So, even though my 2,000th post is a pointless milestone, I thought it should be something special. I debated posting more criminal charges against Midoki, and even creating a spread of sexxy modeling pics featuring @Gangrene Beard and @AngryBeard in lingerie, (I WILL do it someday ) but due to all the forum crap as of late, I'm gonna do something different. Lots of people have asked me why I've devoted so much time/energy on this game and forum. Short answer: because it's fun. But it's more than that. I've been posting on various forums for the last 30 years, and our community is different than any I've ever seen. Let me be clear, I don't play many games, nor am I in the habit of visiting the forums for any of them. (Last one I posted on was for Diablo II - in 2002. And my Battle.net account has 1 post). No, there is something different here, and that is the awesome people I've met here and in Tortuga Nest (You're ALL great, but @Shonda La will always be my favorite guild perk ). It's because of these people that I'm still here to post this. If everyone had been a braying jackass, I would've moved on long ago. And if the forum continues trending that way, that's exactly what I'll do. Sadly, the jackass count is increasing, the noise is eclipsing the signal, and the forum's luster is almost gone for me. Over the past 6 months, I've read every thread posted on this site. I've followed all the hype, pushes, rivalries and derailed threads, and there was always an overarching sense of community, friendliness, and support unlike anything I've ever seen. When the occasional troll poked his grubby head up, we ignored them. Why? Because we were too damn busy talking about the awesomeness of Plunder Pirates, speculating about which sexy new features were coming, making new friends, giving good-natured hell to each other, and best of all, posting funny stuff to make people spew drinks on their monitors. When we did have a complaint, it was good-natured, and always gave a respectful nod to the efforts of Team Midoki. We understood there can be no instant gratification here, yet we also knew they wouldn't leave us hanging --and they never did. Not once. Was there drama? Hell yes! It's a game forum! And there are a LOT of asholes here! I'm one of them! But instead of letting every. blanking. thread. devolve into a juvenile, whiny tit-for-tat, we dealt with it, usually by taking the high road, agreeing to disagree, and moving on to something productive. Pick your battles is how we rolled, and that's a skill some people here really need to acquire. Back in the day, all the guilds were supportive and friendly, even as we competed against each other. I can't count how many times I've seen a fellow captain take their time to help someone from another guild, or even offer congrats to that guild for reaching a milestone. When a new guild posted their recruitment thread, members from other guilds welcomed them and wished them luck. This was great, and it still happens, albeit rarely. Why? Because many of those well-wishers were attacked/reported for hijacking the thread --even if all they said was "Congrats and good luck on your new guild!" Apparently, some people don't seem to get that a recruitment thread bump is a gift, any way you look at it. All the recent threads about Midoki ignoring our pleas, who's cheating/gaming the system, etc. are way past their expiration date, and frankly, they're beneath us. It amazes me every time I see a respected forum member take leave of their senses and get sucked into that crap. Most of you are intelligent adults, and I can't understand why you're compelled to waste your valuable plundering time focusing on personal attacks, perpetuating misinformation and complaining ad nauseum about everything, which only serves to obscure the actual issue. I dream of matching these people's islands -not for the loot, but because I want to flatten them for wasting my time with their idiocy. I'll say it again. If you're going to post in a controversial thread, ask yourself these things before you post: Am I giving any new/relevant information which benefits Midoki or my fellow players? Has this information already been posted elsewhere? Am I going to regret posting this tomorrow? Is this post going to piss people off, or create intelligent discussion? Is what I have to say really that [censored] important? WIll this help resolve the situation, or make it worse? Do these things, and the forum benefits. Ignore them, and well...you see what we're left with: Not much. So, all of these issues are part of a discouraging trend. In short: People are taking this game way too seriously. I don't care how many thousands of dollars you've spent on your base, a game is still a game. If you're getting pissed off over anything in Plunder Pirates, you need to take a big step back and consider the possibility that you've crossed the line into absurdity. I get it, some people are hypercompetitive, and we all hate cheaters. That's fine. But the fact remains: It is a game, and if you're not having fun playing (or posting), then you're doing yourself a terrible disservice. And if you repeatedly dump that negativity on your fellow players, then you're doing us a disservice as well. I don't care how you deal with it, go scream and punch a wall, tell Fido he's a Bad Dog, or even kick a trash can until it ceases to exist. Do what you must, but keep it off the damn forum. If someone attacks or trolls you, get over it. Trolls feed off of attention. Want them to go away? Stop freaking arguing with them! A word about Midoki. Three months ago, upon request, I compiled a list of the 5 biggest game issues I felt needed prioritization. These were submitted to a senior staffer at Midoki. Since then, every issue on that list has been resolved, along with many that didn't make the short list. Let me be clear: I'm not saying my list had anything to do with this. I'm saying Midoki was already well-aware of these issues, and were dealing with them. My point? They were resolved amazingly quickly, and in most cases, better and with more surprises than any of us expected. So, the lesson to take away from this: Midoki does a hell of a job, so unless you and a few of your buddies have written a profitable MMO which is being played by 6+ Million people, don't presume to know anything about the challenges or motivations involved in such an undertaking, and for God's sake, keep the conspiracy theories to yourself. Android is coming soon, which should've been an exciting thing. However, instead of seeing tons of posts chatting about the new fresh meat...er...influx of new players, all I see are complaints about how we're screwed (because Android is so damn hackable). Some players have even quit because of this. I don't get it. Why allow something which hasn't even occurred yet to ruin your enjoyment of the game? I also wonder what the Android players will find when they arrive in this forum? The same community that brought all of us in, or the same handful of people still bitching about the (rapidly) growing pile of long-dead horses? We're at a critical moment in this forum's evolution. Had I encountered this mess when I first started playing, my post count would have remained in the single digits. New players will be arriving soon, and just as like us, they'll be looking for info, tips, and friendly guilds. They also need to feel welcomed, not like they've stumbled into the final moments of a bar fight. The forum captains can't do this alone, and personally, this one isn't going to bother as long as our efforts are being negated by idiocy. I realize not everybody will agree with this post, and that's fine with me. What I want people to take away from this is how I'm posting my opinions as thoroughly and clearly as possible, and leaving it at that. I'm not going to attack anyone who disagrees with me, nor am I going to encourage anyone who derails this thread. Should it get closed, I'm not going to re-post the same damn sentiments in yet more threads. End result? I said what I had to say, and anyone who gives a damn will actually be able to find it. So, can we get a maturity/respectfulness reset on this forum, or am I giving people too much credit? I'll leave answering that one up to you guys. Thanks for your time. edit: I don't want likes for this post. Take that sentiment and go post something to help bring the forum back to what it was.
Very well said. Your words give me hope for all who read them and are positively impacted. It is at its base level, a game. The core of it is Midoki making sure that plays as well as it can and we the players play with respect to it and eachother. It really could be fun. This is BILLYBARU , I have the weather gauge and I am setting my glass on you.
Had some bad bean dip, did you? I agree with you, even as I get sucked in the black hole occassionally. I posted a much shorter thead with this similar message. It got trolled . Unfortunately, the only ones that agree are the ones that weren't the problem to begin with. You called me out the other day for a player vs player squabble. Sometimes it's just fun to spank the brat. Unfortunately, there are lots of brats lately. A product of adults and kids and different cultures and ethics interacting in the same environment. I don't see this improving, sadly, except when the hammer is weilded, which I've seen an uptick in lately thanks to @AngryBeard. Trolls are hungry beasts, and most times people find them too cute not to feed them. What has helped me immensely, is the first sight of idiocy, i hit the ignore button. Like the mute button in clash, the world gets brighter. You've contributed greatly to the forum community, to the point of needing to be on the payroll. Hopefully you will stick around and help keep the brats behind their baby gates. If all the good members leave, then this place will trash fast.
Most of us are adults. We can be role models for those younger and less experienced. Civil discourse is the hallmark of good company.
I agree whole heartedly. This is the first game forum I've been involved in since 2008. The community is great and I've enjoyed making friends and building relationships. The devs are amazing and care. Several times they have taken time to deal with small private issue of mine or a friend. I have made friends here that I believe will continue, and that's something special. Well spoken as always @Kelani
I quickly browsed the content as well haha The first word I saw was Diablo II, used to play that A LOT when i was a kid, one of my favorite games ever…
I am sorry, you asked for no likes but I just had to give one, because this is very good for the most part and I hope many take the time to read it! I will add my own thought that ignoring a troll doesn't need to mean censor ourselves, but stop and think before sending it, so as to not just add more fuel to a fire. If it were an E-mail at your job that could be shown to your boss if the recipient didn't like it, would you still send it? My advice is to ask ourselves this question, and if not, take the time to compose your thoughts more tactfully and respectfully (to everyone, because remember many read your posts, not just the person you are addressing). The goal should never be to put down another, even if we disagree with their perspective or way of sharing it, but rather to explain our own perspective in a clear manner. None of are perfect and If a mistake is made edit your post and/or apologize for it afterwards, but best is to not post when you are in an agitated mood. THAT is what encourages more trolling. Type up what you want to type in a text file, save it and sleep on it. Look at it and revise as appropriate with a fresh start later without reading more forum content first which may revert you to an agitated mood. Then post it, if you still feel it is worth posting. The really important thing is to HAVE FUN PLAYING. And posting too. Don't take things too seriously, and remember everyone has different perspectives. If you don't agree with something, it is perfectly okay to say so respectfully, without going off the deep end about it, and move right along. No matter how the game might continue to evolve, we are all playing the same game, constrained by the same factors. It's not the end of the world if an update shifts a balance too much. Annoying bugs will continue to exist because they always do, but they affect us all equally. How the game continues to evolve is mostly up to Midoki. How this forum continues to evolve is mostly up to us, the players.
I think it's ironic that you say people take this game too seriously, yet on your 2000th post you write a wall of text that cries for 5000
Well said, Kelani! You have echoed the same sentiments (absurdity) that I posted previously. Apparently, at that time someone took a disdain on my comments and started to troll so I ignored after making 2 posts.
Thank you, Kelani. This is the first forum I've bothered to actually join because the fun, good people drew me in...and the Developers were actually and active part of the forum! I had a great time until recently... decided to go moot (a blessing, some might feel) but going to give it another shot. Let's try to make it a great place for all the newbies coming in...
I thought that would be a nice way to illustrate what I meant in my huge novel up there. I could have had sooo much fun replying to that post, but...I restrained myself and stuck with the facts
Most of th community is great the psychopath......yes Floki they are nodding at you. I prob would have stopped playing if not for the guild tbh.
Your 2000th post a pointless one...... As you said Yet you manage to write the largest one yet lol Ps stopped after pointless ..... So whats in it lol
Jokes aside... Kel, your input in the last 2000 posts have been mostly helpful and this ones no different. I like to say, THANK YOU!!!!!!! KELANI!!!!! I love this Game and enjoy coming together with likewise peeps! P.S. This is a very helpful Checklist: Got it from ABOVE! Am I giving any new/relevant information which benefits Midoki or my fellow players? Has this information already been posted elsewhere? Am I going to regret posting this tomorrow? Is this post going to piss people off, or create intelligent discussion? Is what I have to say really that [censored] important? WIll this help resolve the situation, or make it worse? MY favorite..WILL THIS HELP?
Really good thread Kelani, if more people thought like you we would have a utopia here. But I must admit it's much better here than a lot of other games, games like Clash is full of most foul mouthed kids you'll ever hear. I know this is a bad thing to say but I hope PP doesn't get the numbers Clash has, get on to World Chat for five minutes & see the abuse some start with. @Reptelan I agree with you 100% but the only problem is most trolls are idiots, they blurt out the first thing that comes into their heads, they couldn't sit on a comment if their life depended on it, there's no way they'd write a comment & sleep on it, things like people coming on to good threads like this & saying "tldr", why comment at all?
