Poll: Has the Escapist community changed? Or is it just me?

[AzrealMaximillion]

It seems to me that within the last year, the community of the Escapist has changed, and hot for the better. Let me explain my feelings. I myself joined in January of 2010 so I'm not an Escapist 'vet' by any means. But I've noticed a sort of paradigm shift with the general community.

The community used to use the forums for discussion. Now coming from other online gaming websites like Destructoid, Gamespot, IGN, and Kotaku, I found myself enjoying getting involved in probably the most exciting discussions on this site's forums. Members could post a topic for discussion and for the most part, there was always an intelligent discussion. Even with the meme usage. When there was a post that was a criticism of an insanely popular company or form of media (Nintendo is a prime example on this site especially) instead of people being attacked by raving fanboys, there would be an informed debate. I found myself using the Escapist to communicate with people more than my Facebook account. And I loved it. Now granted there were still unanimous disdain for certain topics, such as Call of Duty, or any attempt at trolling the forums. But all was well. Until recently.


I've noticed that nowadays in the forums instead of actual discussion, more and more complaints started filling up the front page and all of the forums. Instead of posts that caused talking points such as, 'which major company showcased their products at E3 the best', or 'Do you agree with this new policy of law', people take to these forums and post about, 'How EA screw me personally and why you should be instantly mad at them', or 'Here's MY top ten gripes about Skyrim'. It seems that that people use this website like reviews on Craigslist or Amazon.

Another thing that I've noticed is that anytime someone criticizes the OP of any such thread, they are almost immediately met with a, 'It's the OP's opinion and their entitled to it' or 'Why are you even commenting if you don't agree?'. This logic boggles my mind. Why is it now acceptable to tell people that their conflicting opinion isn't valid? Why am I not allowed to call out OPs for making posts that have been created literally hundreds of times before them? Not even a year ago, if you were the 5th person to post something that was almost word for word said on a prior thread, you were given a link to such a prior post and told to comment there as to not flood the front page of the website or the forums category with extremely similar posts, as to allow for different topics to garner some discussion. Why did this stop?

Now I'm not including the Escapist staff in this post as I don't find them in completely responsible so please for the sake of discussion, don't bring up the controversial ending of Extra Credits, the equally controversial inclusion of the Jimquisition and the new website layout unless it actually in your opinion is a part of the change of though on this site. I really do not have to time or the patience to deal with flame wars on this thread. This is an open discussion, but keep to the topic at hand please. Does anyone else feel this way, or is it just me? Or rather me and a few others. I know that a decent amount of longtime members have left this site, or been banned for angry posts (the new post health system is something that is flawed and the banhammer has been flying about a bit too liberally lately) which is unfortunate. I miss some of those guys.

Now it seems that more and more members on the threads seem to have opinions, but lack the facts or information to back up their statements. Either that or use the Escapist to voice their complaint about a company over a very specific and personal incident (like not liking the compensation they received over a mess up by said company) and try and get as many people as possible to agree with them. Sometime asking asking people to share their 'horror stories' about said company in some attempt to prove to themselves that they aren't the only one who dislike the company or topic in question.

Am I just being curmudgeonly? Or has the community actually changed?

 

[Cazza]

I feel this shift is because of a string of warning, bans etc from some of the debates getting out of hand. Scaring off possible thread with more then just "Skyrim mod ideas" Or similar. I lurked these forums without an account for probably around a year before I made an account. I have see many memebers a lot being memebers with 1000s of posts banned in this manner. Leaving less bold newer memebers.

Hopefully these memebers will sit in these debates until they decide they should just making. Then others will see it's not that bad and then more threads with better content or created. Though if the first sring of controversial threads get a string of warning, bans etc it will push the forums back for who knows long.

 

[Pimppeter2]

Look kid, I'll give you a little hint of what the forums used to be like.

This topic has been done over and over again. Since 2007.

Use the search bar.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Look kid, I'll give you a little hint of what the forums used to be like.

This topic has been done over and over again. Since 2007.

Use the search bar.

So much this... SOOO MUCH THIS

We got larger. The dynamic of the community? The prolific posters who are still here are still the same people. There are more of us. We're just as whiny and bitchy as we were when I joined. We still moan about rules, site changes, dropped content and review scores we disagree with.

Point is, the Escapist is a part of the internet. We're above average because of our amazingly vigilant mods and report button crusaders. We filter out the filth as much as we can. I still have a blast every time I log on and that's all I need to do to stay here.

Content, community and forum games ho!

 

[scrambledeggs]

What I was going to say has been said. We are an ever shifting changing forum. Don't like it? Leave. I've enjoyed the content here for years.

 

[manic_depressive13]

Another thing that I've noticed is that anytime someone criticizes the OP of any such thread, they are almost immediately met with a, 'It's the OP's opinion and their entitled to it' or 'Why are you even commenting if you don't agree?'. This logic boggles my mind. Why is it now acceptable to tell people that their conflicting opinion isn't valid?

That's not really how it goes. People usually call other people out when they comment on topics simply for the sake of being perverse. For example, someone might ask "which are your six main pokemon" and someone will reply "I don't play pokemon because it sucks". That's all well and good, but this thread is clearly directed at people who do play pokemon.

Why am I not allowed to call out OPs for making posts that have been created literally hundreds of times before them? Not even a year ago, if you were the 5th person to post something that was almost word for word said on a prior thread, you were given a link to such a prior post and told to comment there as to not flood the front page of the website or the forums category with extremely similar posts, as to allow for different topics to garner some discussion. Why did this stop?

This thread has been created literally hundreds of times in the past. People still call eachother out on this all the time. Most of us have just come to accept that some people want to make their own posts and threads and lead their own discussion. It's not a matter of the community changing. People just get disillusioned after spending a bit of time here.

Edit: Just to give you an idea, I lurked these forums for a while before I joined. These threads complaining about the escapist having "changed" cropped up a lot in 2008 and 2009, and they've been cropping up frequently since. Now we have users from 2010 saying it's "changed". Changed from what? You weren't even around during the supposed "golden age" of the Escapist. The Escapist never even had a golden age. The golden age is just approximately half a year after you join. Then you realise that the Escapist forums are just another set of forums on the internet and not the island of respite that you thought they were. A well moderate forum, but not a more intelligent forum.

 

[DustyDrB]

I'm not sure. I just hear that on January 19, 2010, this place started to become really awesome. And it's been that way ever since.

 

[Colour Scientist]

Look kid, I'll give you a little hint of what the forums used to be like.

This topic has been done over and over again. Since 2007.

Use the search bar.

Can't really argue with this.

It has gotten a little more timid though. Which is kind of lame.

 

[Scarim Coral]

A little bit I guess. I have notice more of those "The last game boss/character is now your [insert words]" in this year or stuff like that.
I don't really care how complex or meaningful the threads got to be. As long it's something I can post my opinion on than I will post my comment.

 

[AzrealMaximillion]

What I was going to say has been said. We are an ever shifting changing forum. Don't like it? Leave. I've enjoyed the content here for years.

Look kid, I'll give you a little hint of what the forums used to be like.

This topic has been done over and over again. Since 2007.

Use the search bar.

^^This is exactly what I'm talking about.

Make a thread and people come in to tell you specifically to piss off.
This is probably the attitude that has a lot of newer escapists afraid to post anything interesting. It's this condescending attitude that some members have on this site that is partly to blame.

Seriously why do you think I should leave if I don't like it? Why don't you like the idea of me bringing up a discussion about how the community of this site is changing?

P.S. I did use the search bar. This topic is a hell of a lot more specific than the other (and very few I might add) "has the Escapist changed?" threads.

 

[Sassafrass]

Oh yeah, it's changed.

It's changed from a fun loving community to a serious, "no fun allowed" one. The fact that many people bitched when members of one of my user groups changed their avy to one users to celebrate said birthday for a laugh is one example I can think of when the community began to change. And bear in mind, this group was the group who also produced this thread [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.163217] and the 2010 Aprils Fools day joke without a damn eye being blinked or a complaint being filed.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the content here and some of the users are good fun, Redlin being one of many I can't remember right now. But honestly, I think the community has changed and it's not for the best. It's not bad yet, but it's worse than it was before.

 

[JLML]

The biggest change I've noticed is the absence of a few persons that used to be around a lot. Especially [user]Aylaine[/user] who lightened up the mood in every thread she posted. And a lot others too, some well known, others not so much.

Well, I still like this place, but... Yea, I agree that it's been getting worse. I miss the good old times when it was mostly about the fun in this place. Like that Lady Gaga/Jim Carrey spam, the Bieber spam and all of that. Which reminds me, have to put that red button up there again. xD

 

[FamoFunk]

Forums as big as this one are always going to change.

People leave, get banned, new people come in, a new set of gamers and ages, too. It is always quite sad to see when you've been a member for a long time, but that's how it works I guess.

 

[JesterRaiin]

People are agents of change. No other species changes both itself and its surrounding like we do. Yet, it is the change that we're afraid more than anything. A little shift in status quo and we're like "omgggggggggg, yesterday was soooooo better than today".

Guess what, nothing will stay the same for a long time. That's the life, that's a part of being alive.

Move on, move on, nothing to see, nothing to debate about...

 

[anthony87]

In my view it's become more tame in the sense that people are so worried about warning/suspensions/bans they post less. That's how it is for me sometimes anyways. Don't get me wrong now, I'm all for a good discussion that's civil and whatnot but there are times where a person can better express their point by being angry about it but somewhere along the way it seems the the majority of interesting discussions have become....monotone.

On the flip side you have discussions full of knee-jerk reactions, broad generalisations and just straight up idiots who don't actually know what they're talking about but think that a wall of text full of big words that completely ignores anything you said equals intelligent discussion. See those rape threads that state how myself and a majority of the other posters are now criminal scum, monsters etc. if we've ever had sex while drunk for examples.

Still love the site though.

Or hey, maybe it's just as good as it's always been and I'm just being an old moanypants.

 

[Toriver]

The way I see it having changed is that the forums are changing from genuine homes of discussion to one big echo chamber where nobody dare challenge specific opinions and preferences, and not just relating to gaming. I don't agree with many of those opinions, so I have stopped posting for the most part. When there is debate in a thread, people are getting shorter tempers and threads much more easily descend into flamewars. Maybe if the forum environment changes, I'll be more inclined to post more again.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Oh yeah, it's changed.

It's changed from a fun loving community to a serious, "no fun allowed" one.

Has it? Hmmm, I suggest we start a two man war for the cause of fun!

*hits with banana fish*

 

[Shameless]

Look pal, everything in this world changes, get used to it.