View source for SCEE Cambridge Wiki:Manual of Style

The '''Manual of Style''' ('''MOS''') provides a series of guidelines for users when creating articles. It serves the purpose of maintaining consistency throughout the ''[[Project:About|SCEE Cambridge Wiki]]'' in order to ensure that its articles are easy to read and edit for all. Any questions regarding this manual may be directed at the [[Special:ListAdmins|administrators]].

If you are unfamiliar with Wiki-style editing, please review the MediaWiki Help pages. If you are inexperienced with Wiki formatting, you may play around with it in the [[Project:Sandbox|Sandbox]].

==Article structure==
Articles should generally be structured in this way, from top to bottom:
* '''Disambiguation'''
** Use the {{t|for}} or {{t|about}} templates. This helps users find their way to similarly named articles. Leave out if not applicable.
* '''Infobox'''
** A floating box with all the essential information about the article subject.
** See the [[:Category:Infobox templates|Infobox templates]] category for a list of currently available infobox templates.
* '''Quote'''
** Use the {{t|Q}} template. This should be a quote from or about the subject of the article.
* '''Introduction'''
**A paragraph (or several) giving a quick overview of the subject matter. 
**This section generally does not require citations; they can be provided in the appropriate sections of the article instead. 
**The first sentence of the first paragraph should begin with the title of the article in '''bold letters'''.
* '''The bulk of the article, under headings'''
**This part will differ depending on what the article is about. However, articles covering similar subject matter should generally follow the same structure. For example, [[Primal:Jennifer Tate|Jennifer Tate]] and [[Ghosthunter:Lazarus Jones|Lazarus Jones]] are both characters, so their articles should generally use the same headings.

And, near the end of the article:
* '''Gallery'''
**A sampling of images about the subject matter. 
**If the subject has their own image category, a link to it can be provided here using {{t|Main article}}. 
**Galleries may be separated out into a subpage if they are too big (more than 10 images).
* '''Trivia'''
**This section is for information that generally does not fit into any other section of the article, but is still notable enough to be worth mentioning. 
**It is ideal to '''not''' have a trivia section at all, instead finding a place for all information within other sections.
* '''See also'''
** Use this section to link to articles on the Wiki that are closely related to the subject matter of this article.
**The inclusion of this section is not always necessary; only use it if you cannot incorporate related articles into the main body of the article.
* '''Notes'''
** Use the {{t|Notelist}} template here. This will produce a list of all notes in the article. To make a note, use the {{t|Note}} template.
** Notes can be used to explain editorial decisions made in the article or to go into more detail about specific issues relating to the article where it would be inappropriate to do so within the main sections.
* '''References'''
** Use the {{t|Reflist}} template here. This will produce a list of all citations within the article. For more information on sourcing, see the [[#Sources|Sources]] section below.
* '''External links'''
** You may link to websites about the subject matter other than the ''SCEE Cambridge Wiki'' here.
* '''Navigation'''
** Place an appropriate navbox (or several) under this heading. For a list of all currently available navboxes, see the [[:Category:Navigational templates|Navigational templates]] category.
== Capitalisation==
===In headings===
Use sentence-style capitalization, not title-style capitalization: Capitalize the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns in headings, but leave the rest lower case. Thus "Rules and regulations", not "Rules and Regulations".

For example:
* See also, not See Also
* External links, not External Links
===In the articles===
When writing about a specific in-game item or level, it is ok to capitalise its name.
==Categories==
It is important that all articles are categorised to make searching for them easier. The top level category on the Wiki is the [[:Category:SCEE Cambridge Wiki|SCEE Cambridge Wiki]] category.

For game specific categories, the naming format should be "X in Y", where X is the category and Y is the game, e.g. [[:Category:Characters in Primal|Characters in Primal]].

== ''Italic'' titles ==
The names of real world video games, books, soundtracks and similar should be written in italic to distinguish their meaning. For example:
* ''MediEvil''
* ''Primal''
* ''Ghosthunter''

==Multiple links==
Please make attempts to avoid making multiple links to the same article. For example, if you already have a link to the page [[Primal:Aetha|Aetha]] in an article, please don't add another link to the same page later in the article.
==Perspective==
===In-universe===
If something is '''in-universe''', or is described as such, it belongs to its specific universe exclusively and not to the real world. Characters, for example, are in-universe, but the voice actors who portray them are out-of-universe.

Articles about any in-universe topics, such as characters, terminology, or species, should always be written from an in-universe perspective. In-universe articles should never refer to the game they are from by name, or any other real life things such as publications, developers, or the like. The exception to this are the "Gameplay" and "Behind the scenes" sections. 

Articles that are primarily about gameplay elements, such as inventory items or the levels, may be written from an out-of-universe perspective.

====Tense====
In-universe article sections, specifically the history section, should be written in the past tense (unless the characters are deemed to still be alive).

This is because in-universe articles on the ''SCEE Cambridge Wiki'' are presented as historical recordings. Keeping articles written in past tense provides consistency and flavour.

===Out-of-universe===
'''Out-of-universe''' is the perspective opposite of in-universe, i.e. something written from a real life point of view. While articles about in-universe subjects should be written from an in-universe perspective, articles about the games, books, developers, or other real life material should be written from an out-of-universe perspective.

==Sources==
Under most circumstances, a source for a given article will be officially released media. For general information that the average user could obtain on their own, such as a game ending, no source needs to be cited.

If a "[[Template:Citation needed|Citation needed]]" template is in an article, it means that information still needs to be verified.

In other instances, some information may come from an official source, but isn't readily available to the general public. In such instances, a source of this kind ''should'' be cited or linked to. Don't forget to include a [[Template:Reflist|Reflist]] under a '''References''' heading at the end of the article as well.

==Spoilers==
Because the wiki mainly covers content from long-dead franchises, there is no need to mark spoilers on the wiki.

==Uploading files==
*When uploading new files, ''please'' put them in their correct category. If a category does not yet exist, you may create it.
**You can explore our existing image categories [[:Category:Images|here]].

*Please try to give files '''sensible''' titles. Uploading a photo with the title 56744asfd7asf657af.png doesn't help anybody.

*'''Do not upload files and do nothing with them'''.

== Usage of 'you' ==
It is preferred that editors do not use 'you' when referring to Dan or the player as it sounds less professional, as well as 'we'.

* For example, instead of "'''You''' eventually corner Palethorn in Cathedral Spires.", use "Dan" or "The player" instead so that it becomes either "'''The player''' eventually corners Palethorn in Cathedral Spires." or "'''Dan''' eventually corners Palethorn in Cathedral Spires."

* The only exceptions when using 'You' are Walkthrough sections on [[:Category:Levels|Level]] articles and Strategy sections on [[:Category:Bosses|Boss]] articles, as they are written as guides that explain the subject matter to the reader.

Additionally, '''always''' avoid writing in the first-person when writing articles, especially in character or enemy pages.

*For example, "Zarok's initial attacks are him chasing Dan around, spitting acid at him and swiping at him. I used the Magic Sword to defeat him." Personal techniques for boss fighting and experiences in the game are best avoided at all times, as this is where it tends to be easiest to slip into first person.
== Miscellaneous ==
* Use colons in titles where appropriate. For example:
**''C-12: Final Resistance'', not ''C-12 Final Resistance''

*Due to the British roots of the [[SCE Studio Cambridge|studio]], [[wikipedia:British English|British English]] should be used on the Wiki instead of [[wikipedia:American English|American English]]. For example, please use armour instead of armor.

* When linking, keep unnecessary words such as 'the' and 'a' out of the link itself, unless they are a part of the name.

* If you see any variant of "It should be noted..." or "It is notable that..." or "Of note...", remove it. It is unnecessary.

* If you see any variant of "It is interesting that..." or "Interestingly, ...", remove it. Saying that something is interesting is technically an opinion.
==See also==
*[[wikipedia:Wikipedia:Manual of Style|Manual of Style]] on Wikipedia.
==Navigation==
[[Category:Policies]]