Guidelines:References

The references policy of Megami Tensei Wiki defines how references and notes can verify and support statements made on the wiki, and how these should be formatted.

General

References are footnotes that are added to page statements to verify their truth with credible sources of information. References are especially useful and important for supporting claims that seem questionable or would otherwise be difficult to verify offhand. Some examples of things that may encourage or even require a reference could be obscure statements about a subject; a comment made by a developer in an interview, publication, or social media post; the data-mined mechanics of an internal game process; academic journals about a Demon or other entity; and so forth. Simply put, references help to strengthen the factuality of a page and its content.

Notes are another type of footnote that, instead of being used to cite statements, provide additional context or a brief explanation to a statement without breaking the flow of the page. Notes can also be helpful in accompanying a reference if the reference alone does not have all of the necessary context for a claim.

References appear as small numbered footnotes (or lettered for notes), usually placed at the end of a statement’s sentence. When clicked or tapped on, the reference will display a tooltip with the relevant information supporting the statement. Pages with references will also always have a References section near the bottom of a page, or a Notes section for notes, that list all of the page's references in the order they appear in from top to bottom. Clicking/tapping on a reference or note in these sections will scroll up to the statement they are annotating.

References

References are created by wrapping the citation between reference tags: <ref></ref>.

For example, adding <ref>This is a citation reference.</ref> at the end of this sentence will create the following footnote.

In order to properly display and sort references, the page will also need a References section with Template:Reflist added underneath it ({{Reflist}}). This section must be placed near the bottom of the page, following all other sections and just before any navigation templates and categories. It will look like:

==References==
{{Reflist}}

You can see an example of this section at the bottom of this guideline page.

Citation Templates

In order to ensure that different types of information are properly cited and formatted, Megami Tensei Wiki uses a selection of citation templates. Each of these templates have several parameters for citing specific information about the reference, which will automatically format and display this information on the page. Not every parameter needs to be filled when using these templates, but some are required or highly recommended to use. Be sure to pick the proper citation template for your reference and carefully read over its usage documentation.

Citation templates

Template	Purpose	Code
Cite Book	Citing books, including manga and comics, guidebooks, and reference works	{{Cite Book|quote=|translquote=|des=|chapter=|book=|author=|publisher=|lang=|volume=|edition=|page=|transl=|isbn=}}
Cite Game	Citing text from a video game	{{Cite Game|quote=|translquote=|title=|developer=|publisher=|platform=|version=|lang=|transl=}}
Cite Magazine	Citing magazines	{{Cite Magazine|quote=|publ=|publisher=|lang=|volume=|issue=|page=|published=|coverdate=}}
Cite Manual	Citing video game manuals, including print and digital	{{Cite Manual|quote=|translquote=|des=|title=|platform=|version=|developer=|publisher=|lang=|page=|transl=|url=|published=|retrieved=|site=|type=}}
Cite Journal	Citing an article from an academic journal	{{Cite Journal|quote=|translquote=|article=|author=|journal=|volume=|issue=|page=|published=|lang=|transl=|doi=}}
Cite Web	Citing web pages, online documents and files, videos, and social media posts	{{Cite Web|quote=|translquote=|author=|url=[]|archive=|published=|retrieved=|site=|type=}}

Notes

Notes are created by assigning the reference tag to the "note" group: <ref group="note"></ref>.

For example, adding <ref group="note">This is a note.</ref> at the end of this sentence will create the footnote.

Notes can also be created using Template:Note, formatted as {{Note|Comment here.}}. This template allows a note itself to be cited with a reference if necessary, by adding the reference inside of the curly brackets.

Notes are sorted into a separate Notes section with Template:Notelist ({{Notelist}}). As notes can be accompanied with a reference, this section should always come after the References section, if there is one, and just before any navigation templates and categories. This section will look like:

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

You can also find an example of this section at the bottom of this page.

Usage

If a page does not presently have any references or notes, the respective sections should be omitted until either one is needed.

Where to Add References

Both references and notes should always be added next to the relevant statement, immediately after any punctuation in the majority of cases. Often this will usually be at the end of a statement's sentence. The exception to this are infobox fields and file thumbnail captions, which forego punctuation in the AP style of writing.

In most cases, a reference should not be added in the middle of a sentence, unless following a comma. One other exception to this rule is when a specific subject (such as a name, title, release date, developer of a media, so on), and not the whole statement sentence, is being supported. In these cases, the reference can be added immediately next to the specific subject.

Example	Validity
This is a statement.	✘ Disallowed
This is a statement.	✔ Allowed
It was developed by SIMS and released on…	✔ Allowed only when supporting specific subjects in a sentence

Citing the Same Reference

The same reference or note can be used to support multiple statements throughout a page by giving it a named identifier. This is strongly preferred over copy-pasting the exact same reference, which would list it twice in the References section. References are named by naming the reference tag: <ref name="name"></ref>.

Notes can also be named by using Template:Note: {{Note|name=name|Note here.}}.

To cite the named reference again, simply type <ref name="name"/> or {{Note|name=name}}. The statement will be cited with the same reference that matches the name entered. Both statements using the same reference will be accompanied by the same numbered footnote.

Named identifiers are case-sensitive and must be spelled correctly to work, else it will result in an error message. It is therefore recommended to give references a short, descriptive identifier relevant to the information being cited. For example: "dev history", "JP release", "birthday", etc. Numbers can also be used, but are discouraged as this can be difficult to keep track.

General References

A reference should be listed as a general reference if a page uses it extensively as a source of information, where adding multiple footnotes of the same reference would become too impractical or cumbersome. A general reference could be, for example: the entirety of a book; a webpage detailing raw game data; an episode guide, etc.

A general reference requires that the reference be added directly in the References section, without reference tags, in a bullet point list under a "General" index. The {{Reflist}} template should still be included and listed under a "Specific" index. This will look like:

==References==
;General
* Reference
;Specific
{{Reflist}}

The same approach can also be done for general notes as well.

You can pair general references with Template:Sfn for specific page number citations, with an id field added to the citation template in the general references.

Errors in Texts

Quoted texts used on the wiki (such as in citations and in-game descriptions) need to be transcribed as-is, including any erroneous spellings, grammar, or punctuation found in the text. Do not correct these errors as you come across them, as this is counter to presenting and preserving the original text as-is. Instead, such errors in the text should be accompanied by Template:Sic, which inserts a footnote informing readers and contributors that the error is part of the original text, and not as a result of an editorial mistake.

Specific References

Publication Citations

Out of respect to relevant copyright holders, citations of published materials (including books, magazines, game manuals, manga, etc.) should never cite entire pages or multiple paragraphs. When citing an excerpt or quote from a book, it is preferred to only cite a sentence or two that directly correlates to the relevant statement being supported.

Citations of specific excerpts or quotes must also have their page number cited using the page= parameter, formatted as p. 112 for a single page or pp. 112-113 for multiple pages. Even if the excerpt or quote's text is not provided, the referenced page number must still be cited. General references of published material do not require this parameter.

Social Media Post Citations

Citations of social media posts must include the post's original text in the quote= parameter. This is so the post's text can still be accessed in the event that the post is later deleted, or if the social media website or user profile cannot be accessed without an account.

Non-English and Translated Texts

Non-English texts and their translations can be cited by using the appropriate parameters in the citation templates. The original language text must use the quote= parameter, while the text's translation must use the translquote= parameter. Using both parameters will display and format both texts simultaneously.

Translations of text should never be cited alone and should always be accompanied with the original language text that is being translated.

Translations of any non-English texts should preferably be credible and authentic where possible, i.e. it is highly recommended to avoid the use of machine translators. Although it is preferable to provide a translation with the original text, citations of non-English texts do not need to be accompanied with a translation in order to use them on the wiki. If you do not have the means or confidence to provide an authentic, full translation yourself, simply cite the original language text as-is. Another contributor may be able to provide a translation in your stead. Template:Translation Needed may be added to the References section to request a translation for cited non-English texts.

If a text's translation comes from a particular source, such as a named translator or group, then it is highly recommended that the transl= parameter be used to clarify and credit the translation's source. This parameter should list just the translator's full name or preferred alias. E.g. transl=First Name Last Name.

Fan Translations

While texts originating from fan translations of media or publications are not necessarily disallowed, these should ideally be avoided in citations, in favor of the original language text or an official localization where available (as per the canon guidelines). In the case of media related to the Megami Tensei franchise, this guideline mainly exists because fan translations are not endorsed by Atlus or Sega and may take certain liberties that are not approved by either, which may potentially skew or reframe the information. Fan translations therefore cannot always be considered reliable sources and should be carefully vetted for accuracy.

If a text from a fan translation is cited, the transl= parameter must be used to clarify the translation's source. This parameter should list just the translator's or collective group's name. If the translator/group has a page on the wiki, this should also be formatted as a link to that page. E.g. transl=[[Aeon Genesis]].

Reference Maintenance

Citation Needed

If an unsourced statement is deemed in need of a credible source, it may be marked by Template:Citation Needed. This adds a small footnote requesting that a citation be added to verify the statement being made. Pages that have this template are automatically added to Category:Citations Needed.

A statement may be marked by this template if the claim is obscure and would be difficult to verify offhand, or if the claim seems questionable or contrary to what is readily known about the subject. A statement that has this template added should not be taken as a slight upon the original contributor who added it, but rather as a constructive request for more information and clarity.

Similarly to references, the Citation Needed template should immediately follow any punctuation (unless a specific subject is being marked). Once a credible source has been added, the template should be promptly removed from the statement.

Dead Links

If a reference is found to have a 'dead link', i.e. a hyperlink that no longer points to its intended webpage or file, it may be marked with Template:Dead link to inform readers and contributors. This template should be placed immediately next to the reference footnote containing the dead link. Pages that have this template are automatically added to Category:Pages with dead links.

Dead links may occur for several reasons. Often a dead link may be the result of the URL changing, the web source being deleted or removed, or the domain name expiring. If the original web source has since been lost and can no longer be retrieved normally, an archived page (such as via the Internet Archive) may need to be retrieved and added to the archive= parameter. It is recommended to still preserve the original URL in the url= parameter.

References

General

• This is a general reference.

Specific