The SCP Wiki is the original series of containment fiction and has existed since 2007. SCP stands for “Secure, Contain, and Protect”, a backronym to the letters accompanying the first example of its kind, SCP-173.^[1]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-98911/power#post-288697 SCP began on 4chan’s “Paranormal” board (more commonly known as /x/) in 2007, when an anonymous user S.S. Walrus (now known as Moto42) posted the first version of SCP-173.^[2]https://archive.is/QD9UF Eventually, the SCP series moved to the EditThis wiki farm in early 2008, and then to the Wikidot wiki farm in mid 2008, where the SCP series currently resides.^[3]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/history-of-the-universe-part-one

The SCP Wiki operates under the CC Attribution / Share-Alike 3.0 (CC BY-SA 3.0) license.

History

4chan

Note: This section is a summary. A detailed history of 4chan’s /x/ threads regarding SCP can be found on the /x/ wiki page.

In addition to SCP-173 and its basic format inclusions, 4chan threads about SCP introduced the ideas of several elements that would find further maturation in the SCP format: character-driven logs,^[4]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-1781.17-1781.79 other SCP items, in-universe role playing & cross-testing,^[5]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-3747.30-3747.328 decommissioning,^[6]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-3575.43-3575.308 article critique (“crit”), collaborative editing,^[7]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-7643.121-7643.270^[8]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-2469.30-2469.55 headcannon,^[9]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-3661.30-3661.320 discovery logs,^[10]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-3919.10-3919.1875 redaction & a site dedicated to such objects,^[11]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-4359.49-4359.554^[12]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-6143.10-6143.117^[13]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-7997.39-7997.253^[14]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-7203.10-7203.173 the philosophy of horror / writing horror,^[15]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-5495.30-5495.233 containment breaches,^[16]https://archive.ph/jmVa6#selection-5161.10-5161.25^[17]https://archive.ph/LZKOU#selection-5133.390-5133.580^[18]https://archive.ph/rHdvx prototype object classes, D-Class personnel,^[19]https://archive.ph/LZKOU#selection-3987.10-3987.26, incident reports,^[20]https://archive.ph/LZKOU#selection-5133.42-5133.71^[21]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-19913.0-19913.71 the Overseers,^[22]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-2813.0-2975.7 immersive in-universe elements such as warning notices & console commands,^[23]https://archive.ph/mwFGh#selection-4471.9-4471.23^[24]https://archive.ph/LZKOU#selection-4255.0-4255.788 migration to an external, site-dedicated collection,^[25]e.g, https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-7997.273-7997.466 contests to decide what entries get a specific slot (determined by popular vote, and with runner-ups taking alternative slots),^[26]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-14148.0-14217.287 and numerous other qualities.

From the first threads featuring variations on SCP-173, there was the explicit intention of keeping entries believable and authentic from the perspective of immersion. Traditional story-telling elements were eschewed in favor of stark clinical pseudo-documentation, although story-telling elements would be introduced to propel the developing genre’s narrative capabilities nonetheless.^[27]https://archive.ph/jmVa6^[28]e.g., see SCP-176, SCP-256.

The creative potential of the genre caught on slowly, with individuals taking for granted that any variation on SCP-173 should also be a statue with humanoid features.^[29]https://archive.ph/wxQgG#selection-3769.51-3769.199 The idea of branching out to things other than statues — even conceptually adjacent things such as paintings or ventriloquist dolls — was done almost cautiously.^[30]https://archive.ph/wxQgG#selection-3683.10-3693.7^[31]see SCP-086 From June 2007 to January 2008, most of the activity regarding SCP was requests for either the image associated with SCP-173, an accompanying United States Airforce tale, or both. A minority of threads featured any attempts to branch out and create new variations of the SCP format.

SCP-173 (and/or its image) was influential enough to see repeated requests for it to be reposted, which sustained interest and eventually generated traction for expanding the series, and on its own dedicated platform, the first of which was EditThis.

Dr Gears (then writing as “Cog”) was the first known to person to use “SCP Foundation”, in April 2008 on 4chan’s /x/.^[32]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-19521.0-19557.182 It appeared regularly on /x/ after then, though was not ubiquitous.^[33]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-19521.0-19557.179^[34]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-25431.0-25461.451^[35]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-27043.0-27091.54^[36]https://archive.ph/8j4bA#selection-1102.0-1181.7^[37]https://archive.ph/3QlpV#selection-20699.519-20699.613 The basic identity/goals of the SCP Foundation was established by mid 2008, developing simultaneously on /x/ and EditThis.^[38]https://archive.ph/3QlpV#selection-20699.614-20699.741

EditThis

Note: This section is a summary. A detailed history of the SCP Wiki on EditThis can be seen on the EditThis (SCP Wiki) wiki page.

The SCP EditThis Wiki was the primary repository of SCPs between January and July 2008.^[39]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/the-scp-foundation-on-4chan-and-editthis While relatively short-lived, it represented the first attempts at both independent & collaborative organization of the SCP series off of 4chan, and was pivotal to the project’s later development. By the conclusion of the EditThis era, Security Clearance Levels, Object Classes, Warning Labels, Secure Facilities Locations, Incident Reports, and Eye-witness Interviews / Personal Logs had established roles in-universe and in-document, as well as a dedicated Joke article section,^[40]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-20783.0-20783.190 and guidelines and rules for writing SCPs.^[41]https://web.archive.org/web/20080903043644/http://www.editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/Continue_on^[42]https://web.archive.org/web/20080617060229/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Talk:SCP-010^[43]http://web.archive.org/web/20080803022143/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Guidelines_and_Caveats^[44]http://web.archive.org/web/20080521121453/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Secure_facilities_location A crude template of the SCP document format was available (“SCP-XXX”; this was largely written by 4chan user Lofwyr).^[45]https://web.archive.org/web/20080410225114/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/SCP-XXX^[46]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-17733.0-17733.232 The formal Object Classes were being introduced in February 2008,^[47]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/472986.xml, archive^[48]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/503107.xml, archive used in a standardized way by March 2008.^[49]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/521883.xml, archive^[50]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/503107.xml, archive For example, a repost of SCP-529 “Josie the Half Cat” in March 2008 on /x/ included “Object Class: Safe” when it was not present on the original.^[51]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/545719.xml, archive Most pre-existing SCPs were given object classes while on EditThis after being ported.^[52]e.g. http://web.archive.org/web/20080518145546/http://editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/SCP-093

The earliest archive of the SCP EditThis was on April 9, 2008, approximately 3 months after its creation.^[53]https://web.archive.org/web/20080409210737/http://editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/SCP_Series# Specifics with respect to chronological development during this time are obfuscated for this reason. At the time of this archive, roughly 128 SCP entries had been posted to the series. This would increase to around 188 by the time EditThis was no longer used. ^[54]http://web.archive.org/web/20080614163913/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/SCP_Series

As of April 2008 — three months after its creation — the EditThis SCP Wiki was the fourth-most popular Wiki on EditThis, with 51,071 unique views, based on Google analytics.^[55]https://web.archive.org/web/20080410055351/https://editthis.info/wiki/Main_Page In May 2008, when EditThis migrated to new servers, the SCP Wiki was given second place priority among all EditThis Wikis, reportedly based on unique visitors.^[56]https://archive.ph/oyTjs#selection-1403.0-1413.127 In June, approximately 60-70 unique visitors would view the EditThis SCP Wiki per week.^[57]https://web.archive.org/web/20080610180409/https://editthis.info/wiki/Main_Page By the creation of the SCP Wiki on Wikidot in July 2008, the SCP Wiki had fallen off of EditThis’ list of “Top wikis by unique visitors (this week)”.^[58]https://web.archive.org/web/20080714124739/https://editthis.info/wiki/Main_Page Throughout the months of July and August, traffic would reduce to less than 30 unique visitors in slow weeks, and 30-50 unique visitors on high-volume weeks.^[59]https://web.archive.org/web/20080701234452/https://editthis.info/wiki/Main_Page^[60]https://web.archive.org/web/20080730083609/https://editthis.info/wiki/Main_Page The EditThis SCP Wiki would not reappear on the “Top wikis by unique visitors (this week)” after August 2008.^[61]https://web.archive.org/web/20090601000000*/https://editthis.info/wiki/Main_Page

EditThis was a relatively unpolished wiki farm that would suffer regularly from slow processes, major outages, database errors, malware attacks, image upload issues, and maintenance downtimes that could extend up to a week.^[62]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-10527.0-10527.30^[63]https://web.archive.org/web/20080511213321/https://editthis.info/wiki/Main_Page^[64]https://archive.ph/oyTjs^[65]https://web.archive.org/web/20091213010638/http://editthis.uservoice.com/pages/35672-feature-requests^[66]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-26779.42-26779.147^[67]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/578335.html^[68]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/578388.html^[69]https://archive.ph/54tqP#selection-2396.0-2457.7^[70]https://archive.ph/54tqP#selection-3252.0-3303.216 When running properly, it would offer limited functionality for the purposes of the SCP Wiki’s collaborative project; for example, discussion pages (“talk” pages) were rudimentary with no reply features, and only optional tagging for specific date and time.^[71]e.g. https://web.archive.org/web/20080617062355/https://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Talk:SCP_Series The issues with the EditThis software, and the reported abandoning of the Wiki by its Admin creator,^[72] eventually lead community members to abandon the platform and establish the SCP series on WikiDot. (A switch to a paid model is cited as a reason on History of the Universe, Part I;^[72]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/history-of-the-universe-part-one, archive however, no announcement of such a change is present on the system admin’s blogs for 2007 or 2008.^[73]http://constantsun.blogspot.com/2008/, archive^[74]https://web.archive.org/web/20080726192318/www.constantsun.com/blog/) EditThis would continue to have fundamental issues after the SCP series left.^[75]https://web.archive.org/web/20100219123607/http://groups.google.com:80/group/editthisinfo

EditThis lacked the ability to outright delete pages, featured rudimentary discussions and relatively impoverished coordination, and had no page permissions to prevent vandalism.^[76]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/history-of-the-universe-part-one Curation and standard keeping was present while on EditThis,^[77]http://web.archive.org/web/20080617062256/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Talk:SCP-093 though were nebulous, and saw continued development on /x/, which operated as a more organized forum for discussion for the developing series.^[78]https://archive.ph/8j4bA#selection-2518.0-2673.439

Wikidot

Note: See the dedicated page to Wikidot (Platform) itself to view general information, and information about Project Foundation.

The Wikidot SCP Wiki is the second-organized and most lasting repository of SCP articles. The collaborative fiction project found its permanent home on the Wikidot platform in July 2008 after migrating from EditThis. This move marked a pivotal moment in the collaborative fiction project’s development, coinciding with the adoption of the Creative Commons BY-SA 3.0 license which facilitated the community’s expansion and the proliferation of derivative works.

The main site’s URL was initially “https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/”.^[79]http://web.archive.org/web/20080912031443/http://www.editthis.info/scp_wiki/Main_Page^[80]https://web.archive.org/web/20220000000000*/http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/ On February 15, 2011, “scp-wiki.net” was created and also active, existing alongside the wikidot URL.^[81]https://urlscan.io/domain/scp-wiki.net^[82]https://web.archive.org/web/20220000000000*/http://scp-wiki.net^[83]https://github.com/MikeInnes/The-Paranoid-Android/issues/2 In August 2020, the SCP Wiki’s URL was officially changed to “https://scpwiki.com/”.^[84]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-13606439/domain-transition-announcement^[85]https://archive.ph/GS2Vl^[86]https://www.scpwiki.com^[87]https://urlscan.io/result/816aa78d-231f-44d6-91a8-dc06093368c1/#summary Typing in previous URLs, including “scpwiki.com”, redirects to “https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/”. As a result of this change, The Wayback Machine‘s archives of the “scp-wiki.net” URL do not successfully extend past August 1st, 2022,^[88]https://web.archive.org/web/20200701000000*/http://scp-wiki.net and archives of “scpwiki.com” URL begin at this time.^[89]((https://web.archive.org/web/20201001000000*/http://scpwiki.com/

Early History (2008- )

^[90]https://web.archive.org/web/20080730074722/http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com:80/

The inaugural content of the SCP Wiki on Wikidot consisted of standard template pages automatically generated for any new site on the platform. These included essential structural elements such as “Side,” “Top Menu,” and “Page Tags,” which were created on July 19, 2008, at 16:26 site time under the Administrator account. Roughly 30 minutes later, The Administrator created the “SCP Series“ page, and added SCP-002 roughly an hour later. This was the only activity on the site for the next 5 days.^[91]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/page-calendar/date/2008.7

— Pardon our progress —

Logo

The SCP Wiki’s logo or insignia has been described as follows:

“… an outlined circle with three arrows crossing its contour and pointing to the center. The structure is closed in a thin frame, which repeats its silhouette — a circle with three protruding rectangles (around the arrows’ tails).”^[92]https://1000logos.net/scp-logo/

“It consists of circles, arrows, and a figured structure with three trapezoidal protrusions.”^[93]https://logos-world.net/scp-logo/

It was chosen due to its likeness to a shield or badge used by law-enforcement agencies. The three arrows point inwards to represent containment,^[94]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-98911/power#post-288697^[95]https://archive.ph/r0Pan#selection-2153.0-2166.0 and have unofficially been interpreted as representing the three arms of the SCP Foundation’s goals of “Secure, Contain, Protect”.^[96]https://1000logos.net/scp-logo/

The logo was created by WikiDot user and SCP author far2, based on a stock hazard symbol for electrostatic shock from Adobe.^[97] … Continue reading

International branches of the SCP Wiki have their own versions of the logo, usually with national colors or symbols.^[98]http://scp-int.wikidot.com/

Numerous variations of the logo exist, on-site and off, to indicate specialized departments of the Foundation, as part of individual aesthetic decisions pertaining to prose content, products, or to communicate various themes.^[99]https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:SCP_Foundation_logos^[100]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/desk-of-junior-designer-s-yvonne^[101] … Continue reading^[102] … Continue reading^[103]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/component:pride-highlighter

Logo History

The SCP Wiki’s current logo was preceded by Josie the Half Cat (EditThis, suggested by the Admin), and an unknown dinosaur image prior to that (EditThis).^[104]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-19377.1519-19377.1699

A SCP Wiki forum titled “Foundation Emblem or Logo?” introduced the idea of an official Foundation seal (user deleted).^[105]https://web.archive.org/web/20210215053225/https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-89371/foundation-emblem-or-logo While initially supported, it was nearly rejected outright due to conflict with immersion and in-universe rationale:

“The idea of an Foundation logo is tempting. At first it would seem to verify and unite those that stand behind it, however, it kinda defeats the purpose of a clandestine organization hidden from the public eye.”^[106]https://archive.ph/r0Pan#selection-1121.0-1121.210 — The Administrator

“I feel the Admin is correct. I like the idea of a logo, but it would provide too much identification. There may be some kind of watermark or stamp for some internal documents, but a patch would be too much. I was a supporter of a logo patch, but now i very clearly see that it would hinder, rather then help, the Foundation”^[107]https://archive.ph/r0Pan#selection-1249.0-1253.279 — DrGears

In the discussion, one comment suggested a simple insignia that was recently featured in a faux-document mock-up .pdf that user far2 had done in the same month for visually aesthetic purposes.^[108]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-89371/foundation-emblem-or-logo#post-289428 That thread discussed creating a SCP encyclopedia, which would be submitted to publishers for publication.^[109]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-97462/scp-encyclopedia DrGears suggested one of the marketing arms (“meta-reality projects”) for the effort be the creation of “PDF of SCP entries, similar to the book, but mainly for member distribution”.^[110]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-97462/scp-encyclopedia#post-287277

far2 replied with:

“Well, I whipped up an example of the 4th one, the multi-page PDF. It’s here if anyone feels like checking it out. Personally, I think it looks more… menacing in that format, more serious and hidden. Feel free to ignore the logo in the top left, I just felt it needed a little something to begin with.” — far2^[111]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-97462/scp-encyclopedia#post-287324

This is the first use and mention of the SCP logo. Both the initial version as well as the .pdf are lost, but it can be inferred from comments that the initial logo was similar if not identical to this version.^[112]https://archive.ph/r0Pan#selection-2153.0-2166.0

SCP Wiki discussion by far2 on the original logo. Notice the lost image, as well as the unanswered question below.

A comment on a subsequent thread, created that same month, mentioned the logo found on far2’s .pdf.^[113]https://archive.ph/r0Pan#selection-2043.0-2062.0 In reply, far2 stated:

“That’s not the original logo I did up. The original is below, I just ran it through Photoshop’s photocopy filter. I used that symbol to make it look like the ‘shield’ or badge used by law-enforcement agencies, and also because the arrows indicate moving inward – containing the threats.”^[114]https://archive.ph/r0Pan#selection-2153.0-2166.0

(This .pdf would be referenced elsewhere by far2.^[115]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-98911/power#post-288697, “the template”)

By January 2014, when the Sigma-9 theme went live (see below, Site Themes, Sigma-9), creator Aelanna included the far2 logo in the front page redesign, noting “Let’s face it. As wishy-washy as we’ve been about having an official logo thus far, the greater fanbase and community have accepted it, so we have one whether we like it or not.”^[116]https://web.archive.org/web/20140209082335/http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/new-site-theme It has been the site’s primary logo since.

At one time, the SCP Wiki staff considered making “Josie the Half Cat” (SCP-529) their official logo, but this was rejected in favor of far2’s.^[117]https://archive.ph/xwD4w#selection-5047.0-5059.185

Site Themes

WikiDot “Shiny” Theme

Upon the creation of the SCP Wiki on WikiDot, and between the years of 2008-2014, the SCP Wiki used a default WikiDot theme (“Shiny Theme”).^[118]https://web.archive.org/web/20080730074722/https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/ This featured minimal design, a black header with a fade down to white, a simple to rudimentary layout of sidebar links, and columnated div boxes.

A modern re-work of the initial aesthetic for the site, “Classic SCP Foundation Theme” (created by author Lt Flops and published on July 21, 2020) is a popular choice among modern articles.

Sigma-9

On January 22, 2014, the site’s default aesthetic theme was upgraded to a custom theme called the Sigma-9 CSS Theme, created by author Aelanna, who had also created some useful templates for the Wiki prior.^[119]https://web.archive.org/web/20221001232408/https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/^[120]https://web.archive.org/web/20140202120346/https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/^[121]https://web.archive.org/web/20140209082335/http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/new-site-theme^[122]https://github.com/scpwiki/sigma9^[123]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-709954/wiki-templates Sigma-9 incorporated numerous design and functionality advantages over the WikiDot Shiny Theme, and introduced the maroon-red that has become long-associated with design at the SCP Wiki. The change was met with critical acclaim from members of the community, though Administration of the time was not irreversibly committed to the change, and font and color choices were initially debated.^[124]https://web.archive.org/web/20140209082335/http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/new-site-theme^[125]https://web.archive.org/web/20140705001053mp_/http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-766406/new-site-theme

Sigma-9 is arguably the most iconic and recognizable presentation of the SCP Wiki, and has been the main theme for a majority of the site’s existence. The theme has received occasional visual renovations, most recently the “Yurt” overhaul in October 2022.^[126]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/news-10-2022#toc8

Sigma-9 is listed among many other themes in the “Top Themes” page of WikiDot.^[127]https://themes.wikidot.com/start:top

Updates

From the (now deleted/moved) page introducing and explaining the Sigma-9 theme, the update was a massive visual overhaul that added a new background and logo, custom title font, a customized search widget, a custom rating module, restructured front page & side bar, adjusted margins to reduce dead space and increase content area width, custom bullets, a restructured top bar, and a more compact layout.^[128]https://web.archive.org/web/20140209082335/http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/new-site-theme It also reordered links to place more emphasis on tales & making the site more accessible to newcomers, reversed the Series list to place more emphasis on newer Series, and moved the theme into an external Wiki page. Finally, Sigma-9 rendered the site in fixed-width, as opposed to dynamic-width, for consistency of presentation.^[129]https://web.archive.org/web/20140902211341/http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-765297/site-template-overhaul:dynamic-vs-fixed-width

Variations/Other Themes

2018 and onward saw numerous new CSS offerings and the formalization of an official CSS policy, whereby the Wiki’s technical staff would approve and curate CSS themes.^[130]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-5244764/proposal-css-theme-policy Prior to this, any user capable could create and implement a custom CSS style to their works without approval or oversight. After policy implementation and review, many of these CSS themes were curated by the technical team and removed from articles with the comment “Removal of noncompliant theme.”^[131]e.g. https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-3349, history, The increase in and focus on visual components, style, flair, and coding in the composition of containment fiction at the SCP Wiki has been … Continue reading

See the SCP Wiki’s themes tag page for a complete list of approved SCP Wiki themes.

Additional themes are available through S-CSS-P, “a modular stylesheet picker that lets you independently adjust the layout, color scheme, logo, fonts, and rating module visibility.” This is available as a plug-in/extension on Mozilla/Chrome, with compatibility for the Opera browser as well.^[132]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/usertools#toc1^[133]https://github.com/scpwiki/S-CSS-P

Black Highlighter

Perhaps the most notable CSS variations and forks of Sigma-9 is the Black Highlighter theme (previously “nu-SCP”) which was designed collectively by a team of authors, coders, and designers. Black Highlighter was meant to give the site’s presentation accessibility improvements over Sigma-9, and a more modern aesthetic.^[134]http://scptestwiki.wikidot.com/^[135]https://github.com/Nu-SCPTheme/Black-Highlighter/ The implementation of this theme generated some discussion, as designers removed the existing search function due to functionality concerns.^[136]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-10409862/nu-scp-css-formal-decision

Style & Format

The SCP format is largely unchanged from its initial introduction by SCP-173 in 2008,^[137]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/history.html though many elements taken for granted in the current day evolved slowly as interest in the series increased, and more authors participated. At a minimum, the format introduces the anomaly’s item number, object class, special containment procedures, and description; each demarcated in sections by page breaks and bold formatting to introduce the portion, which is followed by a colon, then the contents. Format screws are a common variation.

Modern SCPs can include additional information, such as containment class, secondary classes (also called “narrative classes”),^[138]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/object-classes#toc11 risk class, disruption class, which were introduced in the Anomaly Classification System (ACS) in 2019.^[139]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/anomaly-classification-system-guide ACS has introduced an exponential amount of information and material that can be and is commonly included in the format.^[140]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/anomaly-classification-system-guide#classifications-summary^[141]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/anomaly-classification-system-guide#secondary-class^[142]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/anomaly-classification-system-guide#acs-alts-mods^[143]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/anomaly-classification-system-guide#acs-addons

The SCP Wiki features diverse compositional styles. While early works focused predominantly on horror themes, the range of genres has expanded considerably over time.^[144]e.g. https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2545861^[145]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2545892 Contemporary works incorporate elements of fantasy, science-fiction, surrealism, comedy, drama, New Weird, Bizarro Fic, Slipstream, Magical Realism, Two Fisted Tales, Xenofiction, Neo-Noir, Absurdism, Punk Fiction, and horror. One notable author has described the site’s current direction as “epic queer fantasy.”^[146]https://www.containmentfiction.net/wiki/lordstonefish-interview/, archive

“I think you may be missing the point of this site. There is no story to advance. These are simply articles of the strange things the Foundation is keeping under wraps. While yes, people do write stories based on them, these stories are no the focus of the site, and, in most cases, are not actually considered ‘canon’ for the SCPs themselves.”^[147]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-78192/scp-500#post-483312 — AdminBright, May 2009

Evolution of Writing Standards

The SCP format has evolved significantly across its history. Earlier Series emphasized format-based fidelity and in-universe believability, while contemporary works often incorporate traditional storytelling elements including character development and narrative arcs. Modern critique standards frequently evaluate articles based on their narrative structure, whereas earlier works could succeed primarily based on an intriguing anomalous concept.^[148]e.g. https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-76555/scp-004#post-4926031, https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-122809/scp-530#post-4904167

In the site’s earlier periods, an anomaly might be presented as a starting point for collaborative narrative development over time (as with SCP-500^[149]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-78192/scp-500), while contemporary articles typically arrive with more developed narrative frameworks. This evolution can be observed in modern evaluations of older entries.^[150]e.g. https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-78192/scp-500#post-4597798, https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77170/scp-579#post-2247885 The expectation of adherence to in-universe logic was also more pronounced in earlier Series compared to more recent ones.^[151]e.g. https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77170/scp-579#post-1492466

This evolution has generated discussion within the broader SCP community, with some expressing concerns about changes in writing direction and others celebrating the expanded creative possibilities. Discussions about the balance between original clinical documentation and more elaborate narrative structures continue within the community.^[152]https://www.reddit.com/r/CharacterRant/comments/y4jbuo/the_scp_wiki_has_become_a_convoluted_mess_and/, archive^[153]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/is-it-okay-for-scp-articles-to-get-attention-they-wouldn-t-normally-get-because-of-a-podcast^[154]https://lackoflepers.medium.com/as-an-adolescent-scp-has-lost-the-plot-c5b32668d1e0

Historical Development

“In the late 2000s, ritualistic creepypasta containing arcane, Lovecraftian language were the norm.” — Cooldude971, The SCP Foundation on 4chan and EditThis^[155]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/the-scp-foundation-on-4chan-and-editthis

The early SCP series established a distinctive identity through militaristic, sparse document-based formatting that deliberately avoided traditional creepypasta conventions such as first and second person narration, flowery language, and excessive detail. The Holders series was often referenced as a counterexample that SCP writers sought to differentiate themselves from.^[156]https://archive.ph/rHdvx#selection-3737.216-3737.346

Early SCPs were primarily explanatory and expository, presented as minimalistic technical reports. Many early articles began with found images (often non-Creative Commons), which authors would build contextual narratives around. The original compositional methodology involved finding an intriguing or disturbing image, writing a short contextual document about it, and specifying its containment procedures.^[157]https://archive.ph/jmVa6#selection-5445.0-5445.434 Early pioneers who introduced traditional storytelling elements sometimes faced resistance from the community.^[158]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-76884/scp-256#post-501427(See SCP-176, SCP-256.) Some of the first SCPs subverted this expectation to produce non-horror articles, such as SCP-529 “Josie the Half Cat”, the initial SCP-497,^[159]https://archive.ph/jmVa6#selection-9983.30-9983.44 and the initial SCP-472.^[160]https://archive.ph/rHdvx#selection-2613.10-2613.60 Early threads on /x/ show attempts to develop frameworks for threat levels and utility classifications for anomalous objects,^[161]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-10355.167-10355.302 as well as experimenting with dialogue within articles.^[162]https://archive.ph/pD5Mo#selection-524.0-575.47

By the EditThis era, more defined compositional standards had emerged. A thread from June 2008 contains this critique:

“I dunno, after reading a couple hundred of these they all seem too similar. You really need to have something to make this stand out beyond the standard ‘mysterious, vaguely archaeological object has creepy powers and mindrapes anybody who comes near.'”^[163]https://archive.ph/1IkU9#selection-1124.0-1175.392

The early EditThis community worked to differentiate SCP from traditional storytelling formats.^[164]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-76884/scp-256#post-501427 A “Community Portal” page created by June 2008 featured an in-character notice that doubled as guidance for authors:^[165]http://web.archive.org/web/20080618224505/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Scp_Wiki:Community_Portal

“ATTENTION RESEARCH STAFF The Executive of the organization has recently looked over the current folder containing all the dossiers regarding the SCP artifacts. It is his opinion that the majority of these documents contain editorialized descriptions, wild speculation, and unscientific conduct. His instructions are to provide more accurate and less flourished writing. In his words, “these are academic research papers, not science fiction.”

Class-E Personnel who are unfamiliar with scientific writing style should attend the seminar in Annex XII Sunday at 3pm (to be held every week here on out)

In accordance with the will of the Executive, this organization’s leadership is now in agreement that standards for the written protocol and intelligence should be set higher. I’m sure all of our wonderful staff agrees. For more information, please contact Director Smith.”

Curation existed on the EditThis, though by rough, un-protocolized, relatively anarchic consensus; pages’ content could be erased and numerous slots on EditThis featured different entries.^[166]http://web.archive.org/web/20080611150603/http://www.editthis.info/scp_wiki/?title=SCP-666&action=history^[167]http://web.archive.org/web/20080611151216/http://www.editthis.info/scp_wiki/Talk:SCP-666^[168]http://scpclassic.wikidot.com/scp-666^[169]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-81240/scp-666#post-4509634 ^[170]e.g. http://web.archive.org/web/20080606025248/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Talk:SCP-008.5, http://web.archive.org/web/20080617062256/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Talk:SCP-093, … Continue reading

Standardizing metrics into SI units had been discussed as early as January 2008 on /x/,^[171]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/448755.html, archive but were fortified/enforced mainly on EditThis.^[172]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/history-of-the-universe-part-one, archive^[173]http://web.archive.org/web/20080617062355/https://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Talk:SCP_Series#SCP-001_submission, archive User Aiden is given credit for most of this standardization on EditThis.^[174]http://web.archive.org/web/20080410225129/http://editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/Talk:SCP_Series, archive

Containment Breaches

Containment breaches in early SCP writing were approached very gradually. The first SCP that mentioned the word “breach” was SCP-086 (non-viable) on January 9, 2008.^[175]https://archive.vn/fUQMD#selection-9.117113-9.117528 The first suggestion of a containment breach was in the form of a console input that would potentially release an anomaly; this act was considered by an in-universe character but ultimately did not occur.^[176]https://archive.ph/LZKOU#selection-3987.10-3987.26 The next (first actualized) instance of a containment breach only saw the anomaly pry open the containment door before being immediately recontained.^[177]https://archive.ph/LZKOU#selection-5133.390-5133.580 By the 9th thread present on 4chan’s /x/ board, containment breaches and the need to avert them had become a regular feature in containment procedures and addenda.^[178]https://archive.ph/rHdvx^[179]https://archive.vn/1jSvG

Cross-Referencing

Cross-referencing (an umbrella term for cross-linking/testing/prompting) was present from the earliest months of the SCP Series, pioneered by entries such as SCP-519, SCP-314, and SCP-002/SCP-003. Stylistically, cross-referencing was simultaneously discouraged by commenters so as to not have the entries too intertwined and canonized,^[180]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-9649.0-9649.216 yet was steadily emulated by authors.^[181]e.g. https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-18969.68-18969.188 The SCP series has seen this ideological vacillation throughout its history,^[182]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-76555/scp-004#post-582446^[183]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-76858/scp-682#post-1169558 and on larger scales, e.g. the fallout after the canon-breaking Fishmonger incident^[184]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/history-of-the-universe-part-three^[185]https://www.reddit.com/r/SCP/comments/l472r5/comment/gknph64/ vs later WikiWalk/Project Crosslink efforts,^[186]http://05command.wikidot.com/wikiwalk-guide^[187]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-13494535/wikiwalk-footer-policy-update as well as a central concern in the Harmony Incident community decision.

Object Classes

Initially, there were no object classes in the SCP format, and any detail of this nature was embedded within either the description or the containment procedures. A modified re-post of SCP-173’s text on 4chan added a sentence including the phrase “Class 4 hazardous object “, which was copied in later attempts.^[188]https://archive.ph/dB65f#selection-959.0-959.99 Many early SCPs, such as SCP-519, attempted to charter the use of scientific terms for rudimentary classification systems.

The initial SCP-086 included a phrase that described the object as “safe”, which is taken by some historians to be the ancestral birth-point of the later object class of the same name, and object classes in general.^[189]https://archive.ph/WLOYb#selection-1611.278-1611.303^[190]https://archive.ph/dB65f#selection-1041.0-1041.112 This post was also the first time numerical security levels were utilized (“Level 2”),^[191]https://archive.ph/yvU6m#selection-153.3575-153.3610 and the first inclusion of a supplement to the documentation, foreshadowing what would later be solidified into the nomenclature as an “addendum” in modern SCPs.^[192]https://archive.ph/yvU6m#selection-153.3653-153.3692

The first SCP-176 introduced D-Class, the “Keter” object class, inspired the “Thaumiel” object class, and introduced the idea of an in-universe console into the documentation as a story telling device. On EditThis, official object classes were being added to older 4chan SCPs.^[193]https://web.archive.org/web/20080617060229/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Talk:SCP-010

The formal Object Classes were being introduced in February 2008,^[194]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/472986.xml, archive^[195]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/503107.xml, archive and used in a standardized way by March 2008.^[196]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/521883.xml, archive^[197]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/503107.xml, archive For example, a repost of SCP-529 “Josie the Half Cat” in March 2008 on /x/ included “Object Class: Safe” when it was not present on the original.^[198]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/545719.xml, archive By April 2008, a template of the SCP format posted to /x/ included the classic object classes,^[199]https://archive.ph/WXELA#selection-2892.1-2945.207 though they were not well-defined, and later commentary on surviving articles from this time note how the object classes do not suit the object.^[200]e.g. https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-96203/scp-409, https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-82656/scp-012 Nonetheless, object classes were routinely being added to SCPs posted to the EditThis by mid 2008.^[201]e.g. http://web.archive.org/web/20080518145546/http://editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/SCP-093 An archived page of the EditThis’ categories from June 2008 showed each classic object class, along with a jokes category.^[202]http://web.archive.org/web/20080610055225/http://www.editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/?title=Special:Categories&article=SCP_Series

Novel object classes would attempt to be introduced, such as the failed “Eldritch”, mostly on /x/, as opposed to the more standardized EditThis.^[203]e.g. https://archive.ph/B1g6I

Some new object class developments took place on the EditThis. From Cooldude971’s account:^[204]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/the-scp-foundation-on-4chan-and-editthis

“At some point before April 2, 2008, an unknown editor posted SCP-927 (the Hadron Bomb) to the EditThis wiki. The SCP, an explosive that would spawn a super-massive blackhole if disturbed, was given a dual class of Keter and Apollyon. The usage of the Apollyon class triggered discussion on 927’s talk page which spilled over onto the Object Class talk page in mid-April. Until at least July (and possibly later), discussion raged on about creating object classes beyond Safe, Euclid and Keter or even changing the object classification scheme entirely. This discussion was never resolved, at least not on EditThis.”

— Pardon our progress^[205]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/a-history-of-object-classes—

Etc Lore Components

There was a very clear consciousness by 4chan posters for the need to protocolize repeated aspects of the early SCP entries, such as security clearances.^[206]https://archive.ph/rHdvx#selection-5865.9-5865.200 Debate existed as to whether or not the SCP organization (then innominate) should have a backstory or not.^[207]e.g. http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/726440.html, archive By the conclusion of the EditThis era, Security Clearance Levels, Object Classes, Warning Labels, Secure Facilities Locations, Incident Reports, and Eye-witness Interviews / Personal Logs had established roles in-universe and in-document.^[208]https://web.archive.org/web/20080903043644/http://www.editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/Continue_on A crude template of the SCP document format was available on EditThis (“SCP-XXX”, first suggested on /x/^[209]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-16619.30-16619.346).^[210]https://web.archive.org/web/20080410225114/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/SCP-XXX A role for an organizational leader had been established, with early renditions referring to the figure as “The Executive” or “Chief Director”.^[211]http://web.archive.org/web/20080618224505/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Scp_Wiki:Community_Portal^[212]https://archive.ph/B1g6I#selection-12593.141-12593.155 Elsewhere, “O5” level operatives are mentioned.^[213]http://web.archive.org/web/20080612232623/http://editthis.info/scp_wiki/Current_events, see “OTHER” Redactions — both the “(EXPUNGED)” and fullblock varieties — were common by this time.

“Class D” personnel were being added to EditThis SCPs by April 2008.^[214]http://web.archive.org/web/20080413010417/http://www.editthis.info:80/scp_wiki/SCP-500

/x/ and EditThis user Lofwyr was active in codifying many of the components that the SCP format and lore still use today, such as Security Levels and the Overseer Council/O5 command. “O5” was standardized in opposition to “05” in the literature.^[215]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77523/scp-079#post-2523029

Use of [DATA EXPUNGED] was standardized in early 2008, likely simultaneously on the EditThis and on /x/. The first mention of it on /x/ is in May 2008 (by user “Apeture Science”) and it is reinforced in the same thread.^[216]https://archive.vn/fUQMD#selection-9.12518-9.12533^[217]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-24358.0-24369.176^[218]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-4946.0-5015.1590

The Ethics Committee was potentially first utilized in SCP-314 (“Motion-Seeking Blade”). A committee was present on the Wikidot version of the article when it was ported by user far2.^[219]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-314, Revision 0 The original and archived versions of the article both from /x/ and EditThis did not feature an Ethics Committee, and it was likely added during the EditThis era.^[220]https://web.archive.org/web/20080704070636/http://www.editthis.info/scp_wiki/SCP-314^[221]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/446341.xml Commenters (such as AdminBright and Dr Clef) can be seen in the discussion section of Wikidot’s SCP-314 questioning the novelty of an Ethics Committee for the SCP Foundation.^[222]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-115736/scp-314#post-343285

Joke Articles

There have been “gag” SCP articles since the original was memed in the early days of /x/. By January 2008, and upon the creation of the EditThis, a joke section would be dedicated to humorous SCPs,^[223]https://archive.ph/QNbYp#selection-20783.0-20783.190 though at first the section was reserved for article attempts that were felt not to be humorous, but to be poorly written.^[224]https://archive.vn/1jSvG#selection-2699.0-2699.262

Universe

In-universe, the eponymous SCP Foundation, also called “The Foundation”, is an international organization dedicated to containing and cataloging anomalies. While it is typically portrayed as having large amounts of resources due to its international influence, the SCP Wiki does not force its authors to abide by a single canon, and authors are free to portray the Foundation however they wish. Pseudo-cannons can be collated into “hubs”.^[225]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/system:page-tags/tag/hub#pages

Community and Demographics

The SCP Wiki attracts a diverse audience, with its predominant demographic being in the 15-19 age range, though it includes users of all ages.^[226]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/2020-survey-results Based on community surveys, most participants identify as male. Approximately 50% of respondents are from the United States, with significant representation also from England and Canada.

Survey data indicates that most people who engage with SCP content do not have Wikidot accounts, suggesting that active participants represent only a portion of the total readership. Approximately 97% of community members read articles, while about 20% participate in the rating system. Around one-third of users comment on articles regularly. Writers make up approximately 8% of the community. Among survey respondents since 2014, an average of 8.98% report writing articles for the Wiki, with this figure showing some decline in recent years (reaching a maximum of 12.3% in 2015).^[227]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/2015-survey-results

International Branches

The SCP Wiki has expanded internationally with 14 official non-English language branches. These include Czech, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese (both Simplified and Traditional), Spanish, Thai, and Ukrainian language sites.^[228]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/

Notably, the Russian branch is the only international SCP site currently operating independently of the WikiDot platform.^[229]https://scpfoundation.net/ This change followed the WikiDot Blackout of 2022.

See a collection of oral histories for various branches here.

Project Foundation

Note: This section is a summary. For a more complete account, visit the section of the dedicated WikiDot (platform) page.

Project Foundation represents ongoing efforts to develop an independent platform for the SCP Series outside of WikiDot. The concept of establishing a standalone platform has existed since SCP-173’s original posting, with discussions continuing through the EditThis era.^[230]https://archive.ph/8j4bA#selection-1246.0-1733.7^[231]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-7203.10-7203.32^[232]http://web.archive.org/web/20181018021816/https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/site_19/index.php Progress on Project Foundation is ongoing.^[233]https://www.wikijump.org/2024/10/06/project-foundation-stages/

Community Engagement

Social Media

The SCP Wiki maintains official presence on multiple social media platforms, including Reddit (r/scp), Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and various language-specific Discord servers. According to community surveys, the r/scp subreddit is the most commonly followed platform, with the official Twitter account ranking second.^[234]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/2020-survey-results

As of 2020, YouTube has become a significant gateway to the SCP Wiki, with 85% of survey respondents reporting that they discovered the site through YouTube channels covering SCP content.^[235]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/2020-survey-results

In 2022, the SCP Wiki established an official Discord server.^[236]http://05command.wikidot.com/discord-rules^[237]http://05command.wikidot.com/discord-team-main^[238]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/c-7524284/official-discord^[239]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-14993110/voting-discord-team^[240]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-14736305/discussion-discord-team-placement Prior to this, proposals for an official Discord were either met with significant opposition from relevant teams^[241]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-6800520/official-scp-discord or limited to staff use.^[242]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-5726019/internet-outreach-discord, archive^[243]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-15373436/november-2020-disciplinary-chat-detailed-timeline, archive

Writing Contests

The SCP Wiki regularly hosts writing contests that provide opportunities for authors to showcase their skills in a competitive setting.^[244]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/contest-archive These contests typically feature specific themes or guidelines, such as the 72-Hour Contest.^[245]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/contest-archive The most significant are the “SCP-_000” or “K” contests, which mark the transition between Series of 1,000 entries each.

The tradition of writing contests dates back to 4chan, where entries competed for the SCP-001 slot with winners determined by community vote.^[246]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-14148.0-14217.287

Community Values, Policies, & Politics

Evolution of Community Standards

“<ProcyonLotor> like, I’m center left and that basically makes me ron paul here”^[247]https://archive.vn/NcCmv#selection-153.6347-153.6435 — from #site00 (SCP chat moderator IRC channel)

The SCP Wiki’s community culture has evolved substantially since its inception. Survey data and community discussions suggest that the active userbase generally trends progressive on social issues.^[248]https://archive.vn/mIVmD#selection-2437.0-2437.257^[249]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/component:pride-highlighter^[250]https://archive.ph/1iFcQ^[251]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/theme:scp-trans-pride^[252]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/theme:3law-pride^[253]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/news-06-2021^[254]https://archive.vn/gXrTT

The early community, particularly during the 4chan, EditThis, and early WikiDot periods, reflected different social norms that included language and behavior that would be considered inappropriate by contemporary standards.^[255]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/news-06-2021, archive^[256]e.g, https://archive.ph/JcRMM#selection-5317.0-5317.1949^[257]https://archive.vn/3v8MS#selection-969.91-969.99 The use of slurs — both racial and homophobic/anti-LGBTQ+ — was common in the community until approximately 2011,^[258]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/news-06-2021, archive and was first officially addressed by policy in 2014.^[259]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-773630/should-we-ban-slurs, archive The site has since implemented policies to promote inclusivity of LGBTQ+ themes and has taken public positions in support of the LGBTQ+ community. (See 2018 June Pride Logo Controversy.)

LGBTQ+ Representation and Inclusion

Note: While categorizing LGBTQ+ topics under “politics” may not reflect everyone’s perspective, this section addresses aspects of community values and identity that have both social and policy implications.

Since 2018, the SCP Wiki has celebrated Pride Month by displaying a Pride Flag version of the site logo each June (with the exceptions of 2019 and 2020). The site offers custom CSS themes that incorporate Pride themes and symbolism.^[260]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/component:pride-highlighter As of 2024, the SCP Wiki hosts an annual “Pridefest” event in June celebrating LGBTQ+ authors and creative works.^[261]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/pridefest

Historical Development

The site’s approach to LGBTQ+ representation has evolved over time. In July 2015, an SCP Wiki Twitter representative noted that only one known humanoid SCP article ( SCP-1985) contained LGBTQ+ representation.^[262]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615267407653957632, archive Ten years later, the SCP Wiki’s “lgbtq” tag features over 250 individual entries.^[263]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/system:page-tags/tag/lgbtq

During 2015, community members expressed varying perspectives on gender and sexuality-related content:

“Like the idea but downvoted because some of the language used. The writer clearly tried not to be transphobic, which is nice, but hnnngh ‘biologicial sex’ is such an annoying phrase given that your sex classification is not actually based on external genitalia nor even chromosomes (for example, my sex classifaction is male despite the fact I have a vagina so you can see how the language here may not work for me). My suggestion would be ‘sex characteristics’ or ‘sex organs & chromosomes’ instead, there are ways to get around it. Also ‘opposite sex’ is a problem for me – it does mention intersex people, which is awesome! However, there are many sexes & genders, so ‘opposite’ doesn’t really work. It’s a shame bc I like the idea and I think the writer did try to write it sensitively. I’m aware that this SCP is super old so I don’t know if the author/s are around any more but it bothered me so.”^[264]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-77584/scp-113#post-2220210, archive

In an 05 Command forum post titled “Identity Politics and Treatment of Users Complaint” the same year, another community member expressed concerns about the evolving discourse:

“I withhold my opinion because were I to actually speak it, I would effectively be blackmailed, mothballed, and shamed into submission by everyone and their counsin [sic] all screaming “well you’re just transphobic!… This is not a comfortable thing, especially as the topic crops up annoyingly often. TLDR I feel that your action in this instance, and the general site culture at large, is shifting towards a setup where it’s obey the party line, or be shamed. And I ain’t cool with that.”^[265]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-1077309/identity-politics-and-treatment-of-users-complaint, archive — Self-Anonymized User in January 2015

Later in 2015, following the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling, official SCP Wiki social media accounts increased their explicit support for LGBTQ+ rights.^[266]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615297853674659841, archive^[267]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615293754346487808, archive^[268]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615256376789630976, archive^[269]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615264415508766720, archive^[270]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615268881410691077, archive^[271]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615270554216624128, archive^[272]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615274911167315969, archive^[273]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615273754441199616, archive^[274]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615276032761942016, archive^[275]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615282095297032194, archive^[276]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615281827000004608, archive^[277]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615293754346487808, archive^[278]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615295859312467968, archive^[279]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615298893379674112, archive^[280]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615295859312467968, archive^[281]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615291425962508288, archive The official Twitter account adopted a Pride-themed logo, stating: “The wiki staff is full to the brim with LGBTQTIA people. We’re pretty happy with the #SupremeCourtRuling right now.“^[282]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615263540706955264, archive, “Our site has like 50% LGBT staff. [Equal marriage rights] pertains to our site because we are our site”, ^[283]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615558262742773760, archive and “All your precious creepypasta is written and moderated by a sex-positive, LGBTQIA, multiracial army of nerds. #EqualityForAll”^[284]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615298077109391360, archive The Twitter staff noted they were speaking for both the community and writers as a whole on this position,^[285]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615257277180809216, archive^[286]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615257674633084929, archive^[287]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615274306294124548, archive^[288]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615274502910554113, archive^[289]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615277669626834944, archive and added, “We only care that you’re able to write well. Seriously. That’s it.”^[290]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615256526161362949, archive

These changes prompted both support and criticism, leading to some moderation actions on social media platforms, including the banning of individuals for presumed bigotry.^[291]https://mobile.twitter.com/scpwiki/status/843176312202121217, archive^[292]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615555975886544896, archive^[293]https://twitter.com/search?q=(from%3Ascpwiki)%20until%3A2015-06-30%20since%3A2015-06-25&src=typed_query&f=top, archive The Twitter account responded to criticism with:

“We’ve been getting some upset messages on our Facebook page about the logo colors. Rest assured, your complaints are reaching deaf ears.”^[294]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615287720093556737, archive

In 2017, the SCP Wiki’s yearly community surveys expanded their gender section to include options for ‘non-binary, agender, and genderfluid’ identities.^[295]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/2017-survey-results Transgender options were first added in 2019.^[296]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/2019-survey-results By 2020, the survey had evolved to separate transgender affiliation into its own dedicated question.^[297]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/2020-survey-results#toc3 According to these surveys, while the percentage of members identifying as transgender has been increasing over time, male respondents still comprise the majority at 64% as of 2023.^[298]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/2023-survey-results

Contemporary SCP Works often feature an emphasis on LGBTQ+ inclusion.^[299]e.g. https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/news-06-2021^[300]e.g. https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/component:pride-highlighter^[301]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/news-06-2021^[302]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615274502910554113, archive^[303]https://twitter.com/scpwiki/status/615283779817611265, archive^[304]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/protected:scp-2721^[305]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/jude-s-bizarre-adventure^[306]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/wwydftltimd-hub^[307]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/take-it-away-my-darling^[308]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/how-to-clean-a-polyester-dress^[309]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-4175^[310]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/the-good-work^[311]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/dixieland-nightmare-magic-hub^[312]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/over-thinking-the-rainbow^[313]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/pride-of-place^[314]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/pridefest The modern site’s thematic and compositional direction has been quoted as “epic queer fantasy” by a notable author.^[315]https://www.containmentfiction.net/wiki/lordstonefish-interview/, archive

Critical Reception

External Reviews

Note: The following section is borrowed from the Wikipedia entry on the SCP Foundation. Citations are kept as-is and can be accessed by visting Wikipedia.

“The SCP Foundation has received largely positive reviews. Michelle Starr of CNET praised the creepy nature of the stories.[7] Gavia Baker-Whitelaw, writing for the Daily Dot, praised the originality of the wiki and described it as the “most uniquely compelling horror writing on the Internet”.[6] She noted that the series rarely contained gratuitous gore. Rather, the horror of the series was often established through the reports’ “pragmatic” and “deadpan” style, as well as through the inclusion of detail.[6] Lisa Suhay, writing for the Christian Science Monitor, also noted the SCP Wiki’s “tongue-in-cheek style”.[36]

Alex Eichler, writing for io9, noted that the series had varying levels of quality and that some of the reports were dull or repetitive. However, he praised the SCP stories for not becoming overly dark, and for containing more light-hearted reports. Additionally, he praised the wide variety of concepts covered in the report and said that the wiki contained writings that would appeal to all readers.[9] Leigh Alexander, writing for The Guardian, noted that the wiki’s voting system allows readers to easily locate content which “the community thinks are best and most scary.”[47]

Winston Cook-Wilson, writing for Inverse, compared the SCP stories to the writings of American author H. P. Lovecraft. Like Lovecraft, SCP casefiles generally lack action sequences and are written in a pseudo-academic tone. Cook-Wilson argued that both Lovecraft’s works and those of the SCP Wiki were strengthened by the tensions between their detached scientific tone and the unsettling, horrific nature of the stories being told.[48]

Bryan Alexander, writing in The New Digital Storytelling, stated that the SCP Foundation is possibly “the most advanced achievement of wiki storytelling” due to the large-scale and recurring process through which the wiki’s user-base creates literary content.[49]”

Cultural Impact and Media

Note: Portions of the following section is borrowed from the Wikipedia entry on the SCP Foundation. Some citations are kept as-is and can be accessed by visting Wikipedia.

The SCP Foundation has inspired various creative works across different media:

Literature

• SCP Foundation: Iris Through the Looking-Glass – A light novel series written by Akira and illustrated by Sidu about a boy who sees an image of SCP-105 (Iris) in every book he opens. Published in Japan (2018) and North America (2020).[50]
• SCP-5000 WHY – The Graphic Novel – A 120-page adaptation of the contest-winning entry “SCP-5000 – Why?” by Tanhony and illustrated by DRDOBERMANN. Published by Discordia Publishing in 2021.[51][52]
• There Is No Antimemetics Division – A novel by Sam “qntm” Hughes compiling his SCP Wiki works about antimemes. Self-published in June 2021.[53][54]
• Bury the Survivors (The Breach Goes On Book 1) – A graphic novel by SCP Wiki author HarryBlank exploring Site-43 and its characters. Released in September 2020.^[316]https://www.amazon.com/Bury-Survivors-Breach-Goes-Book-ebook/dp/B0BDKHWCFM
• SCP Foundation – Foundation Handbook – Volumes I & II – A collection of SCP Wiki stories compiled by Dr. Peter James Defort.^[317]https://www.amazon.com/stores/Dr.-Peter-James-Defort/author/B07XGCV6RB?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true
• ParaBooks publications – Including artbooks featuring SCP articles with professional illustrations and graphic novel versions of Tales from the SCP Wiki.^[318]https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ANEMDLOvOwDslOMhcsTeS9gk1bfZrLWP/view, archive^[319]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uspszfquk4I^[320]https://www.reddit.com/r/SCP/comments/10ewuqw/check_out_what_came_in_the_mail_today/

Live Performances

• Welcome to the Ethics Committee – A stage play performed in Dublin (2014) about the Foundation’s Ethics Committee.[55]
• Glasgow New Music Expedition performances of SCP-inspired works at the 10th annual Plug festival (2016).[56]
• Reforged is a Church of the Broken God themed Immersive Theatre Experience with choose your own adventure elements. Shows took place in June of 2024.^[321]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQ7U3c9uxHM^[322]http://new.hollywoodgothique.com/joining-the-church-of-the-broken-god/#google_vignette

Video Games

• SCP – Containment Breach – One of the most popular SCP games, released in 2012 by Finnish developer Joonas Rikkonen.[57][58] Players control D-9341 attempting to escape a facility during a containment breach.[59]
• SCP: Secret Laboratory – A multiplayer game based on Containment Breach, allowing players to take on various roles (SCPs, scientists, D-class, MTF, Chaos Insurgency).[60]
• SCP: Pandemic – A multiplayer co-op FPS set in the SCP-5000 universe by Affray Interactive.[61][62][63]
• SCP: Secret Files – An episodic horror adventure game by GameZoo Studios.[64][65]
• Control – A 2019 video game by Remedy Entertainment influenced by the SCP Foundation, featuring a bureau that studies paranormal objects.[66][67][68]
• Lobotomy Corporation – A 2018 management game by Project Moon inspired by SCP, focusing on containing supernatural “Abnormalities”.[69][70]
• SCP: 5K – a first-person shooter based on the events of SCP-5000.^[323]https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14990866/?ref_=fn_all_ttl_1
• Various other SCP-based games including SCP-3008 and SCP-087.[71]

Films/Series

The SCP Wiki has inspiried several films and series, some of which are still in production. Most SCP films are fan-made productions distributed via YouTube ^[324]https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRf9X45nc-0kydu6pFPcqX8Per21hEkIt No officially recognized or commercially released SCP Foundation films exist. ^[325]https://movieweb.com/perfect-time-for-scp-foundation-film/ Many projects are funded through crowdfunding platforms (Kickstarter, Indiegogo). ^[326]https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/retrodigital/scp-overlord/; https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/scp-episodes Production quality varies widely, with some achieving impressive results on limited budgets. ^[327]https://www.reddit.com/r/SCP/comments/1b1hkeo/whats_your_favorite_scp_youtube_seriesfilm/ Community reception tends to favor productions that balance creative interpretation with faithfulness to SCP lore.^[328]https://www.reddit.com/r/SCP/comments/teai6p/what_are_your_opinions_on_the_confinement_series/ The collaborative and non-canonical nature of the SCP Wiki presents challenges for definitive adaptations ^[329]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-foundation-the-movie

The following table provides a consolidated view of the diverse range of SCP films and series available across independent platforms and YouTube, but is not exhaustive:

Media Content Creators

The SCP Wiki has inspired numerous content creators who produce media based on SCP materials. Notable channels and podcasts include:

• TheVolgun (YouTube)
• The Exploring Series (YouTube)
• SCP Illustrated (YouTube)
• DrCimmerian (YouTube)
• Lord Bung (“Confinement“, YouTube)(archive)
• Site-42 (YouTube, TikTok)
• Shaun Saxum (YouTube)
• SCP Readings (YouTube)
• Forlorn Foundry (YouTube)
• Special Containment Podcast (Podcast, YouTube)
• SCP Un[REDACTED] (Youtube)
• SCPeeps (Youtube)
• Son of a Breach (Youtube)
• TheKaktusKast (Podcast)
• Discovering SCP (Podcast)
• Foundation After Midnight (Podcast)
• Find Us Alive (Podcast)
• The Scip Squad (Podcast)
• Simply Creative People (Podcast)
• Object Class: Podcast (Podcast)
• The SCP Foundation Podcast (Podcast)
• Three Ports in a Storm (Podcast)
• SCP Encyclopedic (Podcast)
• Lost and Foundation (Podcast)

YouTube has become a primary gateway to SCP content, with as high as 85% of survey respondents discovering the SCP Wiki through YouTube channels in numerous survey years.^[331]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/2020-survey-results^[332]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/2022-survey-results#toc3

The SCP Wiki itself maintains a compilation of audio adaptations.^[333]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/audio-adaptations

There are also content creators considered more peripherally connected to the core community, whose work is received with varying degrees of enthusiasm by established community members.^[334]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwgIkcUyuks^[335]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFRFzbjQAds&t=0s Some community members view these channels as “content farms” that sometimes cross-promote each other.^[336]e.g. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIp4kupq8uY Channels in this category include:

• MrBoB
• TheRubber
• The Infographics Show
• SCP Animated
• SCP Explained

Some of these channels’ SCP content peaked during the years surrounding COVID-19. Some have largely stopped producing content, such as SCP Animated, or moved on from covering SCP content, such as The Infographics Show.^[337]https://www.youtube.com/@scpanimated/videos^[338]https://www.youtube.com/@TheInfographicsShow

Community Challenges and Controversies

The SCP Wiki community has faced various challenges and controversies throughout its history. Notable incidents include the HAGGAR hacks,^[339]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/history-of-the-universe-part-one the Fishmonger incident,^[340]https://archive.vn/n9ij6#selection-1077.0-1093.10 the SCP-111‘s (“Dragonsnails”) and SCP-1926‘s (“The Mewts”) copyright infringements,^[341]https://www.containmentfiction.net/wiki/scp-111/^[342]https://www.containmentfiction.net/UserWiki/scp-1926-the-mewts/ the SCP-RU 2017 Licensing Crisis, Max Landis,^[343]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-4616472/max-landis, archive the June 2018 Pride Logo Controversy,^[344]https://archive.vn/vzaYq#selection-1467.0-1467.22 #StandwithSCPRU, the 2021 Harmony Incident, The Cerastes Incident,^[345]https://archive.vn/5q1JW the 2021 Town Halls,^[346]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/c-7270124/town-halls and various sexual scandals.^[347]e.g. http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-886884/harassment-team-log-of-bans#post-5307060

Community Safety Concerns

The SCP Wiki has addressed several serious incidents involving inappropriate behavior with minors by community members, including some in positions of responsibility. All individuals publicly known to have been inappropriate with minors have been disciplined and removed permanently from the staff and userbase.^[348]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-886884/harassment-team-log-of-bans#post-5307060^[349]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-886884/harassment-team-log-of-bans#post-4626676^[350]https://archive.ph/eRmdo^[351]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-886884/harassment-team-log-of-bans#post-4111189^[352]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-665352/^[353]https://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-886884/anti-harassment-team-log-of-bans#post-6882944^[354]https://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-886884/anti-harassment-team-log-of-bans#post-6191328^[355]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/harmony-s-report^[356]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjkiSio0GOM&ab_channel=Dr.Cimmerian^[357]https://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-886884/anti-harassment-team-log-of-bans#post-3665222^[358]https://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-4616472/max-landis

Following major publicity incidents in 2021 regarding underage user safety, the site implemented several policy changes, including increasing the minimum participation age to 18, adding content warnings to relevant pages, and strengthening moderation guidelines.^[359]https://archive.vn/l2rq5^[360]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-13972585/discussion:modification-to-the-adult-content-warning-policy^[361]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-13292999/an-update-to-the-anti-harassment-policy^[362]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-13292998/update-to-site-charter-regarding-activity-on-adult-platforms^[363]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-13896072/adult-content-warnings^[364]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-13972585/discussion:modification-to-the-adult-content-warning-policy^[365]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-13929755/voting-thread-adult-content-warnings^[366]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-13300557/voting-thread-change-to-our-age-policy^[367]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-14021257/voting-thread:adult-page-guide These changes have been discussed in popular SCP media channels.^[368]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReQXFui4Z18

The age restriction policy has been subject to subsequent reconsideration, though proposed changes have faced challenges due to differing perspectives and legal considerations.^[369]https://archive.vn/Fpw9P^[370]https://web.archive.org/web/20220911195610/http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-15121975/discussion-age-unraising^[371]https://web.archive.org/web/20220911195557/http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-15170408/policy-discussion-age-policy-changes Some community members have expressed concerns that the initial policy changes may have been implemented hastily and might have unintended consequences.^[372]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-14207258/age-unraising-proposal#post-5092459

Perspectives and Criticism

The SCP Wiki, like many long-running creative communities, has been subject to both internal and external critique. These perspectives vary in focus, scope, and motivation.

External Perspectives

External commentary on the SCP Wiki comes from diverse sources, including former community members, adjacent creative communities, and general internet discussion spaces. Critics who were previously active in the community include former authors who maintain blogs or social media presences discussing SCP-related topics.^[373]https://www.tumblr.com/bondsmagii, formerly SCP Wiki author Dr Kondraki^[374]https://x.com/akumeoy, formerly SCP Wiki author Scantron/CommunismWillWin^[375]https://bsky.app/profile/akumeoy.bsky.social^[376]https://lackoflepers.medium.com/, formerly SCP Wiki author scpcrnp

Various communities and platforms aside from the SCP Wiki itself that host discussions about the SCP Wiki include:

• the Society for Containment Fiction (Discord)
• the RPC Authority
• Confic Magazine
• Kiwifarms
• the r/SCP subreddit
• various internet forums and discussion boards

Different external perspectives focus on various aspects of the SCP Wiki, including its writing standards, community governance, and cultural evolution. Some critics express concerns about perceived shifts in writing styles and thematic focuses over time, while others examine governance structures and moderation approaches.

External Critical Perspectives

Criticism of the SCP Wiki’s community governance comes from diverse sources, including former members who identify across the political spectrum. Some critics, including those who identify as LGBTQ+ or allies, have expressed support for the community’s move toward inclusivity while raising concerns about potential overreach in preferential treatment & enforcement mechanisms.^[377]https://at.tumblr.com/bondsmagii/ive-been-had-like-a-casual-interest-in-the-scp/k1miors9hv6x, archive^[378]https://at.tumblr.com/bondsmagii/i-mean-to-ask-this-genuinely-no-hostility-but/1n3jhdzimdvo, archive^[379]https://lackoflepers.medium.com/scp-is-not-a-cult-196e87ce6b11^[380]https://lackoflepers.medium.com/scp-wikis-impressive-xenophobia-is-their-fear-9ecf7955f7af These perspectives suggest that communities attempting to create inclusive spaces may face challenges in balancing protection of marginalized groups with openness to diverse viewpoints.^[381]https://archive.vn/aSyHP^[382]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/scp-me, archive

Modern Political Bias

Documentation of internal staff communications during the June 2018 Pride Logo Controversy reveals potential political considerations in SCP Wiki staff selection processes. Archived IRC chat logs from site staff channels indicate that political alignment may have factored into staffing decisions, with at least one documented case where a user was reportedly denied a staff position due to their political views.^[383]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-10260553^[384]https://archive.vn/NcCmv^[385]https://archive.vn/Bfnl1^[386]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-10260553, archive

Critics of the SCP Wiki, some of whom are LGBTQ+, claim that increasingly, norms of the SCP Wiki perpetuated in the name of LGBTQ+ acceptance and anti-racism are recreating the dangerous mentalities that these social movements were meant to eradicate.^[387]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/not-proud-enough, archive^[388]https://lackoflepers.medium.com/the-pride-before-the-fall-9b6144112d45, archive^[389]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/a-question-of-personal-identity-who-do-our-flags-stand-for, archive^[390] … Continue reading^[391] … Continue reading^[392]https://lackoflepers.medium.com/scp-staff-prove-they-are-incapable-of-laughing-at-themselves-intolerant-of-being-laughed-at-58f7398ea1cb^[393]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/disc-j-vs-scp-staff-libelous-satire-and-faux-pas^[394]https://lackoflepers.medium.com/scp-is-slowly-slicing-off-its-own-hands-4f3038221c9a

Kiwifarms

The SCP Wiki has attracted attention from various external communities and platforms that offer critique and commentary. Among these, the Kiwifarms “SCP Foundation” thread has emerged as a notable center of organized criticism.^[395]https://kiwifarms.st/threads/scp-foundation.30545/ The thread contains a wide spectrum of content, ranging from literary analysis to personal criticism of community members, with varying degrees of civility and focus. Some members of the SCP Wiki have been doxxed on the Kiwifarms SCP Foundation thread.^[396]https://kiwifarms.st/threads/scp-foundation.30545/

Many participants in this forum express concerns about perceived shifts in the SCP Wiki’s writing direction, particularly lamenting changes from early Series 1 stylistic approaches. While much of the criticism contains hostile rhetoric and objectionable language, the thread occasionally features substantive literary analysis of SCP content evolution.^[397]https://kiwifarms.st/threads/scp-foundation.30545/

The relationship between Kiwifarms and the SCP community illustrates a complex dynamic in internet community interactions. Documentation compiled on Kiwifarms—including leaked staff discussions and behavioral records—played a role in identifying several problematic community members who were subsequently removed from the SCP Wiki, such as AdminBright.^[398]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/harmony-s-report^[399]https://lackoflepers.medium.com/scp-staff-thank-kiwifarms-2e472c1e1e86 However, this information’s source likely complicated its reception within the SCP community, as legitimate concerns could be dismissed due to their association with a controversial platform.

Internal Community Discussions

Within the SCP Wiki community, ongoing discussions address various aspects of site governance, writing standards, and community culture. Recent town hall meetings have provided forums for members to express concerns and suggest improvements.^[400]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-14104906/inter-staff-staff-policy-town-hall-may-22-june-5, archive^[401]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-14104908/anti-harassment-town-hall-may-22-june-5, archive^[402]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-14104907/disciplinary-town-hall-may-22-june-5, archive^[403]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-14971928/suggestions-and-complaints-site-staff

In 2021, leaked staff discussions and organizational documents prompted debates about transparency and governance within the community. These developments led to increased efforts at organizational openness, including the establishment of regular town hall meetings, public discussion forums, and other transparency initiatives.^[404]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/c-7270124/town-halls^[405]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-14117474/change-in-enforcement-of-intrastaff-interactions, archive^[406]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/c-7357677/staff-discussion-records, archive^[407]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-14592559/discussion-charter-definition-and-process^[408]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-14592559/discussion-charter-definition-and-process#post-5252986^[409]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-14981505/discussion-changing-our-mindset, archive^[410]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-15076785/discussion-changes-to-the-staffchat, archive^[411]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-15092107/discussion-should-staff-questions-be-public-or-not, archive^[412]http://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-15085850/discussion-create-new-subforum-for-informal-discussions, archive^[413]https://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-16960612/2024-preliminary-town-hall-responses

In the 2024 town hall meetings, a long-time contributor highlighted ongoing concerns about organizational structure and priorities, suggesting that similar issues had been raised in previous years without sufficient resolution.^[414]https://05command.wikidot.com/forum/t-16960612/2024-preliminary-town-hall-responses This reflects the challenges of maintaining effective governance in a volunteer-run creative community of significant size and complexity.

Perspectives on Creative Direction

A recurring theme in discussions about the SCP Wiki concerns the evolution of its creative direction. Some critics and community members alike, including founding author Dr Gears, have suggested that many community issues stem from an over-emphasis placed on numerical ratings, recognition, and ego.^[415]https://archive.vn/TzVOS#selection-8567.0-8567.549^[416]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-14207259/age-unraising-proposal#post-5092813^[417]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lSGgUmPxGRg^[418]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/the-chronic-upvote-malady-diagnosed, archive

Dr Gears has articulated this view:

“I think many of the issues the modern fandom has had mostly trace back to ego and the voting module… Write because you have to, and don’t worry so much about reception. If you’re trying to prop up your work, scrapping it out with critics, or trying to boost votes beyond just telling people to come to take a look, then you’re likely off course… If tomorrow, all the usernames and votes of the wiki vanished, if you’re truly committed, then it would not impact your work in the slightest. We all like praise and rewards, that’s normal, and even a good thing, really. However, it’s easy to slip into the trap of producing things because you want that praise, prestige, and reward, rather than because it’s something you love. Something that burns in you, like a fever. Lovecraft produced his work with no real expectations, and never really felt right getting paid for his work. Because of this, he died penniless and alone, but an entire genre of horror is named after him now. Great work, the outpouring of the soul, lasts much more and makes a deeper impact than just wanting to bask in the glory.”^[419]https://archive.vn/TzVOS

Discussions about writing standards and stylistic evolution have been ongoing since at least 2015.^[420]https://archive.vn/nnmem These conversations touch on various aspects of SCP content creation, including the balance between popularity and quality,^[421]https://archive.vn/1eCWT#selection-2217.19-2217.128^[422]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/is-it-okay-for-scp-articles-to-get-attention-they-wouldn-t-normally-get-because-of-a-podcast, archive^[423]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-15112225/scp-6836#post-5545104^[424]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-6228321/direct-appeal#post-3850037^[425]https://www.conficmagazine.com/post/the-slow-march-of-personal-enterprise-into-the-scp-wiki, archive^[426]https://kiwifarms.net/threads/scp-foundation.30545/page-65#post-7470625, archive the role of author recognition, and the relationship between contemporary SCP content and the original containment fiction concept.^[427]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/interviewing-icons-dr-gears, archive^[428]https://www.containmentfiction.net/wiki/lordstonefish-interview/, archive^[429]https://www.containmentfiction.net/wiki/kalinin/#Criticism_of_Series_7_Articles, archive^[430]https://www.containmentfiction.net/wiki/kalinin/, archive

Trivia

• SCP-173 was posted to 4chan on June 22, 2007, just thirteen days after the Doctor Who episode “Blink” (Series 3, Episode 10) aired, which featured the Weeping Angel statues that SCP-173 is often compared to.^[431]https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1000252/ While SCP-173 and the Foundation are mentioned on Doctor Who fan wikis,^[432]https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/Weeping_Angel they aren’t referenced in Wikipedia articles about the episode or the Weeping Angels.^[433]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blink_(Doctor_Who)^[434]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weeping_Angel
• The original SCP-173 had no object class.^[435]https://archive.ph/z3QMp The “Euclid” designation appeared later and was present when it was transferred to Wikidot.^[436]https://web.archive.org/web/20080808052643/https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-173
• The version of SCP-173 that became canonical wasn’t the original post by Moto42/S.S. Walrus, but rather an anonymous improvement from June 24th that fixed typos and improved the language.^[437]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-6773.10-6773.207
• Interestingly, before SCP-173 appeared, an April 2007 4chan thread mentioned a “paranormal investigation group called SCPI [pronounced Skippy] Santa Clarita Paranormal Investigations.”^[438]https://archive.ph/STwdy#selection-6641.0-6641.1574, grammar fixed Some suggest this might have influenced the naming of the SCP Foundation.
• The Hebrew term “Keter” was first used in a now-deleted version of SCP-176.^[439]https://archive.ph/LZKOU#selection-3987.182-3987.229 It may have been inspired by discussions of Hebrew terms in the original SCP-173 thread.^[440]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-3307.0-3393.188^[441]https://archive.ph/WLOYb
• In the original thread, someone proposed rewriting SCP-173 as “USAF File:” with an author named “Capt. Henry Milan,” adopting a more traditional prose style.^[442]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-3919.0-3919.41
• The first nickname given to SCP-173 was “Blinky.”^[443]https://archive.ph/z3QMp#selection-6039.0-6315.37
• The first documented comparison between SCP content and H.P. Lovecraft appeared in a January 17, 2008 thread on 4chan’s /x/, receiving mixed reactions.
• The anonymous user who first used “Keter” may have also established the foundations for the “Thaumiel” class. In an early SCP-176 on EditThis, console login credentials included “Commander Thaum.”^[444]https://archive.ph/LZKOU#selection-3987.10-3987.26 Both terms derive from Kabbalistic concepts.^[445]https://www.definitions.net/definition/thaumiel
• An early SCP-441 about a living statue shared conceptual similarities with what would later become the popular SCP-096 “The ‘Shy Guy’.” Both featured normally docile entities that become dangerously aggressive under specific circumstances.^[446]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-096^[447]https://archive.ph/jmVa6#selection-8511.820-8511.1099
• SCP-173 was reposted across the internet after its creation, including on the SonicBlast HQ forums’ “Creepy Stuff” thread^[448]http://web.archive.org/web/20180216172840/http://sonicblast.org/topic/4429/1/ and a blog called “The Sociopath Daily.”^[449]http://web.archive.org/web/20120620104050/http://sociopathdaily.blogspot.com/2007/12/creepypasta.html
• WikiDot user far2 created both the SCP Foundation logo and its motto “Secure, Contain, Protect”^[450]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-98911/power#post-288697 as part of a single creative effort to create a realistic-looking PDF template for SCP files.
• The SCP series was mentioned in an attempted Wikipedia article on “Creepypasta” created on March 26, 2008, though the article was deleted after 12 days with one commenter noting: “Wikipedia is not place for silly 4chan’s memes.”^[451]https://archive.ph/gE8XL^[452]https://archive.ph/9d15h#selection-347.2-351.7
• Early SCP content sometimes incorporated elements from “The Holders” series, another contemporary creepypasta collection.^[453]http://scpclassic.wikidot.com/scp-528-j^[454]https://archive.vn/SHysQ#selection-1323.0-1323.129^[455]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/582677.html^[456]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/586205.html There were even discussions about a video game where SCP personnel would try to collect Holders objects.^[457]http://scparchives.bluesoul.net/x/scp/554002.html
• A WikiChan version of the SCP Series briefly existed alongside the EditThis wiki in January 2008.^[458]https://web.archive.org/web/20080127060440/http://wikichan.org/index.php/SCP_series
• The use of “SCP Foundation” first appeared in DrGears’ 4chan posts (when he was writing as “Cog”) in April 2008, predating its official adoption on WikiDot.^[459]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-19521.0-19557.179^[460]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-25431.0-25461.451^[461]https://archive.vn/dIUWj#selection-27043.0-27091.54
• SCP-093, now one of the most popular entries, began as a mere 285-word document. Following community input suggesting it needed improvement, author NekoChris expanded it in March 2009 to approximately 1,300 words.^[462]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/forum/t-118537/scp-093#post-395631^[463]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-093, rev.7 With its supplemental test logs, it now totals over 14,000 words—nearly 50 times its original length.
• In 2013, Master Administrator DrEverettMann replaced several popular SCP articles with random dog facts.^[464]e.g. https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-093, rev.20; https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-682, rev.29, https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-294, rev.81
• PC Mag featured a fictional story about the SCP Foundation and SCP-169 for April Fools’ Day in 2010.^[465]https://www.pcmag.com/archive/april-fools-global-anomalies-linked-to-large-hadron-collider-249744, archive This was later referenced as an addendum to SCP-169 documenting a containment breach.^[466]https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-169, rev. 12

Quotes

“We were growing, fast, and the structure of the wiki couldn’t handle it well. Plus, we had been growing alongside The Holders series, a similar short horror collection, but all overseen by one guy. That was one of the other things, once we started the migration to the new wiki. There was a discussion on how to proceed if it should be locked down to only a select few authors, or open to a much wider crowd. I remember being in on that discussion and bringing up the decline of The Holders as a reason to allow more voices in. We had issues with spamming, rogue edits, and a host of other issues, and generally the feeling was we’d outgrown the old wiki.”^[467]https://archive.ph/TzVOS#selection-8623.167-8623.822 — Dr Gears, on the transition from EditThis to Wikidot

 

“We’ve had to move from our last wiki because we’ve grown so big.”^[468]http://community.wikidot.com/forum/t-77975/the-scp-organization — The Administrator, on the move to WikiDotcommand.wikidot.com/forum/t-13