is very evident when someone has gone through and plucked words at random without delving into the meaning of the word to be sure its use is appropriate. Not all synonymous words carry the same impact, and some are only loosely synonymous.

Cloche said:

Ooh, I get it now. People like that are really gross and they don't seem to grow out of it, either. I still encounter grown adults with that same attitude in my programming courses or team projects. Ick.

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Yes, Cloche pinpointed what I tried to say perfectly. I did not mean that all critique is bad, but that there are some people who don't offer pointers and never have anything positive to say, they just want to bathe the person in their superior knowledge and tell them how bad they are.