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I think there should be some kind of warning label on games cause a lot of the characters talking to you are emotionally abusive. I guess the writers think it's clever. Often you only have a couple of dialogue options to respond, and can't kill them cause they're an essential NPC.
I know it's "just a game" but I feel depressed and angry when it happens. I talk to my therapist about the characters almost as much as my family, and I have nightmares.
I'll play along.
After reading the rest of the thread, the solution to this is pretty simple. Just don't play games with lots of dialogue, and avoid games with serious or depressing stories. There's a ton of good games in virtually every genre (except visual novels) that involve zero negative character interactions.
And before you say "how would I know what to look for", it's simple, look up a little bit of gameplay or screenshots before buying. If you see anyone talking for any reason, the chance of there being abusive dialogue is very high. Of course, that's counteracted by how cartoony the colors are (for instance, Animal Crossing has tons of dialogue, but virtually no abusive dialogue... at least, not from anyone you can't make "disappear"). If you see a darker, moodier looking game, or one set in space, you should be wary even if you don't see dialogue in the screenshots.
There are exceptions to this. Sometimes there isn't much of any dialogue, but then a voice clip randomly pops in calling you names ("have you tried dodging"). Sometimes the most colorful games can be the most mentally damaging (looking at you, Omori). Sometimes the dark, brooding game is pretty chill (Dark Souls). Just make sure to always check gameplay videos before you buy!
And avoid visual novels like the plague. Stuff like Danganronpa would probably cause some mental-health days.
Thanks for the ideas. I just don't see how it gives the game any value, to get personal with the player. I don't mind evil/dark dialogues just don't direct it at the player in a manipulative way especially if you don't give the character an option to reflect how the player feels about a given situation. I think this is hard to filter out just by watching gameplay videos.
I feel like u blur real life with video games if it's affecting you like that. I want to say just get over it but I feel it's a bit deeper than that. Apart from avoiding games that trigger it I get the impression you don't have many goals if games really affect you that much. Maybe workout and have other hobbies too
It's not normal to want a disclaimer to avoid getting your feelings hurt. You gotta get over that and not let it ruin your fun.
Honestly I LIKE when enemies in video games are assholes. XD
On another note Pokemon hasn't had an asshole rival in years. When I was a kid and Blue would insult me in every encounter it motivated me to beat him and finish the game. They need to bring that back. Lol
You need to be a bad person to some degree to write those dialogues. Why should I deal with someone else's problems especially if I'm playing something innocent like Pokemon?
Also I'm not talking about enemies you can kill, I'm talking about the ones the game won't allow you to kill. It's cruel to the player.
Because life ain't all sunshine and rainbows... Even in videogames, those are usually an altered representation of real life.
If you're too affected by videogames, don't play them. With that said... special snowflakes do need to realize that the real world is harsh. Probably a lot harsher than whatever you experienced in the game.
If you got issues with video game morality, maybe you shouldn't be on here...
you're really sensitive to the emotions to the characters. that's a good trait to have. just remember to detatch and see from birds eye view. you can't exactly get a warning on everything because people are too lazy to see through the detailing so it's best to be prepared instead