SmashWiki:SmashWiki is not official
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This page documents an official SmashWiki policy, a widely accepted standard that all users should follow. When editing this page, please ensure that your revision reflects consensus. If in doubt, consider discussing changes on the talk page. |
SmashWiki is in no way directly related to or controlled by Nintendo or Nintendo of America, or any game developer whose content is discussed therein (these parties will be collectively referred to as "Nintendo" for the remainder of this document). SmashWiki is a branch of NIWA and as such, is held accountable only to the standards and practices set by NIWA, as well as any additional standards and practices agreed upon by the users. The only way in which Nintendo could directly control the content of this wiki is through a legal injunction, of which there have been none, or through showing a copyright violation that transcends fair use.
Acknowledging the fact that this wiki is not official, we are not bound to simply repeat information endorsed by Nintendo. We are free to document any content that is deemed of encyclopedic value to the wiki and which does not violate international copyright agreements. As an example, Nintendo does not endorse Super Smash Bros. tournaments. However, as these have become such an ubiquitous part of the Smash community, it would be wrong for this wiki not to cover them. In this case, we are not bound by what Nintendo may have wanted, but instead by what is. The same holds true for advanced techniques. Nintendo may have never intended wavedashing to be used in Melee, yet its use is so important in competitive play that excluding it as an article would not make sense. In short, while this wiki should cover what Nintendo officially covers in the games, we also will cover aspects of the Smash community that are notable, such as tournaments.
The main area to which this policy will draw attention is in the naming of moves that are never covered in the game manuals, or the game itself, and have been given names by the community. For example, when the DOJO went online, its names of certain moves (most notably "strong" down/up/side) conflicted with the standard practices of the Smash community, in which these moves are traditionally referred to as "tilts". In a case such as this, the wiki should not be forced to change all instances of "tilt" to "strong". "Tilt" is still the most commonly used term for the move, although strong has come to be equally understood and both terms are equally descriptive. In a case such as this, either term can be used, although a manner of consistency should be kept within each article and within a set of related articles. Also, both terms should be on the same page, with the more commonly used term, not necessarily the "official" term, as the main title and the other as a redirect. A more interesting case is the term "ukemi" versus the term "tech". "Tech" has always been the term used for the technique, but ukemi came from the DOJO. However, Tech has come to be the accepted jargon for the technique. In this case, tech should be the word primarily used, with "ukemi" being noted as the "official" name on the tech page.
Dos and don'ts
Do
- Do make references to both the "official" name and the community accepted name if they are different.
- Do use the name that is most commonly accepted. If two terms are equally used, be consistent.
- Do write content about things outside of Nintendo's expectations or sphere of influence.
Don't
- Don't remove a term just because it isn't "official".
- Don't use an unknown term just because it is "official".
- Don't remove content on tournaments, tiers, etc. just because they are not endorsed by Nintendo.
- Don't deliberately misconstrue this policy to argue that fan-fiction is acceptable.
