21 replies to this topic

[Sera]

So I was kind of excited when the forums first came back up, finally thought I'd have something to read after no one had posted anything on iROWiki in like a day or so, but it's like... no one is posting anything. Maybe give it a week or two to pick back up again, wait for Gravity to mess something up again.

But the month without forums did make me think about something, do we really even need official forums?
If there were no forums, the role of the community managers could be re-appropriated to in-game community management, instead of frequently dealing with people like myself here who barely play anymore.

Would RO, as an online video game, be better served by a simple webpage that includes links to popular fansites and reverting to a simple facebook/twitter type feed to provide information on current game happenings? Or instead of a complete forum, perhaps just a simple bulletin board for people to reply to pre-created threads?

[ShadyDeals]

I like having the suggestion and bug section of the forums. The suggestion section is a good place to see how popular a suggestion is. The bug section is nice if you're having a particular problem that is already solved.

[Sera]

This is not really a shot at Gravity in specific, more at all companies in general, but...

You would think in this day and age with all the advances in technology and such, that someone would be able to create a useful FAQ/Support

[Hacks]

these forums were part of my daily routine untill they went down. i was bored out of my mind, since leveling is all but impossible. now it's like dead here, makes me wonder how many people just up and quit over the last month. i remember there being atleast 15 posts an hour, now it's just Sera talking to herself.

[Miii]

i remember there being atleast 15 posts an hour, now it's just Sera talking to herself.

^ Lol.

I was quite bored without WP forums but now it's even boring.

[Kitten]

I agree.

Going so long without it made me realize I don't really need it.

[KuroNeko]

lol*sigh one of the sad parts about communities when it gets tough people just move on D:

[Sera]

Well, I wonder if it would be better for the game to just not-have official forums at all.

[KuroNeko]

well i'm not going to sugar coat it Ragnarok does not need an official forum imo. With that said its nice to have(or at least it was D:) i enjoyed checking on Warp Portal often when it was till running before the crazy event it suffered. But now its pretty abysmal i just realized i spent about an hour looking for something to comment on but all i saw was rants, complaints, or just things with little importance so i guess if it continues like this i'd say we dont need one >_<

[Mwrip]

Well, the changes Heim says are coming were a result primarily of listening on the forums to WHY everyone has mostly left the game (and the exodus caused by Renewal was HUGE), so in that regard, I'd say they serve a very useful purpose. There's really no other way to get the community's opinion on stuff, since most of these discussions in game happen in guild chat - or on Vent servers that aren't even attached to the game.

Forums are *part* of the community. They're great at what they do, but they aren't a substitute for anything else. Can the game live without them? Of course.

The real question is do the benefits of having a real forum system outweigh the drawbacks, and I think there's no question that they do, even if yes, there's far more negative threads than positive ones.

[ZeroTigress]

This is not really a shot at Gravity in specific, more at all companies in general, but...

You would think in this day and age with all the advances in technology and such, that someone would be able to create a useful FAQ/Support

One company that comes to mind after reading this is the Disney Company. They don't have official forums and any useful FAQ they come up with is nigh impossible to find on their website since parts of it are badly outdated. So that's one example of not needing an official forums. Too bad their promotions are almost as badly worded as Gravity's.

[Xellie]

I quite enjoy being able to at the GMs directly on the forums http://forums.warppo...tyle_emoticons/default/happy.gif

[Myzery]

It's like a needle in a haystack, but some threads/posts do contribute to making the game a better place.
Like Xellie said, it's a nice outlet to let the GMs know that they have messed up too.

[Rutana]

I have no facebook or twitter account, and I won't make one for RO.
So for me, the forums are great to get in touch with the gm's and specific topics. At iRO wiki it was ok, but somehow... it couldn't replace these forums, where the gm's make the important topics and stick them. And seperate them for the points that need to be discussed. I can easily avoid WOE talk, and still being up to date with a few clicks with the ability to ask questions if needed.
Not to forget the creative contests which I highly appreciate...

[CheddarJack]

I have to agree i like having the forums up. Since i can talk to people who i dont normal talk to (GM's people who quit, etc). I can also post of things that i have done so that the People on the forums can read them. I also enjoy having a guild recruiting thread, which has helped bring in a few new people to my guild (im sure to other guilds as well). But i do have to agree that a bug/support section is needed expecially with f2p coming along and Brasilis as well.

[Sera]

But you people who complain on the forums have the GMs on MSN anyway, posting here is just looking for public support.

And a few things I've learned in my years playing RO.

The GMs always mess things up, and even when they 'fix' it, it usually isn't fixed at all.

And no matter what the community feels about something, it will take years to change, if at all.

[Maka]

So I was kind of excited when the forums first came back up, finally thought I'd have something to read after no one had posted anything on iROWiki in like a day or so, but it's like... no one is posting anything. Maybe give it a week or two to pick back up again, wait for Gravity to mess something up again.

But the month without forums did make me think about something, do we really even need official forums?
If there were no forums, the role of the community managers could be re-appropriated to in-game community management, instead of frequently dealing with people like myself here who barely play anymore.

Would RO, as an online video game, be better served by a simple webpage that includes links to popular fansites and reverting to a simple facebook/twitter type feed to provide information on current game happenings? Or instead of a complete forum, perhaps just a simple bulletin board for people to reply to pre-created threads?

[Kadnya]

Good forums, where there are active moderators, staff taking feedback, and community giving active ideas and supporting each other, are not needed, but are certainly a big improvement. I'm not saying this is how warp portal forums were or are, but a nice game with nice forums is better than a nice game without forums.

I am sure there are some things there forums are needed, or at least a big advantage, for example; the bug reporting for new updates, or the fixing or improving of parts of the game. I'm sure that if forums were up during the recent turn in events, enough people would have jumped and maybe the gravity staff realized how bad the bios turn in was setup, or why the idea of heim for fixing the rachel turn in was poor and just making 2 different turn ins would have been better... small fixes and changes like that are easier with forums existing.

And I'm sure some of us enjoy forums more than the actual game, and it is forums what keeps us in RO, not RO what keeps us in forums xP.

[CheddarJack]

But you people who complain on the forums have the GMs on MSN anyway

I have the GM's MSN? Actually i did ask ODA once and his response was "im not allowed to give out my MSN."

EXCALIBUR!!!!

Edited by CheddarJack, 28 March 2011 - 02:04 PM.

[Viri]

I have the GM's MSN? Actually i did ask ODA once and his response was "im not allowed to give out my MSN."

Gotta be one of those special people with the "in" crowd :3

[Heart]

At First i was like ZOMG SERA TOPIC, TROLL TROLL,
then i was like uh WTH? no trolling? u made panda cry T_T

[Sera]

I'd like your blue eyed horseshoe
I'd like your emerald horny toad
I'd like to do it to your daughter on a dirt road
I'd like everything I post to be taken seriously