Discord’s New Age-Gating: What You Need to Know

Welcome to Age-Gated Discord!

Hey there, fellow gamers! So, Discord has decided to join the age-gating party, and it’s doing it with a mix of fancy AI and good old-fashioned human intuition. Sounds like a sci-fi thriller, right? But hold your horses—this is all about making your chat experience a little safer, or at least that’s what they want you to believe!

What’s the Deal with Age-Gating?

Starting this March, Discord is rolling out facial scanning and ID checks globally. For those who don’t want to be locked into a “teen-appropriate experience,” this may seem like a breath of fresh air…or a breath of something a bit less pleasant. Why are they doing this? Apparently, they want to keep the party PG-13 friendly! But what does this mean for us, the users?

If you decide to wave goodbye to your privacy for a while and prove you’re over the age of 18, great! But for those who are a bit more… skeptical of giving out personal info, life in “Teenage Discord Purgatory” could get dull fast—no access to stage channels, extra restrictions on messages, and, oh joy, enjoy missing out on *certain* servers entirely. What servers will be locked, you ask? Glad you were curious!

According to Discord’s sources, it’s not so straightforward. They won’t simply block a server because of a game’s rating. Instead, they’re employing a delightful concoction of automated AI detection and some good old human review—essentially, a robot-human combo designed to sniff out the vibe of servers. Sounds fun, right? What could go wrong with a bunch of algorithms deciding where you can mingle online?

Is this alarming? Maybe, or maybe it’s just the latest twist in our favorite digital hangout’s saga. Just remember: If all else fails, there are always alternatives! Maybe it’s time to check out other platforms or even chat like it’s 1999 on IRC! Now, isn’t that a thought?