What is covered?

A good question that arrives is what is covered and what one can enter in the database. VGG is aimed primary at videogames. So console, computer and arcade games are in. The systems and hardware were they run are in too, but not computers and computers parts. Console accessories should be entered as Hardware. We have two other abstract entities called franchise and series, which will be explained later. For now, designers, artists, and composers are not part of the database, and the pertinent info about them should be added to the videogame entry, under More Info. Any other cases, contact one of the Admins or post on the How to VGG forum.

What is not covered?

There are a few items that are not part of the database, the list below will be updated as things change, but for now:

• Alternate Reality Games(ARG) - Although some have game elements on it, those are not part of the scope of VGG;
• Electronic handhelds - Single purpose electronic handhelds should not be added;
• Pirated version/pirated bundles of games;
• IP infringing games - Games that unofficially use the IP of other companies;
• Non-games - Utilities, aids and anything marketed as a construction kit should not be added (a title marketed as a game, but that also comes with a construction kit is acceptable though)
• Pinball Machines
• Demos of games, including iPhone Lite Versions/Releases.

Other important links

• VGG Image Policy
• Pending Videogames
• Pending Videogame Hardware
• Pending Videogame Characters
• Pending Videogame Platforms
• Pending Videogame Genres
• Pending Videogame Themes
• Pending Videogame Franchises
• Pending Videogame Series
• Pending Videogame Modes
• Pending Videogame Versions
• Pending Companies

Other Guides

This wiki page is geared toward the main entry on the system, the Create Video Game. To allow a better organization we split the rules on the other types of data to their own page. The links are below:

Video Game Guide to Data Entry: Series and Franchises
Video Game Guide to Data Entry: Characters
Video Game Guide to Data Entry: Hardware

Unreleased Content - In Development

Unreleased items may be submitted for inclusion to the database, but must meet the following:

• Images for unreleased items are not allowed; a placeholder image will be added by an admin
• Associate with the Franchise "(Unreleased Games - In Development)" (where these instructions can also be found)
• Add the following banner on the top of the item description:

{| border="1" align="center" width="100%"
| style="background-color:#FF0000; color:#FFFFFF; text-align: center; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; padding: 5px 0;" |
UNRELEASED GAME – IN DEVELOPMENT
|-
| style="font-style: italic; padding: 5px 0;" |
This game has not been released yet, therefore some of the information above may change in the future. Until this game is released, please '''don't submit images''' for it, nor add new releases.
|}

• Only submit versions that are CONFIRMED by the publisher, and include a link to the press release in the admin notes of the submission.

Unreleased Content - Cancelled Games

Cancelled items may be submitted for inclusion to the database, but must meet the following:

• Images for unreleased items are not allowed; a placeholder image will be added by an admin
• Associate with the Franchise "(Unreleased Games - Cancelled)" (where these instructions can also be found)
• Add the following banner on the top of the item description:

{| border="1" align="center" width="100%"
| style="background-color:#999999; color:#FFFFFF; text-align: center; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; padding: 5px 0;" |
UNRELEASED GAME - CANCELLED
|-
| style="font-style: italic; padding: 5px 0;" |
This game was cancelled in development. Please '''don't submit images''' for it, nor add new releases.
|}

Unlicensed Games

Unlicensed Games should have this banner placed above the description:
{| border="1" align="center" width="100%"
| style="background-color:#7F38EC; color:#FFFFFF; text-align: center; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.125; font-weight: bold; padding: 0;" |
UNLICENSED GAME
|-
| style="font-style: italic; padding: 5px 0;" |
This game is an unlicensed version of N/A.</nowiki>
|}
This banner will allow users to see what games are unlicensed. An unlicensed game normally relates to a game which used the characters, animation or world of another game or franchise with proper licensing, or to a pirated version of a game. If the licensed version is in the database, please place its ID number in the [thing] bracket. How do you tell what games should be included in the database? The game should be important, and have a fan base. It should be a relevant addition. The description must explain why that unlicensed version is important for the database.

Examples

The rest of this guide will go into the details of how all the elements of VGG work and can be contributed to. If after reading, some elements are still unclear, the following sample franchises are provided as relatively complete references - exploring these should help you understand the structure behind the database and how all these items link together:

2K Sports - A sports franchise containing several annually-released sports series.

Civilization - A strategy franchise containing a core series and an offshoot.

Dragon Quest - A JRPG franchise containing a core series and some offshoot titles.

Final Fantasy - A JRPG franchise containing a core series, several offshoot titles and series, some expansion and compilation packs, and lots of characters.

The Sims - A life simulation series containing a few core games and a lot of compilation and expansion packs.

Street Fighter - A fighting franchise containing some cross-over titles with other franchises, with many remakes and recurring characters.

Suikoden - An RPG franchise containing a core series and a tangentally related offshoot title.

Super Mario - An enormous franchise containing almost 20 series, lots of characters and character versions, and spanning a wide range of platforms and genres.

Primary Name

The name with which the game is best known. For foreign games, if there is a widely known English name, that name is preferred, otherwise use the native language name.

Genre

A genre is the type of video game, i.e. action, puzzle, FPS, RPG, etc. Select all that apply. Genres are all based on the industry standard genres with some decisions made by us to make things more clear, each videogame should have at least one genre applied to it. In case you have any doubts, check the VGG Guide to Genres.

• Action Adventure - Besides pure Action Adventures, this genre will be home to Survival horror and Stealth Action sub-genres. Action RPG is spun in its on genre. Hack and Slash games are part of the Action RPG genre;
• Pinball - This genre will be use for both Arcade Pinball and Video pinball;
• Shooter - At this point only the first person shooter sub-genre has spun-off on its on genre, the other sub-genres should be added to the main shooter.

Theme

Theme is related to where and when the game plays and the main themes. It can be both an specific era and location (i.e. WWII, American Revolution) or a more generic one (Fantasy, Medieval, etc). Choose whichever apply, if you are in doubt you can leave it blank.

Franchise

Choose which, if any, franchise the game is part of. To know more about franchises, see here.

Series

As with franchise, choose which, if any, the game is part of. To know more about series, see here.

Modes

Modes are ways of playing the game. Single Player, Multiplayer, Massive, etc. Select each that apply.

Minimum and Maximum Players

How many can play a game at the same time. Usually Minimum number will be 1, although there are rare games where 2 and only 2 can play. As for the Maximum Number of players, check the rules below for it:

• For single player only, put 1;
• For MMOs leave it empty;
• For Multiplayer games, put the number of players that can be playing together in a giving instance of the game. For example, in Starcraft 1, up to 8 players can be on the map, making the maximum number of players, 8.

Release Date

On the Video Game entry, the first release date of all the versions should be the one used. Only the year is mandatory.

Expansions and Expands

If the game has an expansion that is already in the database, select it on the Expansions field, if it expands a game, select on the Expands. A new game on a series is not an expansion. For example, Diablo II is not an expansion of Diablo I, but Lord of Destruction expands Diablo II.

Description

All the descriptions must have an attribution. Descriptions from other sites, except those listed below, cannot be used. A description should give a good intro on what is the game and what it is about. Preferably, these sources should be used:

• A Good User Summary - A good user summary will mention part of the defining characteristics of the game besides explaining some of the game play. On top of the text add '''User Summary'''
• Publisher / Developer Website - On the top of the description write [http://link.to.article From the Publisher / Developer Website]
• Game Manual / Game Box - On the top of the descriptions write, '''From the Game Manual / Box'''
• Wikipedia or StrategyWiki - ANYTHING taken from there must include a link back to Wikipedia (it is required by their license). This should be done using our wiki-formatting as: [size=10]''Source: Wikipedia, "[http://www.wikipedia.com/SomeArticle Wikipedia-Page-Title]," available under the [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ CC-BY-SA License].''[/size]

If you need help with the attribution, we added a tool that can be found on the top of the description box, which will handle all of the formatting for you. Use it and you will save a lot of time.

Links (especially many Wikipedia links) may contain some "unsafe charactes" which do not translate properly by the wiki markup. Use the %xx escape sequences below instead for the given character:

• %21 ! (exclamation mark)
• %23 # (number sign)
• %24 $ (dollar sign)
• %27 ' (apostrophe)
• %28 ( (left/open parenthesis)
• %29 ) (right/closing parenth.)
• %2A * (asterisk)
• %2B + (plus)
• %2E . (period)

Example: Jeremy's Full of Awesome Strategy RPG(video game) becomes Jeremy%27s Full of Awesome Strategy RPG%28video game%29

Nickname

An unique name to be used to distinguish the releases. It should be short but enough to uniquely identify a release. If it is an international release, the international name can be used. The Nickname should NOT include the game name. Examples could be PC Asian Edition, Wii EU, UK Release etc...

Release Date

The release date of this specific product. Again, only the year is mandatory.

Platform

Which platform (add link) this release can be played on. Select all that applies. For example, for a game that comes into a CD-ROM, if you can install it on both Windows and Mac OS X platform, both should be selected.

Release Publisher and Developer

These two fields should hold, respectively, the companies that published and developed this specific release of the video game. Some other points to note about this field

• If the release is a localized or ported version done by another company, the developer of the original release must be linked to;
• If the company is not currently on the system, first add them using this link, and them you can link it to your release even before it gets approve;
• At this moment, we are not crediting specific people on the video game entries, so, for games that were developed/published by a single or a group of individuals not attached to any company (Self-developed) as the Developer and (Self-published) or (Web-published) as the Publisher depending on the case;

Media

In which media the game came. If the box had both CD's and DVD's, select both.

Languages

Which languages the game, and not the manual, can be played on.

DRM

If the game has any Digital Rights Management software, select it. For old games that asked questions about the manual, select Other. Needing the CD/DVD on the drive to play, cartridge lock pieces, serial numbers are not considered DRM mechanism. Online accounts are only considered for games that are not massive multiplayers and online games.

Video Game Rating

The rating specified on the box. If you can't find it, add on the Note to Admin field and we will see it, if the game didn't receive a rating, select (Not Rated). The rating is an important field, so a bit of research is always good. Some resources you may want to check:

• ESRB Website - For US releases;
• PEGI Website - For EU releases;
• Cero Website - For JP releases (site in japanese);
• Use google image search to find the cover for the release and check the image tag on it.

Region

This is a non mandatory field regarding Region locks DRM system. Old cartridges had it, and it got widespread use with DVDs. If the release itself don't have this kind of DRM applied, don't select any.