Don't worry about using your mic. People don't take the piss out of you that much (not that it has ever happen to me). If you want to feel better about your high pitched voice go download radio reality(Eddies FOB) with Sniperdog. People in PR are easy to fool anyway just follow orders and only speak when necessary.
Behavior has more weight than age, although age do have a part to play in regard to how maturity is perceived - that there is no doubt about. It has been scientifically proofed.
However, when you behave respectful to other players, regardless of their age, regardless of their nationality, their accent, technical, tactical, strategical and English-skills, age is not a problem.
Generally speaking, people in the PR community, respect others for their game-skills and their social-skills.
Being old
I'm 37 and dont feel old.
The oldest player I have met in this community (tourney), was 55 i think?
However, not even 55 is an old age, -although it most probably sounds like that, when you are below 30-35?
Some people still feel young, even in an age of 85 and above. See, Old is more about a feeling of being old, than having lived a certain amount of years.
When I was training weight-lifting in my last teenage-year, I was trained by instructors being over 50, and they was in much better shape than me. They didn't feel old - they trained their whole life.
The brain
As male, age matters until the ending of your 20ts or beginning of your 30ts. After that age-period, depending on how fast the individual brain develops, the male brain is fully developed.
So from that point of view, the 16+ should probably be changed to something like 26+, but the FPS game-concept is still very much deployed in its baby-age, -thus so far and lots of years ahead, age is not a problem - as long as you respect the other players and also respect your self too, -thus if being picked on - leave the squad, and consider to report the incident to the server admin.
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About maturity
Immaturity is in my experience, mostly deployed in the younger player-segment, however people in my age -or older, can also act immature, although normally significantly less than younger players.
Often you will see younger players pointing out the older players immature behaviour than you wil see the older players pointing out younger players immaturity. Reason is that the younger players simply act immature a lot more than the older ones and older players in general, has more patience than younger players has.
But maturity is developed faster for some players, than for others. Thus you will find players here having matured fast as well as the opposite.
Define irony. A bunch of guys playing PR year after year. A game teaching initiative as the prime mover. However, in regard to EA, these guys never took the initiative.
We who play these kinds of games are the first generation of war robot pilots.Today we pilot a camera in 3D heaven,Tomorrow...http://gametactic.org/pr
All I have to say is "maturity is in the experiences an individual has had, not in there physical age" I know quite a few younger individuals that play PR that are hell of a lot more mature then most 17-20 year olds. Keep playin, act mature, and you'll get along fine.
I started when i was 12 and i had great fun because i was looking for this kind of teamwork and mature community and im now 15 still a young age for PR. Stick at the game if you like it and dont let people tell you off because of your age. If you have to put on a deep voice do it. I have a deep voice so people didnt expect me to be 12 and even today think im in my 20s when i speak. Just keep it up its a great game no need to wait a few years and then comeback.