I don't think that the level of discussion can be solely influenced by a single factor such as population, but rather a combination of various factors with varying levels of strength. It is true that with a smaller community comes a family vibe and the knowledge and friendship provided by this assists in discussion, but I have seen many websites with a large user base (larger than The Escapist I'd wager) hold many discussions, so many that it is rare for a thread that lasts to not break down into a conversation between posters. These discussions though, were almost always arguments of the heated variety and were you to express an opinion it would be likely that someone else would come and argue against it and as a result discussion, or argument, would flourish.
Here on The Escapist we are a little bit too friendly. Mostly due to the moderation team doing their job we try to not get into heated arguments because by doing so one can risk getting banned if they are not careful or naturally aggressive. We seem to avoid the flammable discussion topics quite a bit here and even openly call them out for attracting an argument. A thread such as 'Which Console is the best' will probably earn some discussion but it will also achieve a lot of criticism, however these threads are rare as people know them to be ban-bait.
Were this attitude to be changed to one of more hostility than there would be more discussion, but I don't think it would be the discussion people (especially in this thread) want. Rather it would change this forum into a wretched fan boy proving ground in which dead pave the roads and the children bath in blood, or something. Still, I can't help but think that some more hostility might make this place more interesting at least. As annoying, insulting and rude as Eggo (or Indigo_Dingo, RichardGroovyPants, GEMS... take your pick) was you had to admit that the guy did start discussions.
It is possible for discussion to be had without hostility, of course, (it would most likely be of a much higher calibre too) but as this thread has argued a discussion grows harder to be had as the population increases and posting becomes more 'look at me' than 'look at what I have to say'. There are exceptions to this though such as this thread. I take my hat off to the OP for making a thread about The Escapist that doesn't boil down to 'things suck now'.
Here on The Escapist we are a little bit too friendly. Mostly due to the moderation team doing their job we try to not get into heated arguments because by doing so one can risk getting banned if they are not careful or naturally aggressive. We seem to avoid the flammable discussion topics quite a bit here and even openly call them out for attracting an argument. A thread such as 'Which Console is the best' will probably earn some discussion but it will also achieve a lot of criticism, however these threads are rare as people know them to be ban-bait.
Were this attitude to be changed to one of more hostility than there would be more discussion, but I don't think it would be the discussion people (especially in this thread) want. Rather it would change this forum into a wretched fan boy proving ground in which dead pave the roads and the children bath in blood, or something. Still, I can't help but think that some more hostility might make this place more interesting at least. As annoying, insulting and rude as Eggo (or Indigo_Dingo, RichardGroovyPants, GEMS... take your pick) was you had to admit that the guy did start discussions.
It is possible for discussion to be had without hostility, of course, (it would most likely be of a much higher calibre too) but as this thread has argued a discussion grows harder to be had as the population increases and posting becomes more 'look at me' than 'look at what I have to say'. There are exceptions to this though such as this thread. I take my hat off to the OP for making a thread about The Escapist that doesn't boil down to 'things suck now'.
However you may have stumbled onto something else here, if we connect this to the rest of your post. Perhaps when the population boomed, the banhammer started falling more frequently due to the increase in people who can't tell the difference between a civil argument and a flame fight and this made people afraid of expressing controversial opinions. Just a thought though. I'm not, in any way, blaming the mods and admins for being too strict here.