How quickly the bulk of the group will be moving to XBone is another thing of course, but there is several that are going day one so there should be folk to race with, and you'll find no better guys either :)
Doodirock, what kind of time frame are we looking at for improved mobile access? I'm more curious than anything else.
I wouldn't expect to see any changes in the near future. This is more of a feed back discussion about 2o2p as a whole then it is for feature sets. I'm also reluctant to put deadlines on anything at this point since my freetime can't really be quantified since it changes so rapidly.
I will say that Mobile will be one of the largest things put in place that will change how the entire site is viewed. It will end up being the hardest piece of this puzzle and wont be something that you see early on. I think once we decide how the new 2o2p will function as a platform we will then get closer to things like design, layout, and UI.
I'm a bit late to this game, but that's partially because I'm not on the site as often as I used to be.
So, why not on as often? Well, life gets busy, and the site just isn't very mobile friendly. We all know this; no debate there, I believe.
I've read back through a smattering of the thread comments and here's my $0.02
Bottom line: it's time for a real review of the site goals and a change that focuses the site in that direction.
Why do I think that?
Posting quantity appeared to dramatically died down around the time of the switch from V2 to V3. May be just a perception (don't know the actual stats), but that is what I saw. There was a lot of posting on bug fixes and lots of stuff improved, but it still didn't seem to jump up to what it was before the switch over.
I'm not advocating to go back to V2. What I'm getting at is that when there is an acknowledgement that something is no longer what you want it to be then the powers that be should be examining both cause and expectations.
Part of the switch around the V3 time was to move the site in a different direction than it was in the past (forum based gathering of gamers), and to change to a journalism based site. If this isn't garnering the response you wanted then you should be considering if the implemented change is really addressing the audience you were trying to please. Change in site direction WILL drive people away.. did you intend to try to please the old crowd and get a new crowd in the door at the same time?
I think I know the answers to those questions: you wanted to hang on to folks and bring in new folks that would want to stay here. The mere fact that a discussion on site changes is ocurring says the mark was missed. Given that, things SHOULD change... either the site or expectations.
I have high expectations and believe that the site can become something folks want to visit regularly again. But it has to modernize some... we need mobile, we need to be something not available elsewhere (I like game reviews from site members; I can go to a plethora of sites for the mainstream reviews). And once folks get here, good solid content that is on point with the stated site goal, needs to be prevalent to keep them coming back. Right now, I see a site that is trying to be everything at once. We're a mish-mash of game and non-game forums/divisions/articles/ vid/podcasts/off topic/sports/multimedia content and although there are still people here and some new folks coming around, it's been months and months of chit chat about what should change but not much movement.
I'd like to see a clearly focused direction acted upon in the near future... If I like the direction, I stay, if I don't I stop coming round. BUT, a well focused site with excellent quality product will keep the folks that are looking for that product. At THAT point, recruiting will actually mean something and be effective again.
Thats not what Parcells read. What a bunch of generalized and not overly helpful bullshit in that post. What actual changes aside from investigate this or review this or focus on this is splat suggesting? I suppose mobile is needed although I'm not sure why.
splat wrote:
Bottom line: it's time for a real review of the site goals and a change that focuses the site in that direction.
Thats not what Parcells read. What a bunch of generalized and not overly helpful bullshit in that post. What actual changes aside from investigate this or review this or focus on this is splat suggesting? I suppose mobile is needed although I'm not sure why.
splat wrote:
Bottom line: it's time for a real review of the site goals and a change that focuses the site in that direction.
Problem solved.
But Splat did offer reasonable opinion and Doodirock can make what it wants of it. She needs something other than there is now.
I think Splats post is a pretty accurate description of the problems. And I also agree with Splat about determining the direction (which I think Doodi did in one of the previous posts). And finally, I do think a timely change is important. Right now is a perfect time to relauch 2o2p. 2 brand new consoles, lots of new IP for upcoming games. People are interested in gaming again.
The one thing I don't entirely agree upon is V2 to V3 being the sole issue with the site. V3 did turn away a lot of people but I think stale gaming really sealed the deal. There hasn't been a real exciting game in 2 years, everything is just a retread franchise POS.
And finally, I do think a timely change is important. Right now is a perfect time to relauch 2o2p. 2 brand new consoles, lots of new IP for upcoming games. People are interested in gaming again.
The one thing I don't entirely agree upon is V2 to V3 being the sole issue with the site. V3 did turn away a lot of people but I think stale gaming really sealed the deal. There hasn't been a real exciting game in 2 years, everything is just a retread franchise POS.
i agree, a refined/redefined 2o2p around new console launch would be great.
Just to clarify, i didnt claim that v3 was the sole issue. there was also a change to the site emphasizing front page articles and vidcasts,etc. i happen to like these items but i think that if im pointing to a specific time frame that traffic was decreasing then i dont get to pick&choose based upon my personal choices which things might have contributed; and yep i'm sure that theres always going to be some down times while new games arent so prevalent. Also would like to add that the West coast clan went open forum soon after the first discussion about open/closed forums and clans. Their traffic hasn't been super high either, and I don't see many posts from newcomers there even though its wide open. So, just opening the doors doesn't look like a perfect solution IMO. Something bigger is needed.
Also would like to add that the West coast clan went open forum soon after the first discussion about open/closed forums and clans. Their traffic hasn't been super high either, and I don't see many posts from newcomers there even though its wide open. So, just opening the doors doesn't look like a perfect solution IMO. Something bigger is needed.
Agreed. Just opening the doors wil not bring in new members. The clans still need direction, organiztion and they need to continue to recruit. Why would someone join a dead or very slow clan just because the doors are open? They would if that clan was active, held events and was looking at gaining new members.
The same could be about this site. A simple clan recruitment post to the CoD forums, XBOX.com and reddit has nailed me over 30 new people in a day. I know the Forza guys do this as well. I think 2o2p should be doing a recruitment push as well.
I'm pretty new to the site. I just searched for older gaming sites and stumbled across the site. I really wanted to connect with adult gamers. I wanted a few guys to PTFO with in Battlefield or maybe play some co-op together. But the site just doesn't seem to be laid out in a way to easily find gamers of like mind. It seems like I have to join a group or "clan" to find someone to game with. I'm not really interested in a clans. I just want to play a game with a guy who will talk and not be an idiot. That's so hard to find with randoms. I think some consolidation of the forums would be a great start. Simplify it.
I'd like it to be easier for a new guy to find other gamers looking to play games. I'd spend more time here then for sure. It's often like a ghost town.
I'm pretty new to the site. I just searched for older gaming sites and stumbled across the site. I really wanted to connect with adult gamers. I wanted a few guys to PTFO with in Battlefield or maybe play some co-op together. But the site just doesn't seem to be laid out in a way to easily find gamers of like mind. It seems like I have to join a group or "clan" to find someone to game with. I'm not really interested in a clans. I just want to play a game with a guy who will talk and not be an idiot. That's so hard to find with randoms. I think some consolidation of the forums would be a great start. Simplify it.
I'd like it to be easier for a new guy to find other gamers looking to play games. I'd spend more time here then for sure. It's often like a ghost town.
Very nice input and really solidifies my personal issue with the site. I don't think clans or groups help us out very much here anymore. We built a large community, and then locked it down, only to watch numbers dwindle without any options to replenish. People can shout from the hills about why the sites member traffic is low, but the reality will still be lack of games and closed environments. The people that are "angry" rarely came out or recruited new people to the site anyway.
Currently new people need to find clans (that don't post in the main forums), then try to become friends with these nonexistent groups of people, and then somehow get into the clan and "maybe" get a chance to play with them. It simply is a poor setup.
Either way, I'm really sorry you've had this experience Chuppernicus, but I'm going to do everything in my power to change that.
Hi all, it's been some time since I was here, and even then I wasn't a MASSIVE contributor, but some of you might remember me from here/gaming and I wanted to share my thoughts about the place:
Doodi wrote:
Chuppernicus wrote:
I'm pretty new to the site. I just searched for older gaming sites and stumbled across the site. I really wanted to connect with adult gamers. I wanted a few guys to PTFO with in Battlefield or maybe play some co-op together. But the site just doesn't seem to be laid out in a way to easily find gamers of like mind. It seems like I have to join a group or "clan" to find someone to game with. I'm not really interested in a clans. I just want to play a game with a guy who will talk and not be an idiot. That's so hard to find with randoms. I think some consolidation of the forums would be a great start. Simplify it.
I'd like it to be easier for a new guy to find other gamers looking to play games. I'd spend more time here then for sure. It's often like a ghost town.
Very nice input and really solidifies my personal issue with the site. I don't think clans or groups help us out very much here anymore. We built a large community, and then locked it down, only to watch numbers dwindle without any options to replenish. People can shout from the hills about why the sites member traffic is low, but the reality will still be lack of games and closed environments. The people that are "angry" rarely came out or recruited new people to the site anyway.
Currently new people need to find clans (that don't post in the main forums), then try to become friends with these nonexistent groups of people, and then somehow get into the clan and "maybe" get a chance to play with them. It simply is a poor setup.
Either way, I'm really sorry you've had this experience Chuppernicus, but I'm going to do everything in my power to change that.
As a 2o2p-er from a ways back who has had two fairly significant periods of being away from the site and gaming in general (thanks, real life), my recent return gave me a fresh perspective on the site very much in agreement with both sentiments expressed above. I recall the clan system from an iteration or two ago, so I remembered that I needed to request access to find out where the REAL action is with active members, but I don't think this place should be that way at all. In fact, if achieving new membership is the goal, the main forums need to be where the bulk of the warmth and action is.
I skimmed over nearly all of this thread, so I've yet to fully understand exactly where much of any drama is stemming from, but overall I remember this place being full of friendly folks all here for the sake of avoiding Timmy, yet without the pretentiousness of certain other sites which cater to older gamers, and it was the existing membership that got me to feel welcomed. I think this place with its content and membership can still be that inviting, and I think a complexity reduction crusade would go a long way. Everyone and everything seems to have their own little private corner of the site, whether it be a blog, a podcast, an article, a very specific subforum or a clan, and the fragmented nature of everything feels quite off-putting.
Doodi said it best with the words I bolded above, but elaborating: I think the list of forums in general could use a major consolidation (i.e. a short list of Games & Platforms, Sports & Leisure, Off-topic, etc. with any divisions/clans that still make sense as sticky threads or subforums within a small initial group rather than have a clan system designed to segregate the membership. Anything 2o2this or 2o2that should be retired...we're all 2old2play, and we're all here to interact as gaming adults. I see no reason why we should encourage cliques or certain interactions being accessible by a more limited population of the site. If folks only want to friend up certain members in XBL, PSN, Steam, etc., so be it. Again, IMO the goal should be to make the bulk of the content/interaction inviting and as easily accessible/straightforward as possible.
Just a humble $0.02 from a returning member. I'm looking forward to getting back into the swing of things both here and in-game now that life has settled (job? check. MBA? check. kids? check. back to gaming? in-progress), and if there's anything I can help do in addition to participation in the forums and the blogs, please let me know.
This is a great place for gaming adults on the internet, everyone should remember that!
I'm pretty new to the site. I just searched for older gaming sites and stumbled across the site. I really wanted to connect with adult gamers. I wanted a few guys to PTFO with in Battlefield or maybe play some co-op together. But the site just doesn't seem to be laid out in a way to easily find gamers of like mind. It seems like I have to join a group or "clan" to find someone to game with. I'm not really interested in a clans. I just want to play a game with a guy who will talk and not be an idiot. That's so hard to find with randoms. I think some consolidation of the forums would be a great start. Simplify it.
I'd like it to be easier for a new guy to find other gamers looking to play games. I'd spend more time here then for sure. It's often like a ghost town.
Very nice input and really solidifies my personal issue with the site. I don't think clans or groups help us out very much here anymore. We built a large community, and then locked it down, only to watch numbers dwindle without any options to replenish. People can shout from the hills about why the sites member traffic is low, but the reality will still be lack of games and closed environments. The people that are "angry" rarely came out or recruited new people to the site anyway.
Currently new people need to find clans (that don't post in the main forums), then try to become friends with these nonexistent groups of people, and then somehow get into the clan and "maybe" get a chance to play with them. It simply is a poor setup.
Either way, I'm really sorry you've had this experience Chuppernicus, but I'm going to do everything in my power to change that.
I hoping more people will come looking for other gamers to play with when the new systems hit. The thought of playing with fellow adults that have similar time constraints and barriers to gaming that I have is still intriguing. I'll stick around till it gets sorted. I can't wait for that new system smell over the next 2 weeks. I'll be on Killzone friday and next week and B4 on the xboxOne next weekend. I shook the couch for any extra coins I could find and have my receiver and entertainment system all ready to rock.
As far as improvements, I feel if you're going to complain about something at least offer a suggestion how it can be improved. My suggestion after thinking about it:
What if there was a separate forum/section just for looking to play games with other 2o2p gamers? Then new threads under that section could be made for each game whether it's co-op or multiplayer. I would always know I could go to that section to find new gamers. Once I found some guys to play with, we could frequent that thread to pick up new guys. A simple post like, hey just picked up B4 on the One, gamertag is Chuppernicus, I'd love to PTFO with some guys. cheers etc.
One click, no walls or secret hand shakes and bam! I'm in a spot where other gamers are looking to play games A-Z too. Then when I wasn't gaming and off task, but near my computer, I could hit up the other sections for all the smack talk, reviews, trolls and drama I could stomach.
This place is a non stop trollfest of everyone commenting on the emperors new clothes. Splat provided concise, polite, and well thought out opinion.
As usual though, the mouth breathing troglodytes hail mediocrity and flame.
I would say that people deserve exactly what they get.
Oh sorry, everything is fine...
I agree! I agree! The emporer's new clothes look exquisite!
I suppose the best corse of action would be to not post at all if you feel like things are mediocre and haven't changed in so long. It would seem clear at this point that you don't get what you desire out of this place and the lure of 2o2p has lost its luster. That's truly ok, and finding other things on the internet to occupy your time shouldn't be that hard.
I'm not sure what the value of posting (or trolling yourself) accomplishes. I suppose a disruptive nature has some person enjoyment attached to it, but it seems a bit hypocritical to point out trolls while doing it continuously yourself. I harbor no ill will towards you or anyone else that doesn't feel like 2o2p is the place for them anymore. However moving on would seem to make a lot more sense then sticking around posting in a place of people you don't seem to like.
This place is a non stop trollfest of everyone commenting on the emperors new clothes. Splat provided concise, polite, and well thought out opinion.
As usual though, the mouth breathing troglodytes hail mediocrity and flame.
I would say that people deserve exactly what they get.
Oh sorry, everything is fine...
I agree! I agree! The emporer's new clothes look exquisite!
I suppose the best corse of action would be to not post at all if you feel like things are mediocre and haven't changed in so long. It would seem clear at this point that you don't get what you desire out of this place and the lure of 2o2p has lost its luster. That's truly ok, and finding other things on the internet to occupy your time shouldn't be that hard.
I'm not sure what the value of posting (or trolling yourself) accomplishes. I suppose a disruptive nature has some person enjoyment attached to it, but it seems a bit hypocritical to point out trolls while doing it continuously yourself. I harbor no ill will towards you or anyone else that doesn't feel like 2o2p is the place for them anymore. However moving on would seem to make a lot more sense then sticking around posting in a place of people you don't seem to like.
I completely, and utterly agree.
I love it here.
It's robust, functional, and is rife with valuable input that is given weight and consideration.
There is literally no more room for the agreement I feel.
Although, it appears most of your other users have in fact, taken your advice and moved on.
Random thought’s from…well I guess I’m a troll now suppose I’m getting ahead in life that’s a positive take away for me.
I keep reading 2O2P needs to do this or 2O2P needs to that in order to…well I’m not entirely sure what it is some people are trying to accomplish but it seems many are not happy with the site so they’re offering up reasonable solutions to fix what they deem to be a problem. I’ve always thought 202P is what WE make of it as in YOU, ME and all members are responsible for the success of the site. Yes Doodi is the only one who can make an actual change to the site itself but no level of technology can make a group stronger/bigger or whatever the problem is, ultimately it’s the members who determine the success or lack thereof. You’re probably sick of hearing how awesome the 2O4F clan is but I’ve yet to see any 2O4F member go off the deep end (like Walladog seems to be stuck in) because of technical features of this site or any generic thing they consider detrimental to the site.
Many have offered up reasonable explanations as to why we lost a lot of people when version 2 was deployed. Yes there were some initial technical hurdles to overcome (hardly surprising) and somewhat silly bickering over opening up the forums to the general public but no one ever suggested we lost people simply because of change. The older you get in life the more set you become in your ways (this phenomenon not usually understood by young ones less than 40 years of age or thereabouts) and undoubtedly increased resistance to change so we could have lost some old fogies over a simple URL change and how do you combat that?
Not so much a random thought…
DEEP_NNN wrote:
...She needs something other than there is now.
Not directing this at you personally Deep but this sentiment seems pretty common amongst many so my question is “Why is that?”
For what it matters I do not agree with that statement. This site is essentially a pet project of Doodi’s and sure I’ll give you he probably wants it to be successful but he’s not trying to make money off of it, already has a full time job and is clearly mature enough not to panic because member numbers are down so just what is his incentive for change? You cannot answer that question because you’re not Doodi so consider it rhetorical and lets throw out this for people to ponder…”What can 2O2P or Doodi do to make this site better that YOU cannot do yourself?”
side question - in 2O4F, does everyone have a wheel? that's not something I would be able to invest in, but I might pick up F5.
No mate, plenty of controller users, chief among them Church himself.
nice, thanks. I liked the impulse triggers on this at the X1 event.
How quickly the bulk of the group will be moving to XBone is another thing of course, but there is several that are going day one so there should be folk to race with, and you'll find no better guys either :)
I'm not serious enough to sit down and do a wheel/rig.
Pick up a controller play n go. The fastest guys in the game use both controller and wheel, so do the slowest.
Doodirock, what kind of time frame are we looking at for improved mobile access? I'm more curious than anything else.
I wouldn't expect to see any changes in the near future. This is more of a feed back discussion about 2o2p as a whole then it is for feature sets. I'm also reluctant to put deadlines on anything at this point since my freetime can't really be quantified since it changes so rapidly.
I will say that Mobile will be one of the largest things put in place that will change how the entire site is viewed. It will end up being the hardest piece of this puzzle and wont be something that you see early on. I think once we decide how the new 2o2p will function as a platform we will then get closer to things like design, layout, and UI.
I'm going to start small and say how about we get rid of the drupal favicon for a 2o2p one.
done
Looks good!
LOL, I see it has already been changed but I can't make it out. It looks like it might be a flattened skull on a plate in black and grey.
Edit, I see Doodi just posted about it and it has been changed again. I like it.
These are all good ideas.
I check this site maybe 20-30 minutes everyday, I don't know what would make it more better, thinking makes my brain hurt.
I'm glad this group is mobilizing to improve on the community.
I'm a bit late to this game, but that's partially because I'm not on the site as often as I used to be.
So, why not on as often? Well, life gets busy, and the site just isn't very mobile friendly. We all know this; no debate there, I believe.
I've read back through a smattering of the thread comments and here's my $0.02
Bottom line: it's time for a real review of the site goals and a change that focuses the site in that direction.
Why do I think that?
Posting quantity appeared to dramatically died down around the time of the switch from V2 to V3. May be just a perception (don't know the actual stats), but that is what I saw. There was a lot of posting on bug fixes and lots of stuff improved, but it still didn't seem to jump up to what it was before the switch over.
I'm not advocating to go back to V2. What I'm getting at is that when there is an acknowledgement that something is no longer what you want it to be then the powers that be should be examining both cause and expectations.
Part of the switch around the V3 time was to move the site in a different direction than it was in the past (forum based gathering of gamers), and to change to a journalism based site. If this isn't garnering the response you wanted then you should be considering if the implemented change is really addressing the audience you were trying to please. Change in site direction WILL drive people away.. did you intend to try to please the old crowd and get a new crowd in the door at the same time?
I think I know the answers to those questions: you wanted to hang on to folks and bring in new folks that would want to stay here. The mere fact that a discussion on site changes is ocurring says the mark was missed. Given that, things SHOULD change... either the site or expectations.
I have high expectations and believe that the site can become something folks want to visit regularly again. But it has to modernize some... we need mobile, we need to be something not available elsewhere (I like game reviews from site members; I can go to a plethora of sites for the mainstream reviews). And once folks get here, good solid content that is on point with the stated site goal, needs to be prevalent to keep them coming back. Right now, I see a site that is trying to be everything at once. We're a mish-mash of game and non-game forums/divisions/articles/ vid/podcasts/off topic/sports/multimedia content and although there are still people here and some new folks coming around, it's been months and months of chit chat about what should change but not much movement.
I'd like to see a clearly focused direction acted upon in the near future... If I like the direction, I stay, if I don't I stop coming round. BUT, a well focused site with excellent quality product will keep the folks that are looking for that product. At THAT point, recruiting will actually mean something and be effective again.
Thats not what Parcells read. What a bunch of generalized and not overly helpful bullshit in that post. What actual changes aside from investigate this or review this or focus on this is splat suggesting? I suppose mobile is needed although I'm not sure why.
Problem solved.
great post.gif "16")
Wha?
I emphatically and wholeheartedly agree!
This place is a non stop trollfest of everyone commenting on the emperors new clothes. Splat provided concise, polite, and well thought out opinion.
As usual though, the mouth breathing troglodytes hail mediocrity and flame.
I would say that people deserve exactly what they get.
Oh sorry, everything is fine...
I agree! I agree! The emporer's new clothes look exquisite!
I think Splats post is a pretty accurate description of the problems. And I also agree with Splat about determining the direction (which I think Doodi did in one of the previous posts). And finally, I do think a timely change is important. Right now is a perfect time to relauch 2o2p. 2 brand new consoles, lots of new IP for upcoming games. People are interested in gaming again.
The one thing I don't entirely agree upon is V2 to V3 being the sole issue with the site. V3 did turn away a lot of people but I think stale gaming really sealed the deal. There hasn't been a real exciting game in 2 years, everything is just a retread franchise POS.
i agree, a refined/redefined 2o2p around new console launch would be great.
Just to clarify, i didnt claim that v3 was the sole issue. there was also a change to the site emphasizing front page articles and vidcasts,etc. i happen to like these items but i think that if im pointing to a specific time frame that traffic was decreasing then i dont get to pick&choose based upon my personal choices which things might have contributed; and yep i'm sure that theres always going to be some down times while new games arent so prevalent. Also would like to add that the West coast clan went open forum soon after the first discussion about open/closed forums and clans. Their traffic hasn't been super high either, and I don't see many posts from newcomers there even though its wide open. So, just opening the doors doesn't look like a perfect solution IMO. Something bigger is needed.
Agreed. Just opening the doors wil not bring in new members. The clans still need direction, organiztion and they need to continue to recruit. Why would someone join a dead or very slow clan just because the doors are open? They would if that clan was active, held events and was looking at gaining new members.
The same could be about this site. A simple clan recruitment post to the CoD forums, XBOX.com and reddit has nailed me over 30 new people in a day. I know the Forza guys do this as well. I think 2o2p should be doing a recruitment push as well.
I'm pretty new to the site. I just searched for older gaming sites and stumbled across the site. I really wanted to connect with adult gamers. I wanted a few guys to PTFO with in Battlefield or maybe play some co-op together. But the site just doesn't seem to be laid out in a way to easily find gamers of like mind. It seems like I have to join a group or "clan" to find someone to game with. I'm not really interested in a clans. I just want to play a game with a guy who will talk and not be an idiot. That's so hard to find with randoms. I think some consolidation of the forums would be a great start. Simplify it.
I'd like it to be easier for a new guy to find other gamers looking to play games. I'd spend more time here then for sure. It's often like a ghost town.
Very nice input and really solidifies my personal issue with the site. I don't think clans or groups help us out very much here anymore. We built a large community, and then locked it down, only to watch numbers dwindle without any options to replenish. People can shout from the hills about why the sites member traffic is low, but the reality will still be lack of games and closed environments. The people that are "angry" rarely came out or recruited new people to the site anyway.
Currently new people need to find clans (that don't post in the main forums), then try to become friends with these nonexistent groups of people, and then somehow get into the clan and "maybe" get a chance to play with them. It simply is a poor setup.
Either way, I'm really sorry you've had this experience Chuppernicus, but I'm going to do everything in my power to change that.
Hi all, it's been some time since I was here, and even then I wasn't a MASSIVE contributor, but some of you might remember me from here/gaming and I wanted to share my thoughts about the place:
As a 2o2p-er from a ways back who has had two fairly significant periods of being away from the site and gaming in general (thanks, real life), my recent return gave me a fresh perspective on the site very much in agreement with both sentiments expressed above. I recall the clan system from an iteration or two ago, so I remembered that I needed to request access to find out where the REAL action is with active members, but I don't think this place should be that way at all. In fact, if achieving new membership is the goal, the main forums need to be where the bulk of the warmth and action is.
I skimmed over nearly all of this thread, so I've yet to fully understand exactly where much of any drama is stemming from, but overall I remember this place being full of friendly folks all here for the sake of avoiding Timmy, yet without the pretentiousness of certain other sites which cater to older gamers, and it was the existing membership that got me to feel welcomed. I think this place with its content and membership can still be that inviting, and I think a complexity reduction crusade would go a long way. Everyone and everything seems to have their own little private corner of the site, whether it be a blog, a podcast, an article, a very specific subforum or a clan, and the fragmented nature of everything feels quite off-putting.
Doodi said it best with the words I bolded above, but elaborating: I think the list of forums in general could use a major consolidation (i.e. a short list of Games & Platforms, Sports & Leisure, Off-topic, etc. with any divisions/clans that still make sense as sticky threads or subforums within a small initial group rather than have a clan system designed to segregate the membership. Anything 2o2this or 2o2that should be retired...we're all 2old2play, and we're all here to interact as gaming adults. I see no reason why we should encourage cliques or certain interactions being accessible by a more limited population of the site. If folks only want to friend up certain members in XBL, PSN, Steam, etc., so be it. Again, IMO the goal should be to make the bulk of the content/interaction inviting and as easily accessible/straightforward as possible.
Just a humble $0.02 from a returning member. I'm looking forward to getting back into the swing of things both here and in-game now that life has settled (job? check. MBA? check. kids? check. back to gaming? in-progress), and if there's anything I can help do in addition to participation in the forums and the blogs, please let me know.
This is a great place for gaming adults on the internet, everyone should remember that!
~AYBR
I hoping more people will come looking for other gamers to play with when the new systems hit. The thought of playing with fellow adults that have similar time constraints and barriers to gaming that I have is still intriguing. I'll stick around till it gets sorted. I can't wait for that new system smell over the next 2 weeks. I'll be on Killzone friday and next week and B4 on the xboxOne next weekend. I shook the couch for any extra coins I could find and have my receiver and entertainment system all ready to rock.
As far as improvements, I feel if you're going to complain about something at least offer a suggestion how it can be improved. My suggestion after thinking about it:
What if there was a separate forum/section just for looking to play games with other 2o2p gamers? Then new threads under that section could be made for each game whether it's co-op or multiplayer. I would always know I could go to that section to find new gamers. Once I found some guys to play with, we could frequent that thread to pick up new guys. A simple post like, hey just picked up B4 on the One, gamertag is Chuppernicus, I'd love to PTFO with some guys. cheers etc.
One click, no walls or secret hand shakes and bam! I'm in a spot where other gamers are looking to play games A-Z too. Then when I wasn't gaming and off task, but near my computer, I could hit up the other sections for all the smack talk, reviews, trolls and drama I could stomach.
cheers
I suppose the best corse of action would be to not post at all if you feel like things are mediocre and haven't changed in so long. It would seem clear at this point that you don't get what you desire out of this place and the lure of 2o2p has lost its luster. That's truly ok, and finding other things on the internet to occupy your time shouldn't be that hard.
I'm not sure what the value of posting (or trolling yourself) accomplishes. I suppose a disruptive nature has some person enjoyment attached to it, but it seems a bit hypocritical to point out trolls while doing it continuously yourself. I harbor no ill will towards you or anyone else that doesn't feel like 2o2p is the place for them anymore. However moving on would seem to make a lot more sense then sticking around posting in a place of people you don't seem to like.
I completely, and utterly agree.
I love it here.
It's robust, functional, and is rife with valuable input that is given weight and consideration.
There is literally no more room for the agreement I feel.
Although, it appears most of your other users have in fact, taken your advice and moved on.
But I sir, am in total agreement.
You have to go out and let people know you exist. otherwise you're depending on Google and pure happenstance.
All we do in the Forza group is maintain a single thread on T-10's own forums, with information on our current activities.
http://forums.forzamotorsport.net/forums/thread/5017471.aspx
We also respond to people that post in the thread, answer questions, post some snaps of races/cars, and such.
Random thought’s from…well I guess I’m a troll now suppose I’m getting ahead in life that’s a positive take away for me.
I keep reading 2O2P needs to do this or 2O2P needs to that in order to…well I’m not entirely sure what it is some people are trying to accomplish but it seems many are not happy with the site so they’re offering up reasonable solutions to fix what they deem to be a problem. I’ve always thought 202P is what WE make of it as in YOU, ME and all members are responsible for the success of the site. Yes Doodi is the only one who can make an actual change to the site itself but no level of technology can make a group stronger/bigger or whatever the problem is, ultimately it’s the members who determine the success or lack thereof. You’re probably sick of hearing how awesome the 2O4F clan is but I’ve yet to see any 2O4F member go off the deep end (like Walladog seems to be stuck in) because of technical features of this site or any generic thing they consider detrimental to the site.
Many have offered up reasonable explanations as to why we lost a lot of people when version 2 was deployed. Yes there were some initial technical hurdles to overcome (hardly surprising) and somewhat silly bickering over opening up the forums to the general public but no one ever suggested we lost people simply because of change. The older you get in life the more set you become in your ways (this phenomenon not usually understood by young ones less than 40 years of age or thereabouts) and undoubtedly increased resistance to change so we could have lost some old fogies over a simple URL change and how do you combat that?
Not so much a random thought…
Not directing this at you personally Deep but this sentiment seems pretty common amongst many so my question is “Why is that?”
For what it matters I do not agree with that statement. This site is essentially a pet project of Doodi’s and sure I’ll give you he probably wants it to be successful but he’s not trying to make money off of it, already has a full time job and is clearly mature enough not to panic because member numbers are down so just what is his incentive for change? You cannot answer that question because you’re not Doodi so consider it rhetorical and lets throw out this for people to ponder…”What can 2O2P or Doodi do to make this site better that YOU cannot do yourself?”