The Petition to ban Slipstream from the forums.

[Fluffy Frufflebottoms]

The problem you seem to be having, Fluffy, is the "at the expense of other players". How does, to quote Aco, having a tommy gun, change the game for anyone else? It's within the rules of the game, doesn't change any gameplay, just is a personal choice. I can get used to the looks of a tommy gun just as easily as a p90. The sounds as well. The ability to change skins is inherent to the game too. Where is it any different from spending time to learn maps, or just get better at the game? We can all do it.

When you play a game, you do things based on how it will appear to the people you play against. You occupy a dark space because you know that you'll appear in a way that makes it difficult for the opposition to see you. You choose a certain uniform because it fits the surroundings. You choose whether or not to take a shot from distance with a quiet weapon based on how easily the person will be able to figure out where you're shooting from. These are the things that make the game more than just W and mouse1. You need to be able to how you appear in the game world. That flies out the window if your scout sounds like a high powered rifle, if your dark uniform is actually bright pink, or, less egregious but equally revealing, some kind of "cool" street camouflage.

Some skins are more beneficial than others, some models and sounds give you more of an advantage than others. None of them are part of the game, but rather alterations to the game, and as far as I can tell, every other modification to the game that may confer an unfair advantage is considered cheating, and a bannable offense. This simply would not be a problem to anyone if people played the game as it is, and I don't believe that anyone's desire to have a Tommy gun in place of the P90 supersedes the importance of preventing people from abusing the opportunity to gain an unfair advantage by modifying game files.

If you've never watched two people who are playing at the same table on the same board but two different games, I suggest you go watch professionals playing against casual gamers in one of a variety of games. They often abide by two different rulesets, which means they ARE playing different games. The one who plays by the rules "only use the map as the creator intended" vs the "abuse everything within the confines of the rules" ARE playing two different games.

This is silly, Blackmage. They are not playing different games. One is merely playing the game better than the other. This philosophical "you're better so you're playing a different game" argument doesn't really have a place in a debate of whether or not to allow people to, not philosophically, but literally play the same game with different content.