The /r/DeadMalls subreddit has instated a new rule banning DSi photography after a user's photographs of the Pasadena Town Center taken with a Nintendo DSi camera started gaining traction on the forum.

On Saturday, the user, u/91JLD, posted the series of seven photographs to the subreddit, which hosts photos of abandoned malls. The post gained around 1,000 upvotes, inspiring the user to make another post sharing more pictures from the mall. Both posts have since been removed by a moderator. The photos still exist on /r/LiminalSpace, where u/91JLD posted them to over 3,000 upvotes in three days.

The deletion of the post was unexpected to u/91JLD, largely due to a comment left under the original post by /r/DeadMalls moderator and alleged owner u/gueede where he begrudgingly says the post can stay. The comment reads:

"While I get why OP might’ve wanted to take pics with a DSi, let’s not make this the norm, folks. Let’s be honest…if OP didn’t put the Nintendo bit in the title, I would’ve gotten a handful of 'these are garbage potato quality photos' reports. The post stays, but let’s shoot for quality material that really makes these dead malls shine."

On Sunday, u/91JLD made a post to /r/LiminalSpace sharing the story behind the removal of the photographs. In the post, he describes how he took the photos with the DSi because he thought the low quality added to the "liminal-ness" of the pictures. He then claims that after the mod made his comment, he messaged the mod directly to ask if he should stop posting DSi photos. The mod allegedly responded rudely, then deleted the post. He then went a step further and added a 10th rule to the subreddit forbidding poor-quality photos and videos from the board. The rule specifically mentions DSi-quality photos. It reads:

Please only post in-focus photos that show the dead mall with clarity. Photos taken with devices such as a Nintendo DSi to intentionally distort the image are not accepted. If the photo is archival from a dead malls past showing a historical account, that will be accepted.

u/91JLD finishes his post, which has gained over 700 upvotes in two days, by saying he's done posting on /r/DeadMalls, writing, "I guess ultimately what I just want people to be aware of is that the owner just seems very selfish."

Taking photographs on Nintendo DS consoles has become something of a meme lately. In the past few years, people have started going viral for recording events on a 3DS, giving videos and photos a special sort of low-quality, nostalgic vibe that many seem to enjoy. Just don't go trying to share any of those recordings on the /r/DeadMalls subreddit.