GaiaOnline Sucks

Perhaps the most disgusting point about Gaia Online is how it specifically target children. In Canada (and USA), publicity aimed at children under 12 years old is illegal. But Gaia Online does not need to make publicity: much like a virus, it is made to auto-reproduces itself.

Gaia Online puts a lot of pressure on you to invite your friends. Like almost everything in life, Gaia Online sucks when you are alone, and I’ve always seen Gaia Online as a sort of MySpace for kids. Gaia Online claims it is targetted as 13+, but I would the reality is all otherwise. But wait, maybe we are too severe, after all, Gaia Online does ask for your birthdate when you sign-up! They won’t let you make an account unless you are over 13, something you can fix in 3, maybe four seconds. We don’t say Gaia Online should make a DNA text but it should at least be obvious that the game is aimed at 13+. You can’t find anything related to that on the front page and everything is in “fun, little manga characters”.

Gaia Online states the majority of its player are adults, but we say it’s bullshit. If you take a look a typical day in Gaia’s forums:

You can clearly see the level of maturity Gaia users show. That’s the kind of stuff PG13? It looks like a bunch of kids discovering sex. Don’t tell me anyone over 15 would seriously write any of that crap, even in a forum. 

It’s a fact that Gaia Online not only target the 9-12 market, but also takes very few measure to reduce vulgarity. Hey, after all, they put c**k instead of “cock” like it was less offensive. I mean, that’s a beginning! With threads titles like “Watch me put a knife in my vagina” (off picture)or “If I don’t log on tomorrow, I’m dead” (off picture again), it’s rather obvious Gaia Online is packed with kids.

What’s wrong with that? First, they take no precautions. It would be very easy to mute anyone using an offensive word and be very strict with vulgarity. Or even make a separate forum without any rule with VERY CLEAR WARNING that the content is 18+. We’re not for filters and parental controls and kids would probably just lie then again, but at least Gaia could try.

There’s more, thought. Everyone knows kids 9-14 are an age where they are most influential, as they are building their personalities and relexions. What kind of message is Gaia Online sending to them with their subtle ads hidden all around the forum? Buy the newest crappy item, buy the best item and you will have friends? It’s very clear Gaia Online uses everything it can to sell things. We all know kids are not yet able to make constant and clear decisions and we all know they are going to go to their parents and cry for items and gold. That’s what Gaia wants, that’s how Gaia makes his cash: abusing kids by making them believe the newest item will make them popular. Just like real life, right?

Except that you don’t owe a trendy clothline: you own pixels. And Gaia acts without pity with botters. If you’re a kid unlucky enough to have good parents who will refuse to hand their credit card for that crap (but you could always mail them your weekly allowance fortunatly!), you might want to find better ways to make gold, such as botting, or refreshing. Once caught, you can forget all your friends, items, gold, house, etc. You’re gone and gone forever. Hell, there’s worse: if you’re banned by mistake– which happens more often that one thinks — you have no real chance to get unbanned. Gaia is the judge, the jury and the executioneer. Again, what message do they send? That the world is cruel? Is that really at that age that kids must learn that?

Profanity, vulgarity, pressure, manipulation, lies, injustice, these are many of principles Gaia Online uses on kids in order to make cash. That is why we believe Gaia Online totally Sucks. 

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