G&T Suggestion Threads

ronzo

Would it be possible to get some sort of master sticky of good games for each system? We usually get at least 1-2 daily for some system and you get the same people coming in suggesting the same games with only one new entry here and there. These threads are barely better than poll thread (some really are poll threads in my opinion), and they usually fall off the first few pages in a day so a new person has to make a new thread.

And before anyone says it, yes there are threads in AFK, ones that are pretty fucking ancient.

Drez

ronzo wrote: »

Would it be possible to get some sort of master sticky of good games for each system? We usually get at least 1-2 daily for some system and you get the same people coming in suggesting the same games with only one new entry here and there. These threads are barely better than poll thread (some really are poll threads in my opinion), and they usually fall off the first few pages in a day so a new person has to make a new thread.

And before anyone says it, yes there are threads in AFK, ones that are pretty fucking ancient.

The thing is, people aren't really just asking for a list nor are they asking for a canned list of synopses. Usually people make that thread because they are enthusiastically looking for a discussion on what to play.

So, while a sticky with a list of good games or voted-on titles might work to alleviate such threads, the question is whether or not that would really be beneficial to G&T. I mean, it IS a forum and not really an information repository like Wikipedia.

I see this both ways, but I think there's very little harm in just allowing the "what's good?" threads.

Mr_Rose

How about a sticky'd thread with a simple list of recommended games in the first post, with all the "lively debate" ongoing in the rest of the thread?

Of course, the other problem is how many threads this would generate...
You only need one to cover both the DS and the GBA, but do you then want one per console for the other five systems (PSP, PS2, PS3, 360/oXBox, Wii/GC/VC)?

darleysam

it would either seem to need a whole load of stickied threads, which would look a mess, or need to confine all relevant discussion for a whole bunch of platforms into a single thread, neither of which seem like a desirable solution. There do occasionally seem to be a lot of threads all asking the same thing, but i guess it's down to mod discretion to decide what's necessary and what's repeated. And it's not like people can only look at the front page.

Mr_Rose

darleysam wrote: »

And it's not like people can only look at the front page.

The way some people post, you'd think they couldn't look at as much as the first five thread titles...much less the stickies at the top. Actually, that's the best reason for not stickifying the recommendation threads; people will ignore them and post their own threads anyway, because they're special.

deadonthestreet

What's the problem with people making threads? Is there a limit on the number of threads that can be made each day? Had they not posted these threads, would people have made better threads instead?

No. Let people talk about what they want to talk about. If you don't like it don't read it. This isn't hurting you. Why fix what isn't broken?

Lindsay Lohan

I'll agree we do get too many "Hey, just got a DS, what should I get" threads. The catch is that if you do a stickied thread it will become a megathread which were elimated awhile ago and they don't seem to want to revisit the idea of bringing them back, despite the fact that the community has noticeably suffered since their removal.

Tube

oh shut up

cj iwakura

This is definitely bringing back the old reason why the megathreads were wiped out in the first place. If a new user just got a GBA or DS and wants to get feedback on what to get, he can make a thread and get feedback/discussion.

Besides, I'm sure most of us love the opportunity to shill our favorite games in that category every week or so.

ronzo

cj iwakura wrote: »

This is definitely bringing back the old reason why the megathreads were wiped out in the first place. If a new user just got a GBA or DS and wants to get feedback on what to get, he can make a thread and get feedback/discussion.

Besides, I'm sure most of us love the opportunity to shill our favorite games in that category every week or so.

Well, to be honest, its really only the ds and psp that get multiple threads per day/week, and everyone of those threads follows the same pattern. the ps2/gamecube/xbox threads usually are varied enough in content and they dont come up quite so often.

LewieP

I have created "suggestion" threads in the past, but with very specific requirements, iirc it was "3/4 player Xbox games that arent FPS/Sports games, and I won't already have on Gamecube"

Suggestion threads are fine by me if there is more to them that "Quote metacritic top 50 + hidden gems for a system kthanxbye"

TxdoHawk

cj iwakura wrote: »

This is definitely bringing back the old reason why the megathreads were wiped out in the first place. If a new user just got a GBA or DS and wants to get feedback on what to get, he can make a thread and get feedback/discussion.

Alternatively, they could just all post in the appropriate megathread, which eliminates clutter. This wasn't really the reason why they were taken away, it was more about the cliques, and the retards who couldn't help but walk into a megathread and start a console flame war*.

* - This is my understanding, at least. I never saw official word on why they were eliminated.

The_Scarab

Megathreads served no purpose and discussion is much more interesting without them.

If you want a rough guide to what games to buy go to metacritic or something. The bias on message boards of any kind would probably make a 'PA reccommends' kind of sticky pointless.

Gihgehls

Shouldn't all the threads wherein the OP asks for advice be put in the Help and Advice subforum?

Raijin Quickfoot

We've tried to build a giant website for G&T game suggestions but it died a long time ago. There is no really good way of doing it so just having a thread periodically works best.

Gihgehls

Advice on girls, advice on booze, advice on life, advice on which games to buy... Is there a reason all of these don't belong in H/A? Not trying to troll, just wondering what the reasoning is. Would they overwhelm H/A?

Tube

just because we have an advice forum doesn't mean ALL advice has to go in it

just because we have a debate forum doesn't mean that we can't debate in G&T or SE

etc

Jasconius

I think if Game/Platform specific threads were divided from generic gaming/technology discussion and debate topics, it would make things more usable.

Some people only go to G&T to participate in focused discussion on a particular title or platform.

Some other people use G&T as a forum for general debate about industry topics that exceed gaming and go into general multimedia technology topics.


G&T has enough volume of each to warrant separate entities.

Separating them will do two things.

1) Reduce the quantity of active topics in a particular board, which is currently exceeding two pages in G&T, where the "front page" time of an active thread can be less than a matter of hours. Meaning if I post in an active thread it will be off the front page four hours later, which in itself is a thread killer and prompts people to make new, redundant threads.

2) Allow people who are not interested in generic and non-gaming related discussion to simply bypass the multitude of topics that exist in this category.

You can call it a [Game On] if you want to, but I think that is a little too specific. I put forth that just because it didn't work in the past doesn't mean it cannot work in the future. We have new platforms and members
to support this concept than we did in times past.

FunkyWaltDogg

G&T is just fine as it is.

Screampunk

FunkyWaltDogg wrote: »

G&T is just fine as it is.

Seconded.

Tube

thirded

darleysam

Cardboard Tube wrote: »

thirded

psh, what would you know




don't flay me

ronzo

I think this thread is done.

Tube, if you would.

Orikaeshigitae

i dunno i kinda want to talk about it some more

jothki

Orikaeshigitae wrote: »

i dunno i kinda want to talk about it some more

Yeah, discussion builds community even if it doesn't actually accomplish anything.

Irredeemably Indecisive

The only thing I think could use a discussion is of a new sub-forum for all those Lets Play threads. Nearly half of the first page are those threads.

Jasconius

Unfortunately that's been shot down.

The only practical ideas that could legitimately improve the quality of G&T have already been shot down.

So.

You know.

I guess we'll just wait for the forums to completely crash again for some reform, like the great flood or some shit. That seems to be the big catalyst for change here.

No disrespect to Alpha and Ramius, I know what those guys go through to get this place running. But we have other admins for a reason, or do we?

darleysam

since we don't have access to the mod forums, we obviously don't know what's being discussed or whatever, but it's probably safe to assume that if these changes haven't been implemented (and they've been suggested many times before, and shot down), then there's probably a good reason. Honestly, i'm really not bothered by it, it's not that big of a problem. I doubt another forum crash (which we don't want) would encourage action on this part.

Me Too!

Jasconius wrote: »

Unfortunately that's been shot down.

The only practical ideas that could legitimately improve the quality of G&T have already been shot down.

So.

You know.

I guess we'll just wait for the forums to completely crash again for some reform, like the great flood or some shit. That seems to be the big catalyst for change here.

No disrespect to Alpha and Ramius, I know what those guys go through to get this place running. But we have other admins for a reason, or do we?

Uh, Tube's the only other admin right now, and we all know how he feels about giving G&T their shit back.

Drez

Jasconius wrote: »

Unfortunately that's been shot down.

The only practical ideas that could legitimately improve the quality of G&T have already been shot down.

So.

You know.

I guess we'll just wait for the forums to completely crash again for some reform, like the great flood or some shit. That seems to be the big catalyst for change here.

No disrespect to Alpha and Ramius, I know what those guys go through to get this place running. But we have other admins for a reason, or do we?

This idea is not one that will "legitimately improve" G&T, sorry, and neither would a reincarnation of the [chat] threads or any of the other shit that keeps getting thrown here.

I'll not say what I think the real solution would be because it might come off as trolling. But...structural reform can only go so far. A forum is mostly defined by its community. The fact that G&T is rather annoying to post in has nothing at all to do with there being no [chat] thread or there being Let's Play threads all over the place or for people coming in asking "wut gamez should i get???" all the time. Nothing at all.

Pheezer

Jasconius wrote: »

Unfortunately that's been shot down.

The only practical ideas that could legitimately improve the quality of G&T have already been shot down.

Because they're terrible ideas. Just because they're the only things suggested so far doesn't mean they're good ideas or things to be pursued.

Jasconius

Why is breaking G&T into two obviously distinct sub genres a bad idea?

Tube

Basically, just go ahead and assume that if you act like a massive fucking tool I'm not going to even bother reading your idea based on the assumption that massive fucking tools rarely have good ideas.

Cyclone

What G&T needs is less back-seat admining.

Really, you could substitute any of the sub-forums for "G&T" in that statement.

The Muffin Man

Cardboard Tube wrote: »

Basically, just go ahead and assume that if you act like a massive fucking tool I'm not going to even bother reading your idea based on the assumption that massive fucking tools rarely have good ideas.

Do we get a definition or a list of people you see as massive fucking tools?
Or are we just going to have to wait till an idea comes up that you don't want to bother explaining why it's bad, and become massive fucking tools?

Tube

Just don't be a fucking tool while posting the idea

I don't want to read anyone's "GOD MY IDEA IS SO GREAT THE ADMINISTRATION ARE OBVIOUSLY STUPID" blah blah bullshit. Post your idea, I'll read it, take it onboard, maybe it'll happen one day. Maybe not. If you're that fucking caught up with it, make your own damn forums.

Also I am under no obligation to "bother explaining" anything about why I do or do not immediately act on every dumb fucking thing some backseat admin posts in this forum. I get quite enough entitled crybabies in here already.

Just_Bri_Thanks

This sub-forum especially is Tube's house. Don't piss in his tea.

Thanatos

Jasconius wrote: »

I think if Game/Platform specific threads were divided from generic gaming/technology discussion and debate topics, it would make things more usable.

Some people only go to G&T to participate in focused discussion on a particular title or platform.

Some other people use G&T as a forum for general debate about industry topics that exceed gaming and go into general multimedia technology topics.


G&T has enough volume of each to warrant separate entities.

Separating them will do two things.

1) Reduce the quantity of active topics in a particular board, which is currently exceeding two pages in G&T, where the "front page" time of an active thread can be less than a matter of hours. Meaning if I post in an active thread it will be off the front page four hours later, which in itself is a thread killer and prompts people to make new, redundant threads.

2) Allow people who are not interested in generic and non-gaming related discussion to simply bypass the multitude of topics that exist in this category.

You can call it a [Game On] if you want to, but I think that is a little too specific. I put forth that just because it didn't work in the past doesn't mean it cannot work in the future. We have new platforms and members
to support this concept than we did in times past.

Here's why:

You split it up into a [Game On] subforum and a discussion subforum you've got one set of threads which talk about the same games that the other set of threads is talking about playing. Currently, [Game On] threads are combination discussion/play threads; splitting that up just makes more threads, talking about the same things, in the same ways, repeating all the same points, only now it's split across two subforums instead of one.

The next time you want to offer up an idea, try not to be such a fucking cocktard about it.

Jasconius

Yeah, I'm aware of what Game On threads are. I did not say a forum for just Game On threads in the nature of the thread only being for the explicit purpose of organizing matches. There is a difference between discussion about a particular game, and a discussion about pretty much anything else that falls into the massive scope of "Game and Technology".

For some reason you've decided to assume that I want a forum just for Game On threads, which, you know, I didn't say, ever, and run with it.

The point was that there is enough discussion about video games both existing and potentially to justify a separate forum from generic industry/technology discussion. The weight of G&T makes some legit thread topics impossible to maintain, which is why we developed a sub forum like Dice where the slow moving yet active threads might have been buried in G&T.

G&T isn't going to get smaller, it's going to continue to expand as PA expands and we will arrive at the point one day where topics are being second page'd in under an hour, and that's the day when people will be like "Shit, we need to split this up somehow."

Inserting words into the peoples mouths and demeaning them in the same paragraph breeds a lot of contempt for authority, so you'll have to just see past the cocktardary.

Thanatos

Jasconius wrote: »

Inserting words into the peoples mouths and demeaning them in the same paragraph breeds a lot of contempt for authority, so you'll have to just see past the cocktardary.

Yes, well, being a cocktard breeds a lot of contempt for you, so you'll just have to see past the authority.

Tube

I scanned your post to see if you acted like a shithead in any part of it, and lo and behold, you did. I didn't read the rest of it, and I'm not going to read anything else you post in this forum. Night.