Poll of the Day > At the current rate of user loss, GameFAQs will be dead in a few short years.

(+) Yeah! (+)

How many were people that got suspended or banned for stupid reasons?

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FrothySolutions posted...

You can gauge whether or not the site is dead. You don't need the exact amount of people on the website, if the poll gets zero results, that will probably mean the boards are near deserted. You don't need an exact number, all you need to know is "Less poll answerers = less people on the boards."

You actually can't, though. Technically, the poll could have almost no votes, while the boards have three times are many people as normal. That would make the site thriving more than normal, even though nobody voted on the poll... If nobody voted in the poll, you would think the boards are deserted. But that's not true. They don't actually have to match at all...
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joemodda posted...

Well rest assured, I'll still be browsing this site whether I'm 30, 40, or burning in hell

Same. I apparently need this in my life, whether I like it or not.

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Bulbasaur posted...

uh huh

sure you did

also i haven't been shilling for anyone

but if someone did want to pay me to do that, hmu

The Xbox brand peaked with the 360 and demolished itself with the Xbox One.

Just for ATTEMPTING to do the things they wanted to do at the start of the generation, the Microsoft gaming division deserves oblivion.


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LinkPizza posted...

You actually can't, though. Technically, the poll could have almost no votes, while the boards have three times are many people as normal. That would make the site thriving more than normal, even though nobody voted on the poll... If nobody voted in the poll, you would think the boards are deserted. But that's not true. They don't actually have to match at all...

I'm saying that's not likely. I'm saying as the poll numbers go down, so shall the forum numbers. And I intend to hold myself to the claim in a few years.

joemodda posted...

Well rest assured, I'll still be browsing this site whether I'm 30, 40, or burning in hell

Especially burning in hell

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FrothySolutions posted...

I'm saying that's not likely. I'm saying as the poll numbers go down, so shall the forum numbers. And I intend to hold myself to the claim in a few years.

Sure. I think they both will go down around the same time. But I dont think there is any correlation between the two. The poll may have gone down some without losing any posters just due the fact that people forget about it often. Or go straight to the boards first. As soon as I started going straight to here, I forgot to vote most of the time...
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LinkPizza posted...

Sure. I think they both will go down around the same time. But I dont think there is any correlation between the two. The poll may have gone down some without losing any posters just due the fact that people forget about it often. Or go straight to the boards first. As soon as I started going straight to here, I forgot to vote most of the time...

But if poll responses are going down, AND forum usage is going down, what could that mean but less people on the site?

One day this board (and website) will be in VR and we will all get to see each others avatars and interact.

Be afraid.

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FrothySolutions posted...

But if poll responses are going down, AND forum usage is going down, what could that mean but less people on the site?

We already know that less people are on the site due to the message board usage going down. But that has nothing to do with poll results. They are pretty independent. The only users you cant see from the board user amounts are the ones that dont use the boards. So, the ones that are using guides and stuff. But whos to say they voted in, or even know about, the poll? Google could have just led them to the guides...
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LinkPizza posted...

We already know that less people are on the site due to the message board usage going down. But that has nothing to do with poll results. They are pretty independent. The only users you cant see from the board user amounts are the ones that dont use the boards. So, the ones that are using guides and stuff. But whos to say they voted in, or even know about, the poll? Google could have just led them to the guides...

I'm saying if there are less people on the boards, and less people answering polls, it follows that there's less people looking up guides. Less usage in general, across the board.

But maybe the quality of the users is going up!!!

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wolfy42 posted...

But maybe the quality of the users is going up!!!

Im touched, Wolfy.

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FrothySolutions posted...

I'm saying if there are less people on the boards, and less people answering polls, it follows that there's less people looking up guides. Less usage in general, across the board.

And thats still an assumption. While its good that youre basing it off of something, its still just guess work on your part. Just find a way to actually find out the real number of daily users instead of guessing off of something that doesnt actually give any real numbers other than how many people voted in the poll. Especially since you don.this know the percentage that did or does vote in the poll. For all you know, maybe 95% of people voted in the poll in the earlier days of the site. And maybe now, only 20% vote. That would also skew your numbers. So, without percentages, you also cant find the actual rate that its going down. Not to mention people forgetting about the poll, or simply not voting anymore...
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LinkPizza posted...

And thats still an assumption. While its good that youre basing it off of something, its still just guess work on your part. Just find a way to actually find out the real number of daily users instead of guessing off of something that doesnt actually give any real numbers other than how many people voted in the poll. Especially since you don.this know the percentage that did or does vote in the poll. For all you know, maybe 95% of people voted in the poll in the earlier days of the site. And maybe now, only 20% vote. That would also skew your numbers. So, without percentages, you also cant find the actual rate that its going down. Not to mention people forgetting about the poll, or simply not voting anymore...

But that's not likely, what's more likely is that the site as a whole is getting less users.

FrothySolutions posted...

But that's not likely, what's more likely is that the site as a whole is getting less users.

Actually, its very likely. As others have already shown you, many of them here forget about the poll dispute this board being called, Poll of the Day. Which is the name of the poll you are talking about. And we still forget. Other boards dont even get the constant reminder we do when people come here to complain about poll of the day. So, mine theory is as likely as yours. And both of them are based on guesswork instead of actual proof...
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LinkPizza posted...

Actually, its very likely. As others have already shown you, many of them here forget about the poll dispute this board being called, Poll of the Day. Which is the name of the poll you are talking about. And we still forget. Other boards dont even get the constant reminder we do when people come here to complain about poll of the day. So, mine theory is as likely as yours. And both of them are based on guesswork instead of actual proof...

This is among regular forum users who are hip to the meme that PotD doesn't talk about the poll. They don't vote in the poll, but what about the site users in general?

Well, it is sort of inevitable. Not only are there competing forums and locations for guides and walkthroughs, but video walkthroughs exist as well. I expect Gamefaqs will be reduced to a small core of loyal users who exist mainly for the social aspect.

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A lot of its to do with the mods. They've become so spineless and so terrified of what gets said that people just get moderated left and right over nothing.

People just got fed up and left.

FrothySolutions posted...

This is among regular forum users who are hip to the meme that PotD doesn't talk about the poll. They don't vote in the poll, but what about the site users in general?

Whole a lot of them may say that, many (including myself) do vote... When we remember. The problem is still that you cant tell how many people use the site from that poll, nor how many users have left. And using the poll would not be a smart idea to do that. Especially since its easy to forget it exist even when using the board dedicated to it. Even checking some of the profiles will show who does and does not vote. Though, some also have private ones, so...
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wolfy42 posted...

But maybe the quality of the users is going up!!!

Except for ICOYAR.

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It's unspeakable to vote for the PotD.

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I know that I tend to visit the site and various forums almost daily, but I don't always vote if the poll isn't really relevant to me. For example, when there were all of those football/Super Bowl questions. I did vote in a few, but I don't care about football (or sports in general), so I didn't actively participate in those polls. I still visited some of my favorite boards, though. Surely there is a better metric for measuring user activity.

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I can't even remember the last time I voted in a GFAQs poll.

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I swear that i will never leave GameFAQs, not even when I die

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People have been claiming Gamefaqs is dead for years. And yet, the site is still here.

i also never vote in the poll.

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CottontailGamer posted...

I know that I tend to visit the site and various forums almost daily, but I don't always vote if the poll isn't really relevant to me. For example, when there were all of those football/Super Bowl questions. I did vote in a few, but I don't care about football (or sports in general), so I didn't actively participate in those polls. I still visited some of my favorite boards, though. Surely there is a better metric for measuring user activity.

Like I said, it's true that not everyone votes in the poll, but it could be said for such and such amount of people who don't vote in the poll, there are such and such amount of people that do vote in the poll. Zero votes in the poll doesn't mean zero people on the site, it just means the site is very very dead.

FrothySolutions posted...

Like I said, it's true that not everyone votes in the poll, but it could be said for such and such amount of people who don't vote in the poll, there are such and such amount of people that do vote in the poll. Zero votes in the poll doesn't mean zero people on the site, <b>it just means the site is very very dead.</b>

Which is false, considering the number of people that earn the Faithful badge (10 consecutive days of visiting the site) and monthly faithful badges (every day of the month) both of which number in hundreds of thousands of members. I wouldnt call the site dead.

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CottontailGamer posted...

I know that I tend to visit the site and various forums almost daily, but I don't always vote if the poll isn't really relevant to me. For example, when there were all of those football/Super Bowl questions. I did vote in a few, but I don't care about football (or sports in general), so I didn't actively participate in those polls. I still visited some of my favorite boards, though. Surely there is a better metric for measuring user activity.

You would think they know how much karma they give out, that would be a much better indicator

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TyVulpine posted...

Which is false, considering the number of people that earn the Faithful badge (10 consecutive days of visiting the site) and monthly faithful badges (every day of the month) both of which number in hundreds of thousands of members. I wouldnt call the site dead.

We aren't at zero votes in the polls yet though. Once we reach that, I'm wagering that means we aren't gonna see much activity on the site. Not on the boards, not in the articles, nowhere.

FrothySolutions posted...

We aren't at zero votes in the polls yet though. Once we reach that, I'm wagering that means we aren't gonna see much activity on the site. Not on the boards, not in the articles, nowhere.

Or just thousands of people on the site where nobody votes anymore...
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LinkPizza posted...

Or just thousands of people on the site where nobody votes anymore...

I don't think that's so. I think the boards are also gonna be dead at that point.

FrothySolutions posted...

I don't think that's so. I think the boards are also gonna be dead at that point.

You can assume that if you want...
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FrothySolutions posted...

We aren't at zero votes in the polls yet though. Once we reach that, I'm wagering that means we aren't gonna see much activity on the site. Not on the boards, not in the articles, nowhere.

The poll is a poor marker of site activity. Theres sections like sports, current events, etc. POTD isnt the only active section.

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TyVulpine posted...

The poll is a poor marker of site activity. Theres sections like sports, current events, etc. POTD isnt the only active section.

But it's all one site. And the Poll is on the front page, even. If that can't get numbers up, that's gotta mean the rest of the site is comparatively low in numbers too.

FrothySolutions posted...

But it's all one site. And the Poll is on the front page, even. If that can't get numbers up, that's gotta mean the rest of the site is comparatively low in numbers too.

But you're also assuming everyone goes to the front page. But there are probably a bunch that don't even see the front page most days... Or that they care when they see the poll... Or that they don't think it's spam or a pop up or something...
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I wouldnt go by polls. I never vote in em.

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I came back kinda sorta because social media is a dumpster fire

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FrothySolutions posted...

But it's all one site. And the Poll is on the front page, even. If that can't get numbers up, that's gotta mean the rest of the site is comparatively low in numbers too.

Nope. Polls arent indicative of user numbers. Look at the social forums like Current Events, all the various sport sections, etc. and badges, which are more telling than the polls.

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It will just be like a thousand users.

But in actuality it will just be one dude with more alts than he can keep track of at one time, arguing and trolling himself.

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FrothySolutions posted...

I'm not the only one who compares voter turnout in the polls to see how active GameFAQs is. And "Do you look at the results of the Poll of the Day before you vote?" is a good poll to gauge with.

The only problem is that it's a terrible, inaccurate metric and a weirdly random poll to pick.

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LinkPizza posted...

But you're also assuming everyone goes to the front page. But there are probably a bunch that don't even see the front page most days... Or that they care when they see the poll... Or that they don't think it's spam or a pop up or something...

Not everyone, just like how not everyone votes in the poll. But the front page is where most people go to a website. So it's a reliable metric.

TyVulpine posted...

Nope. Polls arent indicative of user numbers. Look at the social forums like Current Events, all the various sport sections, etc. and badges, which are more telling than the polls.

When the polls go down, so shall those forums go down. Mark my words!

Zeus posted...

The only problem is that it's a terrible, inaccurate metric and a weirdly random poll to pick.

It's not random, it's an example of a poll that repeats itself very frequently, so we can compare them over the years. It's not as easy to compare different polls.

FrothySolutions posted...

Not everyone, just like how not everyone votes in the poll. But the front page is where most people go to a website. So it's a reliable metric.

How do you know that? Or why do you assume that? Do you have any proof that most people do. From what I can see, most people seem to frequent the same boards. And when you use the same boards enough, you computer will usually add those boards to your favorite list, or most frequent board list. Allowing you to hop to those boards without needing to go to the front page at all. Some examples of that would be somewhere like here, CE, the sex board, and probably politics. Some game boards are like that, as well. Like for a while, most of the switch games had most the same group of people for a while. Other people sometimes find the site by searching for something for a specific game. And if they find it, they are usually taken to the board or Faqs page of that specific game game rather than the front page. And, from how many people found this site by doing that, it's not much of a stretch. Not to mention, some people probably don't vote if they think it's spam or pointless, even if they see it. Which some might not if they are coming to the site for something specific. They, there's probably people who ONLY come to this site to vote. There are probably people who can vote multiple times. Anyone with an account can vote before logging in, then vote again after logging in. And anyone with multiple accounts can vote even more than that. And as many people in this topic has already said, a lot of them don't even vote in the poll. You keep saying for x amount of people who vote in the poll, y amount of people don't But you're pulling the numbers out of your ass with no way of even guessing that number. Basically, your whole argument in based on nothing, and you have no actual facts numerical stats to back you up. And it seems that many people who have spoken in this topic have told you how the poll of the day is useless in trying to figure out how many people actual use the site, as it has nothing to do with user count at all. And can be easily manipulated.

FrothySolutions posted...

When the polls go down, so shall those forums go down. Mark my words!

Again, that's just assuming... For all you know, the poll with stop working before the forums shut down. Or people may stop voting in it for whatever reason, but still use the forum. People already have mentioned not voting. Quite a lot, in fact And that's just on our board. Go to the other boards and ask, as well. You probably find quite a lot of people in total who forget, or just don't vote at all...
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LinkPizza posted...

How do you know that? Or why do you assume that? Do you have any proof that most people do. From what I can see, most people seem to frequent the same boards. And when you use the same boards enough, you computer will usually add those boards to your favorite list, or most frequent board list. Allowing you to hop to those boards without needing to go to the front page at all. Some examples of that would be somewhere like here, CE, the sex board, and probably politics. Some game boards are like that, as well. Like for a while, most of the switch games had most the same group of people for a while. Other people sometimes find the site by searching for something for a specific game. And if they find it, they are usually taken to the board or Faqs page of that specific game game rather than the front page. And, from how many people found this site by doing that, it's not much of a stretch. Not to mention, some people probably don't vote if they think it's spam or pointless, even if they see it. Which some might not if they are coming to the site for something specific. They, there's probably people who ONLY come to this site to vote. There are probably people who can vote multiple times. Anyone with an account can vote before logging in, then vote again after logging in. And anyone with multiple accounts can vote even more than that. And as many people in this topic has already said, a lot of them don't even vote in the poll. You keep saying for x amount of people who vote in the poll, y amount of people don't But you're pulling the numbers out of your ass with no way of even guessing that number. Basically, your whole argument in based on nothing, and you have no actual facts numerical stats to back you up. And it seems that many people who have spoken in this topic have told you how the poll of the day is useless in trying to figure out how many people actual use the site, as it has nothing to do with user count at all. And can be easily manipulated.

I know this from looking at other site activity metrics. "Front page hits" are a metric use to gauge site activity. So the front page matters.

LinkPizza posted...

Again, that's just assuming... For all you know, the poll with stop working before the forums shut down. Or people may stop voting in it for whatever reason, but still use the forum. People already have mentioned not voting. Quite a lot, in fact And that's just on our board. Go to the other boards and ask, as well. You probably find quite a lot of people in total who forget, or just don't vote at all...

If the polls shut down, then unfortunately I don't have poll results to compare to forum activity. But as long as I do, that's the metric I wanna use.

And a handful of people on this board or that board doesn't speak for the majority of site users. Or even the majority of board users. There's still just under a couple thousand people who use the boards. If I was to go asking, I'd get maybe 10 people per board to respond. Not reliable enough.

Also, again, I'm not saying zero votes in the poll means zero people use the site. There's likely a small, silent minority of people still using the site and posting on the boards, but it would be much, MUCH smaller than it is today.

FrothySolutions posted...

I know this from looking at other site activity metrics. "Front page hits" are a metric use to gauge site activity. So the front page matters.

Not really. When I first found this site, I found it using google searching for a specific game. Even these days, when I look up a question on google, it'll take me to a specific topic on game boards for an answer. Other people have said they found this site when looking for specific questions on games, as well. And probably have similar stories. And if they are telling the truth, then the first time they used the site, they probably didn't even see the front page. Front page hits don't matter unless you know the percentage of players seeing the front page instead of going directly to a board. Not to mention the people who frequent certain boards. Those boards will sometimes be a frequent site Meaning when they click on it, it will take them to a specific board rather than the front page. The front IS NOT a good metric to gauge site activity.

FrothySolutions posted...

If the polls shut down, then unfortunately I don't have poll results to compare to forum activity. But as long as I do, that's the metric I wanna use.

And a handful of people on this board or that board doesn't speak for the majority of site users. Or even the majority of board users. There's still just under a couple thousand people who use the boards. If I was to go asking, I'd get maybe 10 people per board to respond. Not reliable enough.

Also, again, I'm not saying zero votes in the poll means zero people use the site. There's likely a small, silent minority of people still using the site and posting on the boards, but it would be much, MUCH smaller than it is today.

I mean, if you want to use that metric, go ahead. Just know that your data will be not be correct. Or even close to it. There are better ways to actually account for the number of people on this site. And the poll is a bad one. So, if you like having the wrong information, go ahead, I guess. I just know most people like having correct info, so I was trying to help. I can see you'd rather decline help and facts, even though most people here have even told you about others ways to find info. I'm sure if you go to other boards, you will find that more people that you guesstimates don't even vote in the polls. Not even counting the lurking who don't vote, but won't say anything, as well...

And it's not really handful. Many people don't. If you have even been listening, most people in this very topic don't vote regularly. TBH, if you really thought about the facts, the fact that barely anyone in this topic has said that vote regularly shows that the majority of the board probably doesn't. A handful or people don't speak for the whole board, but the only people actually speaking seem to disagree with you.

It'll get much smaller either way. But that doesn't mean the poll results matter. Especially with people having alts. People can skew results doing that. As others have said, the poll results don't matter. But I guess you care less about facts, and more about making baseless arguments and assumptions...
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I don't remember a recent time I had a good jrpg that I used a gamefaqs guide for. Content is relegated to DLC and stuff's so streamlined nowadays.

Whenever I do need a guide, it's probably a wiki site for some gacha game that I'm translating through google.

LinkPizza posted...

Not really. When I first found this site, I found it using google searching for a specific game. Even these days, when I look up a question on google, it'll take me to a specific topic on game boards for an answer. Other people have said they found this site when looking for specific questions on games, as well. And probably have similar stories. And if they are telling the truth, then the first time they used the site, they probably didn't even see the front page. Front page hits don't matter unless you know the percentage of players seeing the front page instead of going directly to a board. Not to mention the people who frequent certain boards. Those boards will sometimes be a frequent site Meaning when they click on it, it will take them to a specific board rather than the front page. The front IS NOT a good metric to gauge site activity.

You're cherrypicking individual members here and there. Front page metrics are used for a variety of sites. Including sites that people find on search engines. That's not me assuming out of the blue that front page metrics are good, these are industry standards that are saying front page metrics are good.

LinkPizza posted...

I mean, if you want to use that metric, go ahead. Just know that your data will be not be correct. Or even close to it. There are better ways to actually account for the number of people on this site. And the poll is a bad one. So, if you like having the wrong information, go ahead, I guess. I just know most people like having correct info, so I was trying to help. I can see you'd rather decline help and facts, even though most people here have even told you about others ways to find info. I'm sure if you go to other boards, you will find that more people that you guesstimates don't even vote in the polls. Not even counting the lurking who don't vote, but won't say anything, as well...

And it's not really handful. Many people don't. If you have even been listening, most people in this very topic don't vote regularly. TBH, if you really thought about the facts, the fact that barely anyone in this topic has said that vote regularly shows that the majority of the board probably doesn't. A handful or people don't speak for the whole board, but the only people actually speaking seem to disagree with you.

It'll get much smaller either way. But that doesn't mean the poll results matter. Especially with people having alts. People can skew results doing that. As others have said, the poll results don't matter. But I guess you care less about facts, and more about making baseless arguments and assumptions...

This thread? This thread is not an example of any amount of people that could sway the overall site activity. This thread is specifically the kind of inconsequential "handful" I'm talking about. Even if every person in this thread skipped the poll, it wouldn't come to a fraction of enough.

And what else could overall site usage decline mean but that... overall site usage is in decline? I'm saying "When the poll goes down, we'll see that board usage will go down, and so will everything else." And you're agreeing with that, but somehow saying I'm wrong?

I dont vote or post everyday and this is the site I use almost daily.

FrothySolutions posted...

You're cherrypicking individual members here and there. Front page metrics are used for a variety of sites. Including sites that people find on search engines. That's not me assuming out of the blue that front page metrics are good, these are industry standards that are saying front page metrics are good.

It's still assuming, though. Especially with a site like this. People can easily, and probably easily, bypass the front page. Especially the regulars who go to specific boards. Also, going to the front page doesn't mean they voted, or even saw, the poll. Or cared about it. If someone did go to the front page to go to a specific game, they might not even care about the poll...

FrothySolutions posted...

This thread? This thread is not an example of any amount of people that could sway the overall site activity. This thread is specifically the kind of inconsequential "handful" I'm talking about. Even if every person in this thread skipped the poll, it wouldn't come to a fraction of enough.

And what else could overall site usage decline mean but that... overall site usage is in decline? I'm saying "When the poll goes down, we'll see that board usage will go down, and so will everything else." And you're agreeing with that, but somehow saying I'm wrong?

It's not. But in the handful of people, which are most regulars here, not many have said they vote in the poll regularly. Even the ones who said they vote say they often forget. It's a small sample. But do you have a better sample to say people do vote in the poll almost everyday. The only sample is right here. You could try other boards like CE, the sex board, and politics to see how any vote in the poll consistently, as well. You're not restricted to this board...

Except those two things don't necessarily go together. The number of people voting in the poll can go down without the number of users going down. Just like the number of users can go down without affecting poll numbers. Those two things can be connected, but it doesn't mean they are... Nor is it a good metric to estimate site usage. You could probably ask a mod for more info on that if you want it to be correct...
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LinkPizza posted...

It's still assuming, though. Especially with a site like this. People can easily, and probably easily, bypass the front page. Especially the regulars who go to specific boards. Also, going to the front page doesn't mean they voted, or even saw, the poll. Or cared about it. If someone did go to the front page to go to a specific game, they might not even care about the poll...

It's not. But in the handful of people, which are most regulars here, not many have said they vote in the poll regularly. Even the ones who said they vote say they often forget. It's a small sample. But do you have a better sample to say people do vote in the poll almost everyday. The only sample is right here. You could try other boards like CE, the sex board, and politics to see how any vote in the poll consistently, as well. You're not restricted to this board...

Except those two things don't necessarily go together. The number of people voting in the poll can go down without the number of users going down. Just like the number of users can go down without affecting poll numbers. Those two things can be connected, but it doesn't mean they are... Nor is it a good metric to estimate site usage. You could probably ask a mod for more info on that if you want it to be correct...

But if everything is going down, the board activity, the poll results, everything, that means overall site usage is down. That's how site activity is measured. Not just for GameFAQs, but every site.

And I don't need to know who's not voting in the poll, I just need to know that people are voting in the poll. To know that, when people stop voting in the poll, that means less people are around to vote in the poll. A few people per board saying "Well I just skip the poll" doesn't mean everyone who didn't vote skipped the poll. It's just not likely.