Allow international character sets in game chat

[Unbathed]

Non-Roman characters in game chat are converted to question marks

• Various online translators make it possible to pseudo-converse in languages in which none of the players are fluent. E.g. Google Translator.

Specifics:

• The phrase تدخين الحشيشه الخضراء appears in the chat log as ????? ??????? ???????. See game # 2868872.
• The phrase 이 알파벳 당국이 싫어하는합니다. is also converted to question marks. See message to self in game #268872.

This will improve the following aspects of the site:

• Chat can take place in the (broken) language of the map.
• Web 2.0, man

[lancehoch]

I understand this is a reasonable request, but the only problem I can foresee with this is:

Rule #2: No secret diplomacy

Any form of diplomatic discussion between opponents must be posted in the game chat in a language that all opponents understand. Diplomacy includes, but is not limited to: proposing truces, negotiating alliances, and coordinating attacks. Secret diplomacy can be hard to prove, but if you suspect it you should leave the players in question appropriate ratings. If you feel certain about players engaging in secret diplomacy consider reporting them in the Cheating & Abuse Reports forum by posting a new topic.

I know that most people would only use this feature if they were following the above rule, but there are some people who would use this ability to cheat (I am not saying anything about you, as I do not know you at all).

[Unbathed]

I believe this is the argument:

"Limiting Game Chat to the Roman character set is an implementation decision compelled by the "Intelligible Diplomacy" rule.

I answer this argument thusly:

• Ineffective. Due to their conquests two millennia ago, many languages of the Former Roman Empire are written using the Roman alphabet. This enables a literate speaker of one these languages to read and roughly pronounce another without understanding it. Thus legibility does not guarantee intelligibility.
• Arbitrary. There is no basis in the rules for the system to allow players, for example, in late midgame to refer in to Ragnarök but not Ἀποκάλυψις, Αρμαγεδδων, or कुरुक्षेत्र युद्ध.
• Inconsistent. Players can organize a non-Roman game in the forums using their favored character sets, but cannot use those character sets in the game itself.
• Dismotivational. Players who cannot use Game Chat will be strongly tempted to carry out their communications through non-Game channels.

The benefits of internationalizing Game Chat include:

• Beautification, because Game Chat will not be marred by the occasional ? and ?? from players who inadvertently use a word with containing a character which baffles Game Chat.
• Fun, because it adds an element of the exotic.
• Educational, because players will learn to recognize the major orthographies.

[max is gr8]

Also , many english words stolen from the french have extended latin characters café for example.