Offering money to play WADs

[Linguica]

Doomworld is a website about a 25 year old game that will play on basically any computing device, no matter how old or cheap. Consequently, some members are people in less developed countries or in precarious financial situations where they don't have the means to play modern games. Other members are part of a marginalized or persecuted group within their country. Offering real money to people, especially as a bounty for doing something relatively frivolous, cuts right through the fun we are supposed to be having and introduces a power imbalance between members that I do not want to encourage.

 

On the other hand, I do not want to stop people from giving money to other people who need it more.

 

Consequently, I'm introducing a new rule on DW: you can offer open bounties on beating a WAD or whatever, but that bounty must be designed in a way that someone WILL win it within a week and receive the payment offered. If a week passes from the start of the thread and there is no evidence of payment, the original poster will be banned.

 

We're all here to have fun. There is no reason for members to have outstanding debts to one another, or for a member who has disposable income to string along other members with the promise of what might be a significant amount of money to them and not deliver in a timely manner. Put up or shut up.

[Linguica]

As a codicil to this rule, the underlying premise is that all members are people worthy of basic dignity, and the prospect of money makes people do undignified things. If I see anyone attempting to use cash bounties as a way to exploit or diminish others they will be stopped immediately. This includes offering amounts of money that are insultingly low (as subjectively determined by me or others) or attaching strings to a bounty that require a person to do anything dangerous or degrading.