Squad Code Of Conduct

One of the main goals we have in the development of SQUAD is to foster a friendly and helpful community of players. We want to avoid unnecessary arguments, flaming and hostility wherever possible so that all players, no matter how skilled or how experienced will have a great time playing the game. In order to realize this goal it is necessary to request, and when required, enforce some acceptable community standards.

The following code of conduct represents the behavior we both encourage and expect from members of the SQUAD community. These rules should be adhered to both in-game and when discussing the game on forums. In all cases, it is the spirit of the rule that is more important than the letter. Our intention when enforcing the code of conduct is to protect the best interests of the SQUAD community and playing environment.

Welcome Squaddies

When playing the game you are encouraged to offer guidance and support to those less experienced than yourself, however, it should always be remembered that there is no wrong way to play the game, there are only effective and ineffective tactics. As such there will be occasions where even expert advice and guidance is ignored – there is nothing wrong with this.

The Steam forums and SQUAD official communication channels are a place for the community to discuss tips, tactics, and techniques for getting the most out of their game. They are also the location for the development team to gather useful information that assists in the decisions that affect the game in the future.

To achieve the goal of a welcoming environment the community team at Offworld Industries will endeavor to keep in-game chat friendly, and discussions helpful and on-topic.

Failure to follow the rules outlined below can result in your posts being moved, locked, edited, or deleted, your in-game chat abilities restricted or when necessary, your playing or posting privileges being removed.

Inappropriate Content

SQUAD communication channels are intended to be used by mature adults, to that end posts containing excessive profanity, obscenity, insults, personal attacks, accusations or abusive language will be edited or removed and can result in disciplinary action being taken.

Using asterisks (*) or other characters to get around the language filter is still considered profanity, as is using abbreviations that stand for profanity. Post titles and images are subject to the same restrictions as post content.

Racist, misogynistic, sexist and ableist language is strictly prohibited. Harassment, abuse and bullying will also not be tolerated. Any of this activity, including racial, religious or sexual slurs may result in immediate banning in both community spaces and within the game itself. We will not be tolerating any level of toxicity in our community spaces or within the game.

Constructive Behaviour

We freely acknowledge that there will be times when your experience with game performance or balance will be different to your expectations. As such it is not only acceptable but encouraged for you to feedback on areas of the SQUAD game or live services when it does not meet your anticipated standards. In order for your concerns to be acted on most effectively we require that your comments remain constructive at all times. “This sucks” tells us nothing about the problem or what you believe would remedy it.

We cannot guarantee that it is possible to immediately rectify problems that occur or resolve outages in live services but we are committed to doing so as quickly as possible. This goal will be significantly aided with your help in reporting issues in a constructive fashion – the more thorough and accurate your reporting of anything that comes up, the better we’ll be able to act on that feedback.

If you are particularly interested in helping to improve the game and try out new features before they’re released to the public keep an eye out for invitations to our Squad – Public Testing sessions. We regularly have sessions before major releases, and your feedback will often be taken into consideration if we’ve large numbers of applicants.

No Flaming

This includes any kind of personal attack, flame, targeted harassment or intimidation through in-game chat/comms or on any forums.

“But he flamed me first!” is not an acceptable reason to insult another player. A flame war is a flame war, and it doesn’t matter who started it. If you have concerns about the treatment you are receiving at the hands of another player, don’t respond in kind; notify a member of the community team.

Many arguments cannot be won, and simply end up going round in circles taking discussions ever further away from the original topic. When disagreements resort to “Since you seem to be slow, let me repeat my points for the tenth time…” it’s a sign that the argument is going nowhere, and the thread will be locked. Agree to disagree.

Stay On Topic

If you’re posting in general channels, don’t start talking about your favourite band – we’ve set up different forums so that all the posts in one area are relevant to specific aspects of the game. If you want to talk about the weather or suchlike, use the Off Topic channels. Equally, when in game try to keep your conversations on the topic of the game being played.

No Spamming

Spamming includes posting the same post multiple times in a channel, repeatedly posting on the same topic in different threads, posting the same post in multiple forums, or flooding in-game chat.

Multiple posts will be locked or deleted, and persistent offenders may lose their ability to join in chat.

No Thread Bumping

Posting messages with irrelevant content for the sole purpose of keeping certain posts near the top is called “bumping”. This causes other posts to scroll off the page faster than they should, and raises forum traffic unnecessarily.

If you think of something you’d like to add to a post after making it we recommend editing your original post instead of making an additional one. Bumping threads may cause them to be locked, and can result in persistent offenders losing their ability to post.

Flagging Or Reporting Posts

Should you spot a post you feel requires the attention of a member of the community team you should report it by using the “Flag” option listed at the top of each post. Please be aware that while communication channels are moderated regularly it may not always be possible to address posts that require moderation immediately, however all “problem” posts will be dealt with.

Abuse of the post flagging system will be subject to the same discipline as abuse of any other system in place on this site.

Reporting In-game Abuse

If you are subject to or witness hostile or abusive behaviour while in game, please report the matter to a member of the community team stating the time and location of the server you played on and with supporting evidence. We routinely check in-game logs for inappropriate behaviour and will remove the ability to use in-game chat functions for persistently aggressive or hostile users.

“Naming and shaming” users on forums is not permitted and may be considered harassment.

Internet Savvy

Under no circumstances will an employee of Offworld Industries ever ask for your password. Anyone claiming to represent the company who asks for your Steam, forum or any other password is up to no good.

We recommend you do not reveal personal details (full name, mobile phone number, email address, home address, home phone etc.) to players you may come in contact with, however this is at your discretion. If you are in any doubt, contact a member of the community team.

For further information on being safe online we recommend visiting http://www.getsafeonline.org/

Disciplinary Procedures

Any user in breach of these rules may find themselves subject to disciplinary action. In many cases breaches of rules are due to a lack of familiarity with the rules or of an inconsequential nature, in which case a warning will be issued. More serious breaches, or users who break rules may be given a temporary or permanent ban from the forum or game.

In these cases, a full explanation of why a user was banned will be given. If the ban is a temporary one users are strongly advised to abide by the decision as returning under a new account to avoid a temporary ban will result in it being upgraded to permanent.

Evading a ban/suspension or assisting another player currently under a ban/suspension is grounds for disciplinary measures.

If you wish to appeal a ban you may email: support@offworldindustries.com

Offworld Industries reserves the right to remove any user from all communication channels or the game at any time without notice.

The Community Team

Throughout this code of conduct are references to the community team. This team is made up of Offworld Industries employees whose responsibility it is to ensure that discussions are constructive, games are competitive and the community is properly represented within the studio. It is their job to ensure that your feedback reaches the right people, and that your questions are properly responded to.

If you had posting or chat privileges removed and wish to appeal the decision you can do so through support@offworldindustries.com

We know there will be times where the temptation to yell at the team-mate who has made a bad decision or get involved in a flame war will be significant. This is perfectly normal, but it’s not the kind of community we want the game to have, and it shouldn’t be the kind of community you want to be a part of. The code of conduct as described above should need nothing more than a second thought if you simply stick to the basic principle of treating others as you would wish to be treated.

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