The Weekender XLBS Backstagers Call to Arms
March 30, 2013 by dracs
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I think that getting rid of the thumbs down is a very good idea. The thing that people must remember is that the trolls looking for the fame for their post will need us to rise up and comment on their goads. With out the thumbs down the only joy they get is getting into a post war so we must try not to fall into the trap. On another note. I have been a lurker in the hobby forums for a few years since my best friend and gaming partner died. I have not painted and done any gaming… Read more »
Thank you for joining the site, and a big thank you for contributing. 🙂
Hopefully you have a great return to the hobby.
BTW the Mountain king is just awesome!
Heh I was waiting for a give away for this bad boy. Probably THE most gorgeous model PP have done and overall to be honest. With the economic times I’m sadly about to “celebrate” my 2nd Anniversary of unemployment. However due to this I’ve decided to start a small painting commission service for my locals and I would love to get this model to add to my portfolio, however I am too skint to get a nearly £100 model even if it is more of an investment. So winning would be awesome but if I don’t I hope the winner… Read more »
Apart from sending a message for a chance of a gimme. I can see your point on the hating potential towards companies effecting the game. I’ve heard a LOT of hate for GW. I stopped GW simply because where I am, I am the lone gamer. I can’t get my small group of mates to game and a game as big as Warhammer/40K simply doesn’t appeal to them. Their models always make me WANT to come back, but I can’t so all I can do is window shop and wipe up the drool once I’m done. It sucks their choices… Read more »
Its a difficult one. I think with the goings on over the last week or so the fallout of miniwargaming ceasing shop trading meant it was something that was bound to cause a bit of a backlash, and I dont think when something of that magnitude happens its something you can ignore. In general though, I can’t say I’ve noticed a real negative trend on GW stuff, although I havent really liked recent the releases so perhaps I’m just not seeing it because I am not bothered if people say bad stuff about it. (I do like some of the… Read more »
I tried on various occasion to (gently) tell poeple that they weren’t forced into buying GW stuff but that they were bringing negativity to a place dedicated to poeple actually liking the games… I got lynched everytime so, now, I only avoid topics with names like: «To arms! GW no more!»
I can’t say I like the way they act but I really like 40k. I like the orks and I like converting and painting their models.
I would first of all like to say thank you for all the cool stuff you guys do. I can honestly say, hand on heart if it wasnt for BoW I wouldnt be playing warpath, infinity and incursion. How about only have a like, but also the option to ‘hide’ someones comments? if there is someone who constantly posts negative posts you could just not view what they are saying? And heck, if nothing else this post could be my ‘ermagerd I have entered every compo for the past 2 and a half years and I want a prize’ thanks… Read more »
Really thought-provoking episode and some difficult questions to answer. Taking the removal of “thumbs down” first as it’s the easiest to deal with. I’m in agreement, get rid of it. If someone it being a troll then a thumbs down is only going to encourage. If they’re not and are just making a geniune point that others may disagree with then I can’t see what a thumbs down adds to the dialogue. As for the rest, it seems as if there are two questions being raised. Firstly, should BoW attempt to clamp down on certain discussions (whatever they might be),… Read more »
It seems I can’t edit the above post so mu apologies for the typos.
i hope that wasn’t intentional but i couldn’t help but laugh 🙂 you raise a lot of good points and i agree with them and think the way of dealing with it is good, allow people who want to discuss it do so in there own area where you can venture if you wish or avoid if you dont
*big thumbs up*
I’m gonna go ahead and say I did that on purpose 😉
Forgot to mention the spot prizes thing. I think it’s a good idea though one which is a little risky. A scheme like this can’t help but be subjective which means it runs the risk of coming across as arbitrary or unfair (even if it’s not).
And one more thing, gief me moutain king plz 🙂
I almost forgot the spot prizes. Thanks for reminding me 😉
I like the idea and just so it doesn’t come off as looking somewhat subjective they should just give them all too me. Don’t stone me if by some chance I do get them all 😛 What the tarnation am I saying. My wife needs a timer on the computer so it stops me from over posting. @redben if you do get the M. King send me a photo as this is one sick model!
I’m new to BoW and new to back stage, I feel that taking away the thumbs down is a good idea as drumhell3r said. I feel that each game system and expansion that you guys review you give a fair and honest review and generally there is minimal discussion about the way the company acts unless it’s to do with other products they are due to release soon. I watched the interviews you did with the designer and found them very very interesting and hope to see more of them as it gives you a chance to see it from… Read more »
In any hobby, I think the community chatter is like the wife always going on about everything. It’s when she stops talking that you had better be worried. ;o)
In any business area, the dissatisfied customers will always be more vocal, whereas the happy customers are usually much more silent.
If there was a company forum for each of the bigger companies for business side of discussions and everyone tries to keep that discussion out of the game forums that could make the difference.
this is not a bad idea
to be honest I’ve seen the thumbs but mainly ignored them the idea of censoring someone because I don’t agree with their post or views is not for the best as you’ll end up with people that reinforce the one thought and other valid ways of looking at ideas will be quashed.
theirs been studys where people watched tv programs and the only watched ones their views creating a closed loop , everybody thinks like I do as that’s all I see .
if you want to keep thumbs up to show that view is appreciated that would be best.
I agree with you.
I, myself, never give negative ratings. I only rate positively when I like a post.
Having only come to the Beast of Wars and Backstage community in the last couple of weeks I can’t really comment on how the forums and comments are for negativity. However I do agree that removing the thumbs down function is a good idea as it puts more emphasis on whether a post is a good constructive post. My suggest links into a few of the things you guys have been batting about on weekenders in the last couple of weeks, and that is rewarding the good members of the community rather than punishing the bad. My idea is that… Read more »
Hi Guys First post on BoW. I like the idea of removing the thumbs down on the site forums. as one of you said if you like a comment then like it if not stay quite. I hate reading rants on forums its just a waste of everyones time, when it can be better spent discussing the hobby at large. Wish I was there gamming. Please can we see more Battle videos. Love the Feasts of Gaming done last week, liked it so much both my friend and I are looking at buying the game and other board games as… Read more »
I like what warren where saying that we are in danger of seeming bitter (and launching in to the same old rants when ever one partigular Nottingham based games companny is in the news) – and BoW have most of the time been in partial
Removing thumbs down seem like a good idea, and maybe a “report post” kinda thing instead even if that is not very good as it will add to the staff/moderators workload
Hmmmm the whole Games Workshop anger and insults has gotten a little tired as far as I can see. I started off in the gaming hobby with Warhammer back when I was alot younger so it will always have a special place in my heart because of this. And a couple of years ago when they put there prices up (again) and other things went on I did find that I got angry about it. But as time has passed I have found it anoys me less and less. Games Workshop are a huge buisness that are run by accountants,… Read more »
I have to say I don’t really use the thumbs down on any forum I frequent so wouldn’t miss it.
I alaso am quite new to BoW BS, so i wouldn’t know all about the neg comments etc. I feel that you can reach more with ampositive mindset then a negative one. So the removal of the thumbs down could be a good thing, because it might be that the person commenting just wants a lot of thumbs down. Reward the positive and ignore the negative, but also everyone has a right to voice his/her opinions. Its what it does with you that what matters. I have a live motto, can i influence events, then do so. Dont talk about… Read more »
“independence is a myth” Damn right, get rid of all this devolution nons… oh you mean for forums/website etc… I think the flaw with the karma system here is that whoever came up with it wasn’t cynical enough to expect it to be abused. I’m a global moderator on an airsoft forum were at one time we had a rep system that not only allowed an up/down vote but also made users give a reason for it, negative reps were given for trivial reasons such as asking how to fit a rail system to replicas the people giving the rep… Read more »
I can see the argument for losing the thumbs down option, but it was handy for marking people who were being trollish; my view is if someones being an idiot, then tell them so. sometimes I can’t be bothered responding with a well constructed response (well I havent posted one to date!), and the thumbs system is a quick indicator. I believe games should be judged on their own merit; the company behind this can provide longevity for the game, so is important in this respect. Companies like GW have been bashed for as long as I can remember and… Read more »
I’m very new to BoW and BS and I never really pay attention to the thumbs up or down. The other forums I frequent don’t use them so I have no issues with them being removed.
Being totally honest it does bug me a bit hearing the negative aspects on things as much as I do… I think the way that you guys express things in the videos are more balanced than the community of a whole and I don’t mind that…
on the other hand I just chose not to read the forums that appear about certain companies etc as I am not interested… companies always do good and bad as long as I like the current product I am using then i am just interested in that.
I’d happily see thumbs down go as I really do believe if you don’t like something then just don’t take it on and ignore it… I know we are all guilty of not doing from time to time but maybe that suggestion would help promote that (Double post as couldn’t edit in to my original one sorry 🙂 )
An interesting episode – despite not being what I initially would have wanted from Backstage. There is A LOT of anger out there for GW at the moment – and some of it is justifiable frustration (I feel) rather than just vitriolic nonsense. Gamers invest a lot of time, energy and cash in their hobby. Part of being in the community is a sense of on-going involvement: we want to be able to buy the new models and army books and be part of a living, breathing, growing universe. As soon as someone prices you out of the market, you… Read more »
You’re right, dude. Everybody can have his two-minutes-of-fame thanks to the Internet. It can be a positive experience and it can be used in a bad way, as anything else.
But, what the internet brings is also diversity… You can choose the information you’re interested in and forget the rest.
GW don’t take rants seriously at all. What they do take seriously is their balance sheet. I used to work for a high street bank who moved a lot of their telephone banking offshore. It generated a large amount of complaints but very very few people switched to another bank because of it. As a result the bank were very happy to trade off the complaints for the increased profit.
While I agree with you insofar that some people have gone over the top with their anger, I would like to point out that it wasn’t always so. What we’re seeing now, I feel, is simply a lot of pent up anger, brought on by years of abuse (for lack of better word) by Games Workshop. The first price-hike wasn’t that bad. The second was annoying. The third hurt. The fourth killed the local community… And throughout all that time, more than a decade by now, it has been all but impossible to get Games Workshop to engage in a… Read more »
One thing you could try is to make the whole karma system private. I’ve never been a moderator but I’ve used enough forums in my time. I find any sort of visible ranking will encourage some users to take their reputation a bit too seriously – so they’ll start to view other users as rivals/allies and will downvote/upvote accordingly. That said, the users of this site are among the more mature I’ve come across since coming back to the hobby. This is especially noteworthy when you consider we’re all talking about games with toy soldiers. There are some sites out… Read more »
There is a disconnect between game companies and their fans but I don’t ever see that changing to a degree where our voice can reach their ears. It will always be the negative comments that reach these companies but that is human nature. From my experience working retail you tend to find out that the 90% of the comments are negative but only come from 10% of the people you deal with. That also ties in to the subject of commenters on forums; something someone posts will be seen by many, commented by few, and on the random occasion tick… Read more »
I personally feel that people who comment on this site, and in many ways other war gaming sites, are some of the more mature people on the whole internet. Go onto almost any video game website, and the forums often contain “{insert company name, e.g. EA} sucks, if you buy their games, you are the DEVIL!!!” comments by the bucket load, which I have never seen any example of on this web site. People seem to respect that, while a company may make decisions they disagree with, you can still enjoy the games. As others have said, it mainly arises… Read more »
The only thing I have against the thumbs down is when someone makes a valid statement that may not be the same opinion as others they can sometimes get negged for it. For some reason I find that annoying so I generally give them a thumbs up to get rid of it, apart from that when someone just gets needlessly abusive and the community gives them the thumbs down. I’ve no problem with that. On the whole though I think the over whelming majority of posters on this site are very friendly. There is a lot good humour and some… Read more »
The removal of the thumbs down seem to be popular, and I agree with the points already made on this regard. As to the negativity issue regarding companies and all that, I do not think that can be avoided on a free space that focuses on the hobby. Maybe you could create specific parts on the forums for this kind of discussion, so that people interested strictly on hobby discussions can avoid the negativity. As a brazilian wargamer and backstager, I find that having a place to complain and to know the negative sides of the hobby industry can also… Read more »