Hah they used to talk about religion and politics forum this way...G.O.A.T. said:
When everyone gets over Gamergate The game industry forums might be nice...
Poll: Civility of discussion with others on the site.
- Thread starter Josh123914
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When everyone gets over Gamergate The game industry forums might be nice...
Honestly, I've been coming to this site for several years, and occasionally spend a few weeks perusing the forums. Aside from the "GG is Good!" and "GG is Bad!" threads, the forum has gone through peaks and valleys of civility, same as any group of like-minded people who don't always agree on everything.
There have always been angry threads, and there will always be people who sign up/sign in just to enjoy arguing with others. The mods do a decent job of responding to extreme rudeness and boorishness quickly and efficiently, when people report the behavior.
The problem people are seeing, I think, is not looking past the aforementioned threads, and reading them as the tone of the rest of the forum. Most of the threads I've read have been more civil than on most sites, and even the GG/AGG threads are more typically civil than any discussion of the same subjects raised over Twitter or other social media.
But really, it's like violence. You are seeing it more because those threads are getting more posts (machine-gun fast posts from people looking for fights), and are staying visible longer on the main page. Outside of those threads, I'm not seeing a good deal of uncivil behavior, though there are of course exceptions.
There have always been angry threads, and there will always be people who sign up/sign in just to enjoy arguing with others. The mods do a decent job of responding to extreme rudeness and boorishness quickly and efficiently, when people report the behavior.
The problem people are seeing, I think, is not looking past the aforementioned threads, and reading them as the tone of the rest of the forum. Most of the threads I've read have been more civil than on most sites, and even the GG/AGG threads are more typically civil than any discussion of the same subjects raised over Twitter or other social media.
But really, it's like violence. You are seeing it more because those threads are getting more posts (machine-gun fast posts from people looking for fights), and are staying visible longer on the main page. Outside of those threads, I'm not seeing a good deal of uncivil behavior, though there are of course exceptions.
Never noticed that one. I mostly gravitate between Gaming Discussion and Off-Topic, and occasionally Religion and Politics, which wasn't as bad as I expected. If I'm feeling brave, I'll take a look one day.G.O.A.T. said:
I think this is partly what's going on here.zerragonoss said:
As I said in another topic, it seems a lot of users migrated from the forums to user groups. So the forums themselves are no longer as active as they once were, save for the controversial topics that seem to draw out the bitterness in posters.
Yeah - it's one of the reasons I very rarely post anymore. Not that I was a prolific poster even "back in the day" but it just seems either
A: nobody gives a damn about what I write - possibly no one even reads it
or
B: you get caught up in some pointless pseduo-intellectual bs with some guy/girl who wants to tell you to go fuck yourself but can't (because rules) and so stretches it out over several paragraphs and makes flimsy justifications for insulting you, your parentage, your dog etc etc
I think part of it is just me growing up a bit though - I have much less tolerance for internet debate than I used to. And by "debate" I mean constant and utterly pointless bitching.
But part of it is about this website too - used to be I could find at least one thread a day that would make me laugh - for whatever reason. Now? Can't even remember the last time that happened.
Reduced content + reduced user base + so many "controversial" topics that get people riled up = Massivley less fun
A: nobody gives a damn about what I write - possibly no one even reads it
or
B: you get caught up in some pointless pseduo-intellectual bs with some guy/girl who wants to tell you to go fuck yourself but can't (because rules) and so stretches it out over several paragraphs and makes flimsy justifications for insulting you, your parentage, your dog etc etc
I think part of it is just me growing up a bit though - I have much less tolerance for internet debate than I used to. And by "debate" I mean constant and utterly pointless bitching.
But part of it is about this website too - used to be I could find at least one thread a day that would make me laugh - for whatever reason. Now? Can't even remember the last time that happened.
Reduced content + reduced user base + so many "controversial" topics that get people riled up = Massivley less fun
Well for what its worth, I barely got to the bottom of page 1 of this thread before deciding I need a fucking Bailey's so what does that tell you?
Nope, it's been like this even before Zero Punctuation attracted a huge audience.
The difference was that back then you could have a mean argument about which console was worse. Now the fights are about GG and gender issues.
The gloves have always been on, but you can still get a bloody nose boxing. If you don't like that, don't play. You can always not respond.
If you still want to play, but you don't like low attacks coated in sophistry, learn how to deal with them, or find different sparring partners.
The difference was that back then you could have a mean argument about which console was worse. Now the fights are about GG and gender issues.
The gloves have always been on, but you can still get a bloody nose boxing. If you don't like that, don't play. You can always not respond.
If you still want to play, but you don't like low attacks coated in sophistry, learn how to deal with them, or find different sparring partners.
Whether or not it's only on certain topics I am unsure, but it is definitely more hostile than it was when I joined. It's ridiculous how sarcastic and condescending some people are.
For what it's worth, I think The Escapist is far more civil and open than, say, NeoGAF.
We just need interesting things to talk about. For example, why hasn't someone made a thread about Rare Replay? Why hasn't someone made a thread about Pink Floyd breaking up? I suppose I should put a bit of effort in to stir the pot. In the absence of genuinely interesting topics, people will squabble over nonsense.
We just need interesting things to talk about. For example, why hasn't someone made a thread about Rare Replay? Why hasn't someone made a thread about Pink Floyd breaking up? I suppose I should put a bit of effort in to stir the pot. In the absence of genuinely interesting topics, people will squabble over nonsense.
Well you see, people keep not acknowledging the divine wisdom of the people they are talking to, causing those who know that they are right about everything to become angry at the uneducated infidels.
Seriously, that's what it feels like.
Seriously, that's what it feels like.
I believe so. I have been here on and off for about seven years and frequent the Religion and Politics subforum. It might just be my perception, but I remember when conservatives weren't treated with such ridiculous contempt, not just in the abstract, but blatant disrespect to individuals for no reason beyond their politics. This of course goes both ways to some degree, but quite frankly its mostly vile going from left to right.