Play other games :)

[Hurlstone]

Negativity being accepted on any level is a fairly recent development, and even now it does tend to result in being mocked and ridiculed regardless of whether or not criticisms are thoughtful and well-written. Bringing this up in turn often results in further mockery and various accusations. And therein lies the problem.

Gonna have to disagree that negativity being accepted is a recent development. From my own experiences here, the negative side of the scales have always been more heavy and vocal here (I still have the scars from early Endwalker debates regarding Venat…) then the positive. Its levels have changed up and down sure over time and years, but I do not think one can accuse this place of being at a level of ‘toxic positivity’ other media sites are.

It is normal to be critical of a product you care about when you see things you feel could be handled better, and putting those thoughts to word is about the only option available other than just throwing in the towel. If you speak ill of any part of the game, there will almost definitely be some posters that roll up to trash you. It's happened enough that people are just tired of it.

I agree criticism is a needed aspect of any media, but to be fair though, the ‘posters that roll up to trash you’ thing often happens if you speak positively of the game too. People have even used the same excuse you say to justify being disrespectful of negative posts, that they are ‘just tired of it.’ You are right that such debates can fall into ‘mockery and various accusations.’ but it is in no way unique to one side either. It would be great if every topic could be well-written and throughout examinations of the game, but in this environment thats near on impossible to carry on past a few pages. Plus when it comes to subjective aspects like story, we are all pushed by our own bias viewpoints.