Can’t speak for PKMKII ofc but it seemed like the difference is that they assert the goal isn’t to shield youth from depictions of sex at all, but rather to use it as a cudgel to exercise power against political & ideological opponents? I don’t know if there’s an actual disagreement per se, rather that it’s a dual purpose attack on opposing literature yknow?
![the background blur](https://hexbear.net/pictrs/image/66e4be87-f07d-4879-886b-3d853f518e4f.png?thumbnail=256&format=webp)
![](https://hexbear.net/pictrs/image/66e4be87-f07d-4879-886b-3d853f518e4f.png?thumbnail=1024&format=webp)
In response to: https://hexbear.net/comment/3656677
short sketch, thought it'd be funny idk lol
D&D made it foundational to so many Gamers™️ but I think Warhammer, both 40k and Fantasy, has really done the most damage in recent years. It’s become an icon for online chuds to rally around and play out their ethnic cleansing fantasies with thinly veiled references to real groups.
Elder Scrolls is great about this! I can really appreciate their approach that allows the setting to use racial tensions as a potential cause of conflict in-setting, while still emphasizing that these are all people, and that the in-universe racial stereotyping and discrimination is bullshit at its core
Will die on the hill screaming “inherent racial alignment sucks, inherent racial mental scores suck, I don’t care if it’s always been this way I don’t want way-too-close-to-home race essentialism in my fantasy!”
The ttrpg medium since it’s inception has been suffused with this thanks to, as you mention, Gygax and his ilk. I’ve gotten sick of explaining that “Orc dumb and evil but strong” is way way way too close to shit I’ve had spouted at me in real life for me to enjoy settings that use the trope without the barest critical analysis.
I actually really appreciate that more recent editions of Pathfinder and DnD have moved away from this, much to the chagrin of hundreds of grognards
Edit: actually I think race essentialism and stereotyping are fine setting and plot elements if they’re actually examined - it is absolutely great fuel for interesting stories and conflicts if the setting doesn’t treat it as universal truth, rather than the products of systems within the setting