Are these forums really useful?

[Joey Wonton]

I feel guilty now for getting a long term member banned. I hope he doesn't feel too bad for it.

I keep going into the philosophy of it in head.

I generally did the beckoning, with all of the 'controversial opinions welcome' and I don't see why I wasn't given at least a warning.
I suppose forum content isn't actually up to me, as the public have access to this thread, and their... opinions may come into contact with an opposing opinion, and so cancel out in a massive release of energy proportional to their egos mass.

I don't actually know where to go to get my fix of controversy, however, so ...l'blarrr.

 

[Sizzle Montyjing]

Oh yes, the forums are very useful for finding out what it would be like if the last enemy you killed in a videogame *insert scenario here*.
Real great...


Ahhh, you know i kid escapist.
The Escapist forums are useful for keeping me occupied, that's for damn sure.

 

[Samurai Goomba]

Welp, guess Generic Gamer got banned for expressing a sentiment that was well-explained, put in context and which many people agreed with.

Makes sense.

What he did was stand in front of a sniper's nest waving his dick and screaming "Snipers are gay and have lots of sex with animals."

The Escapist has the occasional issue, but discussion actually happens here, and doesn't turn into "You are teh fagsorz lol" because our mods actually do something.

Rather have strict than non-existent.

Yes, let's jump between the two extremes in moderation, because there's no middle ground.

Way to ignore my main point: that this thread is asking a question, and users are getting banned for providing one of the possible answers.

JUST LOCK THE THREAD IF WE CAN'T DISCUSS IT. Threads like these are just bait for the Escapist to ban dissenters. It's practically trolling to ask a question and then moderate people for their answer, when that answer is reasonable, well-explained and not profane.

There is a reason veteran posters agree with people like Generic Gamer.

 

[VeneratedWulfen93]

I signed up to this site two days ago(but i've been visiting for much longer) and I find these forums extremely informative and fun, a rare combination.

Being able to give my view on polls and other threads exposes me to ideas and opinions i wouldn't have come across otherwise giving be something to think and if need be be argue about.

 

[dickywebster]

I find them both useful, interesting and informative.
Not only does it show news and peoples view on them, but also on various issues which other forums ive been to tend to censure after a while.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

I signed up to this site two days ago(but i've been visiting for much longer) and I find these forums extremely informative and fun, a rare combination.

Being able to give my view on polls and other threads exposes me to ideas and opinions i wouldn't have come across otherwise giving be something to think and if need be be argue about.

I agree.

And if it hasn't already happened, allow me to be the first to welcome you to the escapist.

Breakfast is at 9.30.

 

[Wolfy2447]

Ah ye i forgot, there are also the horrible "opinion" threads, were to op already has an opinion and know what answers to pretty much expect but he still creates the topic so he can feel better when people agree with him...
Ah feeling better about yourself for the wrong reasons, its everywhere xD


Also my sympathies to generic gamer which got banned by the usual loladmins banning everyone they find "offensive" so kids wont outburst and start whining...Sigh, thats the escapist and other "big" forums, they have to protect the masses...

 

[Lord Mountbatten Reborn]

I'd understand a ban if it was just out and out flamebait, but it wasn't.

*Sigh* You simply cannot improve in any aspect if you (a) refuse to look at criticism, or (b) respond to criticism with hostility. It's just counter-productive. I rather like what MiracleofSound has said, that being to make sure you know what criticism is the right criticism, and acting accordingly.

You can't "fix" opinions as it were, true, but you can at least influence and guide. And yes, it is true, many in this community are really not what they make themselves out to be.

 

[Link4422]

Are any forums really useful? Games aren't really that useful either and this is a forum that is generally about games. Not saying it's a bad thing though. I think it's interesting reading what people think.

 

[Wolfy2447]

I'd understand a ban if it was just out and out flamebait, but it wasn't.

Yep any opinion that is not "allowed" by the god mods is labaled as flamebait and trolling since for them everyone is supposed to be a generic good brainwashed housewife in these forums that starts his posts with
"hello fellow neighbor, how are you today?, i fear i will have to SLightly disagree with your professional opinion..."

 

[Nouw]

Yes, yes it is. These forums have made me a better person.

 

[Pat8u]

I use the forums to learn new things

 

[NerfedFalcon]

My own 'controversial' opinion basically comes down to 'there are no anime characters a normal 16-year-old boy can relate to'. And by 'normal' I mean 'normal' according to real life, not 'gets a whole bunch of random girls, usually with special abilities they hide from everyone else'. Not to mention it's impossible to relate to any of those girls, no matter who you are: sure, maybe some of them actually do have faults, but they're lucky more than anything else. How did they gain their powers? Being in the right place at the right time. Getting stronger? Luck. Being like that in the first place? Their luck started while they were still just an X-chromosomal sperm. What makes it even worse for me is that while some girls can pretend their sperm was as magical as that of Usagi Tsukino, I have no such avenue. And that just turns me right off everything, even stuff I'm still slightly interested in: Black Rock Shooter, Fate/stay night, Nanoha, Madoka Magica, and yes, Sailor Moon. And you know what else? Usagi is probably the worst of the whole lot!

*inhale*

Feel free to rip my opinion apart, as usual, just quote the parts you object to so I know you're doing it.
~~~~~~
Edit: For comparison, here's the only anime (or anime-ish) character I've ever even slightly related to: Neku Sakuraba. Yeah, he's just as lucky as Usagi up there, but he has actual character flaws that a normal person (like me) might have. Also, I control him. That's also why I don't put Reimu up with the others: I can stand video game characters better because if I stop caring about the characters, I can't continue the game.

 

[SwagLordYoloson]

Kind of Ironic the first post was banned, Yeah this forum isn't useful, as freedom of discussion and speech on controversial topics is not allowed unless you support the side that is supported by the majority or the moderators.

 

[Danny Ocean]

Im not sure I agree with him getting banned, but Im afraid to express my opinion, because I might get banned.

Part of the problem is that, for the older users who've been around since before the forum health-bar, previous infractions for which you've done your time (and forgotten about, in my case) still added a pip to the bar. I don't remember Generic Gamer being particularly abrasive, but then we seem to float around different forums. I think he's more OT and I'm almost entirely R&P.

You can't "fix" opinions as it were, true, but you can at least influence and guide. And yes, it is true, many in this community are really not what they make themselves out to be.

Ah, Lord Mountbatten! It's been a long time!

How went the lobster fishing in Mullaghmore?

 

[Joey Wonton]

So these forums are used more primarily for fun and time consumption then?

Does that mean, to keep the passive tolerance and happiness we experience in this forum, we need to appease the greater number of people with the most agreeable content, so as to not cause disruption and general negative output?

Individually, it does feel oppressive, but the macro effect of it creates a much less hostile environment (non-constructive hostility). Look at 4chan boards and youtube comments and their reputation. Little or no moderation, and so hate can spew in all directions, drawing in more people to fuel it and basically building a self-perpetuating machine.
The effect of mods just aren't realised because of the natural law "You don't know what you have until its gone" and you can only speculate what it would be like without it.

Perhaps, to maintain the somewhat structured community of these forums, we must omit the luxury of absolute free speech, so as to keep as many people as we can smiling/not angry. Not upholding that could eventually lead to a much less desirable space in which to converse.

However, I don't see a 'serious discussion' forum going amiss. Unless that's what the 'Religion and Politics' section is; I've not visited it much, I believe because of me not being into either of the topics.

At least I understand the moderation now.

 

[Klepa]

I know they work towards an actual discussion if there were a small number of posters, on a smaller forum, but I made the title intriguing and mildly offensive to the user, so that it would hopefully attract a lot more attention than I deserve.

I actually didn't find it offensive at all, because I've been pondering the same thing myself. The forum's biggest problem is that it has so many users. Most people, myself included, have no choice but to skip over a lot of replies, unless they want to spend their whole afternoon reading about opinions and viewpoints, which may or may not have something to do with the original post. That can and will result in people repeating the same thing over and over.

It's unfortunate, but nobody is to blame, and it can't really be helped.


Also: I think a lot of people set themselves up for disappointment, when they join this forum. We spell-check posts, we often cite sources, and the religion forum is alarmingly civil. This can create the illusion that everyone in The Escapist is Stephen Fry, a sophisticated renaissance superman, when most of us are actually just John Smith, average guy who bothers to spell-check.