I'll start with the TLDR version first and explain more in depth the reasoning. Before I start out, I want to express that this isn't a matter of "X-won Y-lost". As RikaNitori moderator, there is no such thing as "us vs them" neither I intend to turn it into such place. Therefore the following announcement and explanation has been formed fitting us all together. I hope you share the same feeling, if not: Please tell us.
If there are any concerns with the decision, voice your opinion but I expect a civil and well established argument why you might disagree or perhaps have additional notes/
TL DR:
※ As main moderator of RikaNitori, I will NOT pursue the possible movement of fan games and hereby halting any reorganisation plans for the section.
※ Non-touhou doujin or individual fan games are for now OK as long as they are NOT overdone.
※ For now, no new forum section will be created. This will be though kept in mind and re-evaluated soon.
※ Gusano's thread will be pulled back to RikaNitori, effectively reverting the action.
I will now explain in more details about the decisions given in the TL DR
We, or I as main moderator of RikaNitori, never had the intention to banish or reject non-touhou games from RikaNitori and stuff them somewhere so they are lost or drowned among other threads. I am glad Sparen has made an elaborate, well written and established post and spoke up. There is a clear signal then things need to be considered. But keep in mind that my idea or motive was to never tell people: "Go away, yo don't fit in here". I know nobody has accused me or us of any thing, but the underlying tone in some of the posts can be 'assumed' somewhat. But I hate assumptions and I want to know the real deal.
Sparen has made this thread due to the recent move of Gusano's non-touhou fan game. There is nothing to hide. I have in fact sent a Personal Message to Gusano, stating that considering re-organisation of RikaNitori, I plan on moving his and possible future projects out of RikaNitori to Akyu. But even so, I should've thought of a plan or perhaps seek out first the opinion of the community. I do apologise for not doing this and operating without the knowing of other staff members. I am not going to defend myself in this, because like I said: There is no such thing as "us vs them". Based on the forum's purpose, the section's purpose and goals, I've thought about it and decided to reorganise and PhantomSong kind of echos the reason for this sudden decision: We're a Touhou forum.
If I did not misunderstood, to sum up several mentions from members: Wishmakers are notes that Rikanitori is a place for coders to share projects and the detail about non-touhou vs touhou should not be a problem. iVAwalys makes a note about that any changes are too late and should've been done earlier. Also noted in general is that shmup indies are being actively sought in RikaNitori. Delfigamer is worried about the tons of non-Touhou games being burried in the forum section. User Infinnacage claims there is no point in moving non-touhou games as it might negatively impacting developers. Badz notes the existence of non-touhou derivatives, should it lead to a decision, should be applied across the whole board and not just RikaNitori.
I do see quite a lot of assumptions being made. Especially about the claim for tons of non-touhou projects and negative impact on developers. Now I could be a very lame person and demand numbers, links and information to support these claims (note, I didn't call them fake. But they aren't exactly true either). Where I currently work, a large organisation with lots of judicial sensitivity, if I make such claims then people around me expect me to back my words with concrete information. Without proper backing, claims mean nothing. Any way, we're not at my work and neither we are a company. What seems to be the deal?
MotK is a Touhou forum. Our true love and what brought and brings together is Touhou. Simple as that. Well, it isn't that simple in reality. While most forum sections are devoted to support the need to discuss and share Touhou, sometimes people want to discuss other things. So like any other forum I've seen in my life, there is always room for off topic leisure talk and such. Some forums call them 'General', 'Off topic', you name it. What counts is that people have a clear idea of what forum section offers what. Forum section descriptions should give a simple and clear instruction and the moderators are expected to monitor and moderate where required.
But wait a minute, why do Patchouli's Scarlet Library and Alice's Art Atelier have generic sounding descriptions, noting nothing about Touhou? Good question. I honestly don't know. I've raised this to the staff that we need to keep an eye out for such things as it leads to confusion. Zooming in on RikaNitori, it is a forum section which has always been intended for supporting, motivating and helping out with Touhou fan games. Both the description and the FAQ gives a clear explanation about this. And this is exactly where things get interesting.
So why on earth did I or "we" allow non-Touhou games to be discussed or developed in RikaNitori? That is a very damn good question. I don't know. There isn't a case of "tolerance". There is no case of "ignorance". So what is it then? The first thing to ask ourselves is, were there any non-touhou games long long ago, which were released and promoted on RikaNitori. I don't remember to be honest. Probably? I've been around since 2008, actively rolled into the world of Danmakufu. I haven't run into them. Asking ourselves the second question: Why is there a desire to create and publish non-touhou games on RikaNitori or MotK? I don't know to be honest. WishMakers is asking why Len'en boss rush wasn't banned on sight? I have no idea idea. Should we have banned it then? I don't know what you're implying with this. Speaking of implications, iVAwalys notes that it is too late and we should've done this much earlier. It is kind of hard to act earlier on something when nobody has ever thought of it. People change. Opinions change. Viewpoints change. It is never "too late" for any thing. Whether the change is good or bad that is something different but important to consider.
This is why I started considering the move of these fan games. This is why I decided to reorganise. I am not purging, rejecting, denying, ignoring people or their ideas. I don't intend to banish or exile non-touhou fan games primarily, but I do very much try to keep RikaNitori a main source of information for Touhou related games and development. This is why I effort and care about this forum and its members. I personally care and hope to create a fun place for people. But in return I expect people to have common sense and actively consider the purpose of the forum, not just RikaNitori. People are playing the victim card way too quickly and jump in my opinion way too fast into conclusions. That is kind of disappointing if you ask me. And I don't have to play the victim card at all, because is there any reason for anybody to play the victim card?
I cannot imagine that anybody who has developed a non-touhou fangame in RikaNitori considered MotK a generic doujin forum. This is kind of what Phantom is pointing out in his first post. And I would like to point out the sentence from his post about usage of mediums. Pure as advise, you shouldn't consider MotK as your main medium. Don't misunderstand, everybody is welcome. But ask yourself: "What is my goal". If your goal is to purely entertain the local citizens or visitors of MotK, then yes you can consider this forum as a main medium. Any other reason is not going to work. For art, DevianArt or Pixiv are far better mediums. For videos or promotion, Youtube is a better place. For serious games, Steam is a better place.
To conclude all of this with some last words: Do I have to draw a line somewhere? Yes, as moderator of RikaNitori, I feel I have to. I have to maintain the purpose of RikaNitori section. Does this line mean there will be consequences? Yes and no. Yes, we shouldn't fool the visitors that we've transformed into a generic doujin/game board. Because that is false. No, there won't be consequences for existing OR upcoming non-touhou games for now. Yes, you read that right: for now. Personally, and this is my honest humble opinion, I don't understand the need for alternative universes with Original Characters and such. Plus, I think people are misusing the term: "Touhou inspired games". Touhou is a bullet shooter hell game. There are plenty of those around and they all share the same generic game play: Dodge stuff and usually shoot stuff. You become a touhou related game, if you built upon the universe of Touhou or in relation to Touhou's universe, plot, characters and such. Otherwise you're just another bullet shooter inspired game. Which Len'en is in its core. Being inspired has a far deeper meaning.
This thread obviously has triggered us all to think and discuss. I am glad to see that happening. But just like you're voicing your ideas and opinions, I have to voice mine in relation to RikaNitori.
The TL DR list will become effective when I return home from work. And they are anything but final. I wish to keep the discussion bit more active, just to see what people have to say.
--Helepolis