Matrix Games Forums

ORIGINAL: TOMLABEL

ORIGINAL: Timotheus
First,

[:-]
Just look at the flowers, Timmy. Look at the flowers.... Just look at the flowers.....

TOMLABEL

yeah, the flowers...it takes crap to grow flowers...lol.

How ya been brother?

Well, I have found many on the forum to be helpful and willing to provide advice to a new player. I started a few years ago and posted some questions and found the replies to be helpful and friendly.

Yes, some people are cranky and can be a bit rude, but show me an internet forum where you don't have that? This board is far better than most.

Yes sometimes frustrations may flare but most of them are out of enjoyment of the game. Maybe you 100% believe the P-39 is better than the P-40, but on this board the answers for and against are usually backed by some brains, knowledge and great links.

this is one of the best forums I've been on and 98% of the posts and users make it that way.

ORIGINAL: rogueusmc
How ya been brother?

You know it bro - just trying to keep.
Glad to know you still beating bushes! Wish we both had more time here - it would be fun!

Love the quote!

TOMLABEL

The question of what makes or keeps a forum friendly is interesting. It seems, however, that no matter how friendly and welcoming a forum is in our modern world sooner or later trolls happen. I recently read a synopsis of one study that was done on the nature of trolls. Some people were identified and interviewed that frequently troll forums, and their "real lives" were examined as well. Unfortunately the synopsis didn't go into what psychological factors may or may not have led people to become trolls, but the synopsis reported that the study concluded that trolls, in general, are "losers" (their word, not mine) in real life. So, given that trolls happen, the common folk wisdom that has grown up is simply, "don't feed the trolls" in order to keep a discussion on track and friendly, whereas the purpose of trolls is normally to get things off track and argumentative (or worse).

That said, I personally enjoy this forum and treasure the straight, matter-of-fact input from people like Geofflambert and the gentle, patient but precise responses from people like Alfred [;)]

ORIGINAL: jamesjohns

Well, I have found many on the forum to be helpful and willing to provide advice to a new player. I started a few years ago and posted some questions and found the replies to be helpful and friendly.

Yes, some people are cranky and can be a bit rude, but show me an internet forum where you don't have that? This board is far better than most.

Yes sometimes frustrations may flare but most of them are out of enjoyment of the game. Maybe you 100% believe the P-39 is better than the P-40, but on this board the answers for and against are usually backed by some brains, knowledge and great links.

this is one of the best forums I've been on and 98% of the posts and users make it that way.

Yeah, but don't ask if Bismarck was sunk or scuttled...

[:D]

The forum is terrible, the game is unplayable and war is hell. To war(hell?)! To hell with war? Hey game, what did you do to my brain?

This game might require more patience than the op has?

Timotheus, I fear all you have done is to awaken a sleeping forum and fill it with a terrible resolve.[;)]

ORIGINAL: Canoerebel

To see a snarky opinion from a newbie that just walks into a room firing a shotgun is pretty surprising. I suspect that he looked into a mirror, saw a reflection, and thought it was somebody else staring back at him.

Bingo. I would have gladly helped him. After that post, which was not only completely false and but also insulting to all of us, he can forget about that.

I've been here for a long time. Every time I have needed help or an answer, it's been forthcoming. This has been a forum virtually devoid of hatred, factionalism, and flamewars. It's not fancy, or flashy, just full of shared knowledge. It's not full of people who post just to raise their post count or to prop up their ego. This is a forum of and for adults. I don't know of another one that is nearly as comfortable.

I urge you all to politely ignore what the newbie wrote. Perhaps he will learn better over time.

ORIGINAL: Timotheus
This forum is terrible and unwelcoming

No, but it might look like it to those who barely scratch the surface before jumping conclusions.

It is a test to sort out those who would be unable to muster the patience and tenancy to learn the game, and to save them from wasting precious time.

I've just read another of your posts in which you say you have not purchased the game yet? It's like politics, if you don't vote, don't criticise.

Interesting post……

I don’t want to comment on the first part of the OP’s post. If that is the OP’s view then fine - although maybe would have been better served in the "Can we reduce the number of stickies?" thread.

I would make a few comments on the “parting shot” thoughts though.

Despite what some like to believe about this forum it is, in one way, no different to any other. The forum is made up of individuals and well, without wishing to state the obvious, people are people. That means this forum contains a range of personalities with a range of social skills, knowledge skills, gaming skills etc. There are active posters, lurkers, a reasonably diverse age range, helpers, irascibles, the pedantic, historians, ‘comedians’, friendly souls, and all with their opposites and shades of grey in between – hell we even have gorn-type lizard things etc. Yes WITP-AE has them all just like any forum (except perhaps the interplanetary creature).

What is true is that there are far more likeable, helpful, knowledgeable and friendly fellows (and lady) on this forum than there are the other sort. Sadly, as always in life – and on any forum - there are exceptions, and the forum has had its ‘problems’ but many of those have come and (thankfully) gone – and I don’t need to name names.

But to the specific point raised by the OP:

the impression I got in the forum is that it is made up of old guys, who have learned this game through years of effort and now want all the newbies to go through the same painful process they did, with as little help given as possible. "Why, I have walked to school uphill, in the snow, barefoot, in Alaska, and to learn WITPAE I had to type the manual on my typewriter myself!".

I have NEVER seen a request for help or information ignored. Yes the requests are, on occasion, met with a less than (I’ll use the word) ‘warm’ response and frustration where the helper is actually not helping because they have given the wrong advice! But although the delivery may be lacking, the wish to help is not. Maybe the OP was on the receiving end of one of those? I don’t know. But it is what it is – and on its own does not make the OP’s accusation true.

They feel like its an elite club and no new "scrubs" are welcome in it.

This I find really strange and can only imagine the OP hasn’t spent any time here. EVERY TIME there is a newcomer announcing they are taking up the game there is a string of welcoming follow-up posts.

Of all the forums on the Matrix site, this one is pretty unique. It has a long standing, well considered, successful game at its heart with plenty of AAR and a place where one can ask a question (on the game and history generally) and get a knowledgeable response. The moderator is respected and not given (too) much to do.

My personal No.1 game of choice is Matrix World in Flames. When that game was launched I wrote on that forum that I hoped its forum would become like this one over time. WITP-AE is a forum I originally came to for historical advice, got good feedback, bought the game, struggled with it, but stayed as a regular on the forum for a) the game (although I can’t play it I can enjoy the AAR and marvel at the intricacy) and b) the historical, and other topics, that crop up from time to time.

So to the OP – thanks for the thoughts, but I personally think you are wrong in your summarisation of the forum and the vast majority of those who are part of it.

ORIGINAL: LoBaron

It is a test to sort out those who would be unable to muster the patience and tenacity to learn the game, and to save them from wasting precious time.

Excellent point. I have always advised the impatient to play shallower games than we do. If someone finds this forum difficult or unfriendly, then God help them in WiTP AE.

I agree with OP generic critic that the game as is not friendly for newcomers and has some hiding knowledge that should be known upfront - for a start the issues with Japanese CS upgrade to CVL - .

Alfred was doing a Manual upgrade just because things like that but we got no more feedback regarding it.


I don't agree with OP that the forum does not give feedback. A forum cannot be so active as this more than a decade if we include initial witp, without that. There are more than 600000 posts here.

Us kids don't have a problem with this forum and game.

Its sick!

I have no respect for those who want results without effort.

We old timers are old timers simply BECAUSE we invested the time the OP is so unwilling to invest.

Contrary to his ill informed opinion we openly share our knowledge of the game with newbies.

However, even newbies need to invest the effort to learn by doing.

Just a troll seeking to get under the skin of regulars for the dubious satisfaction of having gotten under someone's skin.

Adolescent to say the least.

As a relative newbie ( about 18 months or so with AE) I was extremely surprised at the thread title when I logged on this morning. My experience on this forum has always been positive. The willingness of the "veterans" to help on any question I have posted has been very gratifying.

Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey, I am NOT OLD

While I am happy that my old AAR was included as worth for sticky...I would say that this forum is one of the most helpful among wargaming forums. And one needs to only compare number of topics and posts on this forum to other wargame forums, be it Matrix or others, to gauge popularity.

Yes, sometimes people can get bit cranky, but generally discussions are amiable and helpful. [8D]

BTW, my old AAR is not 100% valid with newest patches been introduced, but it is help for tackling with Grand Campaign. When I got older WitP and then WitP-AE, I played couple of short scenarios for "tutorial" and went after that straight to Grand Campaign. "Sink or Swim"-experience. [:D]

Yes, but you are a Sardaukar and can beat Paul Atreides in PBEM with closed eyes. We newbies have it worse!