For those that don't believe how bumping AGN used to be...

[ctrl-alt-delete]

http://armageddongames.net/showthread.php?50085-Weird-ass-error

Came across that thread. Keep in mind, that's the number of users browsing 1. Single. Forum. GD, and I promise the ZC forums probably had 5 or 6 times that.

:(

[Anarchy_Balsac]

I remember 2007, and it was definitely active at that time. Unfortunately, much of that activity was people like Breaker and Biggiy harassing people for having opinions they didn't like.

[ctrl-alt-delete]

VEL, welcome back, make you feel old?

[VEL]

VEL, welcome back, make you feel old?
Back in my day we didn't have pokemon we had to use nets to catch frogs and butterflies!

[ctrl-alt-delete]

If you go back through the forums, you'll see several other "I'm back" posts from old members including the always elusive eckels. And you're welcome. :-p

[ShadowTiger]

.. and yet, half of us here are somewhat considered to be oldbies as well. There's a lot to miss, but there's also a lot to look forward to, in a sense.

[MasterSwordUltima]

We're lucky to get a post to have half of that many people to have read a post. I think I've been in one thread with two other people lately, and that seemed exciting.

[King Link]

We're lucky to get a post to have half of that many people to have read a post. I think I've been in one thread with two other people lately, and that seemed exciting.

True. Utterly nostalgic, for me. Saw my name in there too.

[mrz84]

Ah, the memories...

[Goriya]

While I haven't been on AGN for that long. (I barely signed up last year.) I was kind of underwhelmed by how little people use AGN nowadays. I was actually expecting the place to be more booming than PureZC, to be perfectly honest. Despite that, who says that it has to stop being very active? Come on guys, let us work to make AGN a super active place again! ^_^

[Ventus]

Man this place really needs the traffic... It makes me sad to see not many people online :(

[bigjoe]

Some of the names in there bring back memories.

MANDRAG GANON - Love this guy. Made the Dark Link quest. Also was known to have the hook ups back when ZQuest was still private.

JayeM - I considered her to be one of my most dear online friends before she disappeared. I would come to chat, she would call me big'un and I would call her old'un. Miss ya, Jaye.

fmehmobile - Would later become theplustwo. Made an interesting post about how to partition a system to dual boot versions of windows, back when ZC was incompatible. All around, a cool guy.

Theres a number of other interesting people there too. I miss the good old days.

[Orithan]

While I haven't been on AGN for that long. (I barely signed up last year.) I was kind of underwhelmed by how little people use AGN nowadays. I was actually expecting the place to be more booming than PureZC, to be perfectly honest. Despite that, who says that it has to stop being very active? Come on guys, let us work to make AGN a super active place again! ^_^

To be honest, I'm not surprised about the little activity it is getting. For a long time, AGN attained a nasty reputation for being hacked and elitism running the place and I would assume that this reputation stands today, even if it is groundless at this point. What we need to do is to continue promoting ourselves as a peaceful, open community and as the home of Zelda Classic in order to get more attention. It won't be easy, but it probably will be worth it.

[King Aquamentus]

I tried that, but I think at the time we were trying to garner in new people, so the constant reminder that "hey we're not *that* place anymore" was a bit unappreciated.

[MasterSwordUltima]

The golden age of internet forums is behind us. However, I feel that there is quite a decline in social media as of late - a good portion of my friends agreed that it's just too saturated and chock full of businesses anymore. Basically a message board in it's own right. Then we lamented how things like forums and AIM are most likely to resurface in the next few years to come.

I, for one, love forums. I still associate it with being a pseudo online rpg, with stats and shit. I've also been a lot more into ZeldaClassic over the past few months, so that helps a lot. But I generally just really enjoy the community here - perhaps even the elitism; not because of ego, because I feel it made the place more intelligent. And without that elitism, we would've turned into 4chan level of maturity a long time ago. That's why stuff like zelda64gld was funny, because it was basically a benny hill scene, or a scooby-doo doors scene.

[King Aquamentus]

I feel like I came into it all too late.

[Mercy]

AGN has had an identity crisis for a number of years now. At its height, it was a social gathering place with a vague, Zelda-fan/classic-game-emu/friends-of-friends theme. At the risk of sounding like a Negative Nelly, ZC will never be the draw it once was. Too much competition for too small of an audience at this point in time. And then there were the waves of spammers that made just checking in to chat with the die-hards too much trouble. Tech' changes also played a part.

Do we really want more traffic? We would need to change the scope of the site a bit. In the past, I have considered asking to bring one of my guilds and towns to AGN. If this is a gaming site, why not expand the scope of the games we discuss? K. is very active in table-top games and has voiced an interest in having an online venue to discuss them. Is anyone else interested in strategy table-top gaming or should AGN just be about video games?

Forums are a dime a dozen and there is crapbook with which to compete for a while longer. Do we want this thread to be a wake or a resurrection?

[CJC]

Do we really want more traffic? We would need to change the scope of the site a bit. In the past, I have considered asking to bring one of my guilds and towns to AGN. If this is a gaming site, why not expand the scope of the games we discuss? K. is very active in table-top games and has voiced an interest in having an online venue to discuss them. Is anyone else interested in strategy table-top gaming or should AGN just be about video games?

Extending the scope of the forum would be amazing. I for one would love to discuss various table-top games without the elitism of canon-lawyers you encounter on their official websites. Such would require transplantation of people from other internet communities, though; I've tried to begin topics related to table-top at AGN and they do nothing but gather virtual dust.

[erm2003]

I think we also have to accept the fact that many of us are now older, in college or finishing up college, starting careers, starting families, and honestly it's just hard to find the same amount of time to be on here and do all the other things in our lives. I was in my first year of grad school when I first found this site back in 2004 and I was just on the tail end of the time when there was major activity on AGN. I just know as time goes on we start to fill our plates so much that we get spread thin. I love coming on here to read the updates that everyone posts and occasionally join in the discussion, but I can't spend the hours I used to sometimes spend working on ZC and chatting with the community. I am sure many others are in similar situations as well.

[MasterSwordUltima]

You guys realize we could basically host online tabletop games via their own threads, right? Sure it's not the same as playing in person, but it's also fun in its own right.

I remember War Lord added that bit of the Arcade Collector's Club stuff in here a few years back. Didn't seem to catch on, but it also seemed a very niche interest. But whatever we do, it definitely needs to be more than purely Zelda Classic.

[Ventus]

I agree with Mercy, maybe the forum needs to expand to support more then Zelda classic users. I can imagine we could have an area for specific games and other stuff. I think that might increase activity a little I don't know... Or maybe that its needs to be reborn as something else you know renamed and completely refocused on a wide scope of games and stuff.

[King Aquamentus]

War Lord had once incorporated a auxilliary emphasis on classic gaming, going so far as to have a section where users could write up reviews of old games. It's probably a bit much to do this, but users could perhaps review games in special forum threads.

Frankly, as far as tabletop gaming, its something I could never get into. I do however know a few people myself who would be interested. If you incorporate it though, it shouldn't take greater prominence than video gaming. :/ AGN just really *needs* more video gaming going on.

How about a steam section or something?

How active is the facebook group? If I were to invite a few people to it, do you think that would work out?

[Mercy]

You guys realize we could basically host online tabletop games via their own threads, right? Sure it's not the same as playing in person, but it's also fun in its own right.
I was thinking along the lines of a sub-forum specifically for table-top game discussion. Treating those threads as random additions to any of the existing sub-forums would be discouraging when table-top gamers had to wade through non-related topics. I would even go so far as to push for a sub-forum for strategy/miniature war games and another for general table-top games of the board and card varieties as their players do not always cross over. Strategy games would be titles such as Dust, ST Attack Wing, SW X-Wing, War Hammer, and such. General table-top games could be anything from Settlers of Catan to Munchkin to Monopoly. With a name like Armageddon Games Network, it seems apropos that we include a place for war games.

After a quick proof-read, I realize I may have misinterpreted MSU's statement. Having threads that are game sessions (the digital version of chess-by-mail?) might work. Pondering logistics, I am already building a die result generator in my head, although I am not sure how much interest such threads would actually draw.

Meh, just brain-storming in text. I can always go back to boring everyone with more pictures of my potager efforts and cooking threads.

[ShadowTiger]

I for one really have absolutely no problem creating a new forum for something. There is a very bizarre philosophy constantly at work where the fewer forums you have, the more discussions tend to filter into them, making them "popular," but the more forums there are, the more reminders there are of what possible discussions that could be happening, despite that those individual forums won't contain as many threads. That's fine by me, really. It's very organizational.

So if anyone is really against having a ton of categories containing a ton of forums, but each one of them doesn't have nearly as much to discuss within it, well, I suppose there's some sort of political party for that now and then here. :p

[MasterSwordUltima]

Would it hurt to add more? I doubt it. We had a shit ton before.

Serious question here: what exactly was the point of the Order of the Phoenix and Church of Eckels sub-forums? I never understood those two in particular.

[Gleeok]

Forums just have a tendency to get pruned during long periods of inactivity; you're probably right about it being an organizational thing ST, as well as to decrease clutter and keep the forum tree size relative to active members I suppose.

I see no reason why we couldn't create new ones though. If someone wants to come up with a name and volunteer to moderate it.

[Mercy]

Serious question here: what exactly was the point of the Order of the Phoenix and Church of Eckels sub-forums? I never understood those two in particular.
OotP was an attempt to give the troublemakers their own forum to "rule" and stop trashing up the rest of AGN with petty, attention-whoring crap. Church of Eckels was a concession to keeping Eckels around the forums. And 'cause all the cool kids lubbed our Eckels.

I or K. would be willing to moderate the table-top forums if we go that route.

[ShadowTiger]

We really need to make that happen. I mean we really, really do just need to get together with one another and decide on what we'd like to do. Any and all ideas, just toss 'em out there. I think I'll start a new thread.

[MasterSwordUltima]

Just name it "The Tabletop". Or if the rules state that it must be a zinger, name it something like "New Game+" or something.

[Mercy]

I still think, based on personal experience with various genres of table-top gamers, two sub-forums for said games would be most amiable. Possibly a third for creative aspects if the traffic warrants it but that bridge is not even on the map yet.

I like Analogue Games as a title for general board games. ("Games to play when the electricity goes out." as the descriptor, maybe?) Something like Kriegspiele or Kriegtisch (war-games and war-table, respectively) sound feisty enough for the miniature general types. Heh, or Miniature Generals*, even. Table-top Warriors? ("Bring your die and thin your paints." for descriptor? If you don't get the references, I envy you)

I am actually waiting for Kendachi to get home from AD&D night to pick his brain for suggestions. The only table-top game I have been playing lately is Arkham Horror but he and his gaming group play quite a few.


*this would probably get me some stern words and dirty looks at home but it makes me snicker so I'm leaving it.

[ShadowTiger]

"Analogue Games" is likely a bit too complicated for my simple mind. It reminds me very heavily of classic arcade machine style games with that directional stick. Considering that Warlord is a big fan of those, and we had a subforum or something for that, it might be a bit confusing. Maybe it's just me.


Miniature Generals*

*this would probably get me some stern words and dirty looks at home but it makes me snicker so I'm leaving it. You know, I thought there were more than one reasons why I liked that as I read it. It gets my vote. :P

[Mercy]

Last thoughts and I am out for the night. DIYODS for a do-it-your-own-damn-self forum. We do like our acronyms around these parts. Or Bootstraps & Power Tools.

[Aegix Drakan]

0_o AGN is still alive?!

Holy cow, I thought this place ceased to exist years ago!

Back when I was in my first run of Cegep/Canadian College about...God, 5-6 years ago, this place was booming. I was on here non-stop all day when I had the chance.

[MasterSwordUltima]

Well now that you're back, answer the poll cool guy.

[Aegix Drakan]

Well now that you're back, answer the poll cool guy.

Poll? What poll?

......*looks through forums*

Oh, th new forums one? Sure. *clickety*

[Gleeok]

We could call it "The Turtle Club".

[Tom]

Bumping? I joined this forum when I was 12... back then you could create the username Tom without it saying "this user already exists" ahh memories......

[Ganonator]

Bumping? I joined this forum when I was 12... back then you could create the username Tom without it saying "this user already exists" ahh memories......
The good ol' days.