Poll of the Day > Does anyone else feel like gaming forums are dying?

(+) Yeah! (+)

It seems like nobody is really sticking around anymore, most communities have seen an exodus of users, and even the most popular ones seem to be just clinging to life with nothing besides circle jerks, fanboys, and abusive moderators.

GameFAQs is the only constant really from the forums I visit. Not a surprise though when every game/system is all in one place here.
---

I'm not sure because honestly, I used to post daily on caws.ws and GameFAQs for years because I like talking about things with people who enjoy the same hobbies but yeah, over time, you get trolls posting BS and getting away with it, genuine people getting harassed by moderators with an agenda and there's less actual conversation and more abusive circlejerkery, where everyone is trying to one-up each other on how "funny" they can be.

May not be the same everywhere but I simply can't be bothered and don't care enough about gaming these days to seek out alternatives.
---

wwinterj25 posted...

GameFAQs is the only constant really from the forums I visit. Not a surprise though when every game/system is all in one place here.

Yeah it's the only reason I keep coming back here. The general topic communities have always been awful in my experience but this one, the poll of the day is probably the best IMO. Overall though I usually just come here to research games and talk about specifics with people.

enterthemadrox posted...

I'm not sure because honestly, I used to post daily on caws.ws and GameFAQs for years because I like talking about things with people who enjoy the same hobbies but yeah, over time, you get trolls posting BS and getting away with it, genuine people getting harassed by moderators with an agenda and there's less actual conversation and more abusive circlejerkery, where everyone is trying to one-up each other on how "funny" they can be.

May not be the same everywhere but I simply can't be bothered and don't care enough about gaming these days to seek out alternatives.

Yeah that is the problem that I have had with other communities. I used to go to IGN a lot but it's pretty much fallen victim to the kind of behavior you are talking about, everyone trying to one-up each other with lots of fanboys getting away with things and people who don't like it getting banned by moderators with agendas. It is no wonder why nobody really cares to go back there anymore, sad to watch communities die like that.

I am kinda the same way where I just don't really care to seek out or get involved in new gaming communities anymore. Gamefaqs kind of takes care of most questions I have, and since I can't really be express myself on most forums anymore without having to deal with some butthurt fanboy moderator I kind of just don't really care to be involved in forums anymore. They just aren't the open communities they used to be and aren't appealing to get involved with when everyone is just some fanboy trying to be louder than the next one.

Hell, I got moderated on this site for daring to admit that I didn't find The Big Bang Theory funny. I also got suspended for 24 hours for asking someone the context of a joke between themselves and a moderator and then that mod pulled me up for "harassing my gf", despite the fact that the girlfriend's account wasn't the one I replied to.

The reason I don't care enough about gaming to seek alternatives is that honestly, gaming just hasn't excited me since 2006. The big titles that get talked about and hyped just don't interest me in any way, unless it's Mario or Zelda or the Arkham games.
---

enterthemadrox posted...

Hell, I got moderated on this site for daring to admit that I didn't find The Big Bang Theory funny. I also got suspended for 24 hours for asking someone the context of a joke between themselves and a moderator and then that mod pulled me up for "harassing my gf", despite the fact that the girlfriend's account wasn't the one I replied to.

The reason I don't care enough about gaming to seek alternatives is that honestly, gaming just hasn't excited me since 2006. The big titles that get talked about and hyped just don't interest me in any way, unless it's Mario or Zelda or the Arkham games.

Same, if you look at the forums these days it's all hype and fanboy praise, you can tell how it's incredibly niche and a total clique reaction to everything which makes forums and the people on them seem very irrelevant these days. It's like they only represent themselves and they are so far removed from what most people are like that it doesn't really matter.

Literally my first time logging in in...months...

This forum is is different. I think we just live in a day and age where a lot of people get their more serious information from mediums that promote more visual stuff. It's just easier to find a walkthrough on youtube than read through a walk through or post a question on a forum and wait for a response.

So a lot of what's left on forums are the trolls and fanboys. People who don't have much else--as those who have time constraints use faster mediums--so they can easily troll idly on forums. And people who previously may have talked to through forums only now have plenty of other options staying in touch.

I one time saw some weird prediction that by 2019 facebook was going to be almost exclusively video posts with text almost gone from the equation completely. I think forums are already kinda' feeling that.
---

_TheDoctor_ posted...

Literally my first time logging in in...months...

This forum is is different. I think we just live in a day and age where a lot of people get their more serious information from mediums that promote more visual stuff. It's just easier to find a walkthrough on youtube than read through a walk through or post a question on a forum and wait for a response.

So a lot of what's left on forums are the trolls and fanboys. People who don't have much else--as those who have time constraints use faster mediums--so they can easily troll idly on forums. And people who previously may have talked to through forums only now have plenty of other options staying in touch.

I one time saw some weird prediction that by 2019 facebook was going to be almost exclusively video posts with text almost gone from the equation completely. I think forums are already kinda' feeling that.

I don't see that working for everyone, people love to text and hardly use facetime for a reason.

I just think the whole video response thing is a youtube personality thing, the kinda thing where only a minority who are very public personalities are using it.

Still, I think you got a point there. People used to go to forums for information and just to discuss things, but now that everything has been taken over by fanboys playing a never ending game of one-up it's like nobody reasonable wants to stick around. I think most people just get frustrated by the people on forums these days and just moves on with their life, getting their information on youtube and sticking to facebook for discussions.

_TheDoctor_ posted...

Literally my first time logging in in...months...

This forum is is different. I think we just live in a day and age where a lot of people get their more serious information from mediums that promote more visual stuff. It's just easier to find a walkthrough on youtube than read through a walk through or post a question on a forum and wait for a response.

So a lot of what's left on forums are the trolls and fanboys. People who don't have much else--as those who have time constraints use faster mediums--so they can easily troll idly on forums. And people who previously may have talked to through forums only now have plenty of other options staying in touch.

Well-said. YouTube has definitely taken over a number of functions formerly left to people with lots of free time to write.

Yes, I do think forums are becoming less active overall. I sure don't post nearly as much as I did back when I first joined this website an eternity ago.
---

Tails 64 posted...

_TheDoctor_ posted...

Literally my first time logging in in...months...

This forum is is different. I think we just live in a day and age where a lot of people get their more serious information from mediums that promote more visual stuff. It's just easier to find a walkthrough on youtube than read through a walk through or post a question on a forum and wait for a response.

So a lot of what's left on forums are the trolls and fanboys. People who don't have much else--as those who have time constraints use faster mediums--so they can easily troll idly on forums. And people who previously may have talked to through forums only now have plenty of other options staying in touch.

Well-said. YouTube has definitely taken over a number of functions formerly left to people with lots of free time to write.

Yes, I do think forums are becoming less active overall. I sure don't post nearly as much as I did back when I first joined this website an eternity ago.

Yeah you got a point, I only go to forums when I am bored or just looking to discuss or vent something with people. I sure don't use them like I used to.

jayj350 posted...

Does anyone else feel like gaming forums are dying?

They've been dying for years now.

GameFAQs started its decline at least 5 years ago, if not more.


---

Forums are just a dying medium, nothing really to do with gaming. Most people on here don't get it but it's just easier to use social media and such.
---

Find a discord or teamspeak server you find enjoyable. Way better
---

FellWolf posted...

Find a discord or teamspeak server you find enjoyable. Way better

Yeah twitter and discord are my main gigs now
---

Kana posted...

Forums are just a dying medium, nothing really to do with gaming. Most people on here don't get it but it's just easier to use social media and such.

1) This IS technically "social media", even if it isn't what most people think of when they use that term.

2) While things like Twitter, Tumblr, or even Reddit can be considered "better" in some ways, they're also worse in a number of other ways, so choosing this over them isn't "not getting it" as much as it is having different priorities.

3) There is an argument that can be made that more "mainstream" interactive media sites on the Web (especially ones that cater to a younger, less mature audience) can be incredibly toxic at times, and as such, may encourage some people to steer the fuck clear of them. Even the most loathesome or annoying people who've ever posted on PotD are still better than a lot of people you'll find on Tumblr, Twitter, or Reddit. GameFAQs had similar issues before most of the worst posters got locked off in LUE, or migrated over to 4chan in its early years. The newest "new thing" usually tends to have the absolute worst users as well.


---

ParanoidObsessive posted...

1) This IS technically "social media", even if it isn't what most people think of when they use that term.

You know what I mean dude
---

Kana posted...

Forums are just a dying medium, nothing really to do with gaming. Most people on here don't get it but it's just easier to use social media and such.

This. Social Media for discussion and YouTube/Twitch/Videos for Tuts/Walkthroughs

Less popular =/= dying

Things can occasionally get massively popular for a while and then go back closer to an old status quo. Judging from the absolute peak to now could be used to suggest that it's dying, but we're likely at the same rates many of the forums were at prior to the boom and had maintained for years. The surge in popularity was more an anomaly than a status quo.
---

pionear posted...

YouTube/Twitch/Videos for Tuts/Walkthroughs

meh, I don't think I'll ever use only youtube videos for tutorials or walk throughs. I'd rather use a guide.
---

They've been dead for a while no. 'Tis a crying shame.
---

Most of the other sites feel dead. 10-15 years ago there were lots of competitors that felt just as lively.
---

TheCyborgNinja posted...

Most of the other sites feel dead. 10-15 years ago there were lots of competitors that felt just as lively.

5-10 years ago the internet was completely different, most forums were very popular.

Now, for the past 5 years or so it's been on a decline and the userbase just gets worse and more fanboyish.

I mean virtually every game has a reddit page if that counts (though the level of forum activity on every respective page obviously varies widely). That said, activity has certainly dwindled due to how easy it is to find answers to questions these days. Sure, people still have discussions, but there aren't many questions about "where do I go next" or "what does this do" or anything like that, because it's all google-able.
---