EA Forum Rules and Guidelines

We want the EA forums to be an enjoyable place to visit to discuss everything and anything EA related.

Anyone should be comfortable making a post, sharing their thoughts and ideas as well as interacting with other players.

To make sure the forums are a great place to visit there’s a few rules we need you to keep in mind.

We like to keep it simple, so here’s the short form:

• Be kind, respectful, and polite.
  

• Search for an answer to your question before you post a new thread.
  

• Make sure replies are relevant to the threads you’re posting in.
  

• Keep secret stuff secret: don’t post personal info. That means your home address, email address, phone number, credit card details, EA account details, or CD-keys / Product Codes.
  

• Follow the EA User Agreement.
  

• Report abuse to a Community Manager or a moderator.
  

Want more details? Check out our Dos and Don'ts below.

Not sure if it’s following the rules? Check out the official EA Forum Rules & Guidelines below and the EA User Agreement. You can also ask an EA Community Manager.

That’s it! Ask questions, share your knowledge, and have fun.

EA Forum Rules & Guidelines

Our forum staff monitors posts. If posts don’t follow our rules and guidelines, we might remove them. We may also take action, including bans, on any player that continuously breaks the rules.

Dos and Don’ts

Here’s a breakdown for what to do and what not to do here on EA Forums.

Dos

• Post in the right place. Posts in the Game/General Discussions section should be about the games and gameplay, while posts in the Feedback & Support section should only be related to that section. We might move or remove posts in the wrong place.
  

• Use the search feature to see if there’s already a thread for your question. If there is, use it instead of making a new one. Try to include all your points in a single place.
  

• Be accurate. Make sure the title of your thread matches what your post is about.
  






• Keep it on-topic. If someone created a thread, it’s because they’re looking for an answer to their question. Changing the topic of the thread isn’t helpful.
  




• Keep it game-related. We’re not here to debate politics or religion, so keep the conversation about our games.
  




• Keep it appropriate. Players of all ages see EA Forums. Make sure that any images you use are in line with the EA Forum Rules & Guidelines and the EA User Agreement.
  




• Be patient. Keep track of your thread using bookmarks or by subscribing to the thread. Other players will post in your thread when they are interested or have an answer for you.
  




• Be polite and kind. Respect others even if they have a different opinion. If you disagree with someone, you are free to do so politely, but please don't make it personal. Respect also means you never harass, embarrass, or threaten other players.
  


Don’ts

Doing something on this list often can get you suspended, or sometimes even banned.




• Write posts using ALL CAPS or extra-large font. This is like shouting at someone on a forum. And nobody likes being YELLED AT!!
  




• Use repeated symbols, multiple exclamation marks, or multiple question marks. Again, nobody likes being YELLED AT!!
  




• Post blank or “no text” messages. No-one can reply if we don’t know what the thread is about!
  




• Call out Community Managers and Officials. Be cool, folks. We know you want to grab our attention, but good thread titles like the above will help you get our attention much easier.
  




• Petition. Petitions do not contribute to a useful and productive forum.
  




• Bump threads or PMs over and over again. This goes hand-in-hand with spamming and flooding. "Bumping" a thread is when someone posts "bump" or anything similar in their thread to keep it on the first page of threads. Doing this once or twice is fine, but multiple bumps in a short period of time is considered spamming. Use your bumps wisely.




• Post personal information. Forum posts are visible to everyone and can show up in search engine results. Protect the privacy of yourself and others.
  




• Be inappropriate. That means no “sexting” or other explicit posts.
  




• Be rude. No matter what your feelings are about other people, the EA Forums aren’t the place to attack another person. That includes public figures, EA employees, or other forum users.
  




• Chat about the way we moderate the forums. Our moderators are here to keep this place happy and helpful for everyone. Discussing the way they do things is not okay.
  




• Impersonate anybody. This includes moderators, EA employees, other forum members, celebrities, or anyone else. If you use a screen name that has the words "EA," “Community Manager,” “Admin,” or "Moderator" that is considered impersonation. It also includes simulating privileges of forum accounts with a higher level rank.
  




• Spam or flood boards. That means don’t post disruptive numbers of messages and images, including posting the same message in multiple forums, or sending the same PM multiple times.
  




• Curse or swear. Don’t try to get away with it by using symbols in place of letters, too. We all k*** what you’re trying to s**.
  




• Bully. Online bullying is against the rules. Bullying is a one-stop-shop to getting banned from the forums. Your gaming account will also be reviewed. Bullying can include:
  
  • Personal defamation
    
  • Naming and shaming
    
  • Gossiping about other people
  
  





• Make false claims to EA stafff. It’s not cool to lie. Don’t do it.
  




• Flame. Flaming is intentionally posting hurtful, insulting, or harassing messages to or about other people.
  




• Advertise. For anything: pay-to-play gaming sites, products or items for sale, referral links or advert links/images in forum signatures, avatar posts, blogs, profiles, you name it! But feel free to link to free gaming fan sites and free-to-enter league sites.
  


Don’ts that can get you banned right away

These are more serious don’ts. That means if you do something from this list, we might ban you right away.




• Link to pirated and/or harmful content, like Trojan horses or adult-themed things. That’s not allowed and will result in account action.
  
• Be a troll. Trolling is deliberately posting sarcastic, off topic, or rude things to start a fight.
  




• Do anything illegal. That includes:
  
  • Identity theft
    
  • Identity fraud
    
  • "Swatting”
    
  • Doxxing
    
  • Stalking
    
  • Making personal threats
    
  • Blackmail and extortion
  
  
  
• Flame bait. That means no:
  
  • Obscenity
    
  • Sexism
    
  • Racism
    
  • Politics, religion, or lobbyism
    
  • Threatening to start a law suit against EA


Actions with Zero-Tolerance

Some things are absolutely not okay. No ifs, ands, or buts. Do any of these things and your account will face immediate action:




• Talking about illegal activities. This includes software piracy, “hacks,” “torrents,” game "cracks," and more. See that happening on the boards? Report it directly to EA.
  
• Posting anything that references adult materials. This includes linking to adult-themed mods for games. We’ve got young gamers on here, too.
  
• Asking for or giving out CD-Keys/Product Codes. Missing the code for your game? Head to help.ea.com to contact us.
  
• Sharing accounts. Sharing accounts will get you banned.
  
• Posting copyrighted material. This includes images as well as text from game guides. If you don’t own it, don’t post it.
  
• Creating more than one forum account. Accounts created for inappropriate or unauthorized reasons will be banned.
  
• In-game currency Selling / Promoting / Gambling (including real life gambling). These are all against our User Agreement. Any posts that discuss these topics will be removed, and the user will receive a temporary ban. Repeat offenders will receive a permanent ban.
  
• Posting real-life threats. The EA Forums are a safe space. Threatening other players is not okay.


Images, avatars, and signatures

A lot of our rules about images, avatars, and signatures are the same as our Dos and Don’ts. But just to make sure it’s clear, here’s what you can and can’t do.

You can:


• include a cool picture
  
• keep it tidy, with up to three lines of text
  
• keep it clean, with appropriate images for all ages
  
• make your own images. We like your style.
  
• have fun!


But don’t:


• make it too long. The longer the signature, the more cluttered the boards will get. Limit your signature to three lines or less. Unless someone from the Forum Team has given you permission, keep it short.
  
• have large pictures or text. Sometimes bigger isn’t always better.
  
• use personal photos
  
• include religious or political content. Debate which C&C game is the best all day on our boards, but don’t bring religion or politics into EA Forums. Keep it on-topic.
  
• use racist, hateful, controversial, or illegal content
  
• link to pirated and/or harmful content, like Trojan horses or adult-themed things. That’s not allowed and will result in account action.


I've been banned from posting on the forums - what now?

Take a break, go for a walk, have a snack, play some games – it’s not a big deal. We’re not mad at you; you just need a break.

Do not complain about your ban or ask your friends to post about it on the forums for you. That could get your ban extended and may even get your friends in trouble, too.

Keep in mind that discussing moderation is against our rules.

If you think you’ve been banned by mistake, get in touch with our Terms of Service team by emailing lets_talk@ea.com.