A response on communications

JKorr

@ZOS_GinaBruno ;

I am old enough to abhor twitter and avoid it like the plague. The frequent misuse of it to spread misinformation and hate speech are parts of the why. With many of the same issues, along with less than stellar records of protecting personal information, Facebook is another "social platform" I avoid. Going to the internet and forums like reedit should be in addition to, not in place of, the official game forum. Why go to a dozen different places, with a dozen different versions of an official announcement instead of the company's own official forums to find out what is going on?

AlnilamE

VaranisArano wrote: »

EdmondDontes wrote: »

For me communication means being honest and telling the truth.

If the claim of "we're working on it" is supposed to mean things are being worked on. Not four years plus down the road announcing a plan to start working on it and tell customers it's going to take more time.

In my opinion this forum is where any game announcements or discussions should take place. That's why this forum exists. Social media is only for disseminating misinformation. So many of us will never read anything on those platforms because we refuse to participate on those platforms.

I don't know what viewership they have on those other platforms, admittedly.

I know that they's said the official website gets a lot more views than the forums, though that's usually reserved for big announcements.

I just checked their Twitter account and the official TESOnline has over 800k followers.

(Gina has 10k followers and Rich as 9k)

So there are definitely a lot of people that follow them there that likely don't come to the forums.

That said, I agree that any official communication should be made on the forums (either first or as well).

Sawbones194

I really don't mind them not go in touch with the players and strengthen communication. I don't like to be in touch with a company that makes its money with gambling more than me Playing their game

Mesite

I understand what people are saying about where news is communicated. I only play the game and read the forums. I don't have time to read the website or social media. I sometimes read the website if there is an event about to start.

Lalocat

Not on Twitter. I actually do have the TESO twitter bookmarked, but the site is almost entirely useless since they stopped allowing anonymous users to read conversations so I don't check it very often.

VaranisArano

Artanisul wrote: »

_Zathras_ wrote: »

VaranisArano wrote: »

I found that thread of Gina's on communication several days later when someone complained about it on the forums.

As someone who's not on Twitter, it rather drove home the limitations of using one platform to talk about communication...

Not on Twitter? You'll miss that conversation, even though it's ESO's communication manager asking how to better communicate with players like you.

Don't watch Rich Lambert's personal stream? You'll miss out on knowing that the Devs maybe found that PVP problem and have to do serious recoding, that bards aren't likely, that the Devs have certain concerns about players abusing accessibility options, Rich's thoughts on the Battlegrounds queue situation, and so much more. (The recent PVP update confirms what Rich was already talking about on stream in December.) If you find out anything, it's probably secondhand from someone who does. (Like I did - secondhand, on an unrelated forums thread.)

Don't watch ESO Live? There are no transcripts, so if you don't fast-forward through a bunch of fluff to get to the meaty topics, you'll have no idea what's being said unless, again, it's secondhand from someone who does.


As someone who basically reads the website and forums, and who only finds out the information from Twitter/Rich's Stream/ESO Live secondhand unless someone posts a link to something interesting, I really wish the communications team made a greater effort to have cross-platform communcations.

My suggestions:

Twitter: if there's an announcement or a question answered on Twitter, it's a good idea to check the forums for a similar topic and post the announcement/answer here too.

ESO Live: For me, transcripts would help a lot. It's not an accessibility thing for me (though for some, it might be very helpful). Rather, I prefer to read text than watch a long video, and its much easier for me to reference the contents later.

Streams: I don't want Rich muzzled, but if it's official enough for him to talk about ongoing or future developments on his stream, then those should be official enough for the Communications teams to be able to comment about them on the forums or warrant an update.

Essentially all of this.

These are the Official Forums. Anything worth being said should be linked here. All of the above information is not. As mentioned, you either hear about it second hand (if you're lucky) or not at all.

I should not have to be subscribed to multiple social media venues, then have to Follow all the various ESO staff, to get up-to-date and relevant information for this game.

Centralized information that everyone can access as soon as it is posted.

After reading down through this thread, I find it hard to believe the question Gina asked was an honest one. I thought I was more alone in my lack of Social Media use. I reached out to various gaming sites and it's overwhelming how universal it is that gamers look to the Forums for info not "Share my Personal Details" sites like Twitter, FB, Instagram etc.

Having read what I could of the Twitter thread, I do think it was an honest conversation with the folks she engaged on Twitter.

It just also had some things I liked finding out that I never would have seen if not for someone posting about it on the forums days later, i.e. secondhand. (Not this thread, it was someone else.)

Stuff like why they stopped doing regular updates:

https://twitter.com/GinaLBruno/status/1475986736354369540?s=20

Or stuff like how bugs might be prioritized differently by players and Devs:

https://twitter.com/GinaLBruno/status/1476203716135034881?s=20

This one I thought was a really good point, because, well, sometimes the truth isn't what people want to hear.

https://twitter.com/GinaLBruno/status/1475982610836996096?s=20

All in all, the Twitter conversation was a cool glimpse into the sort of thinking that Gina is putting into communicating with the playerbase! And I thought the questions asked and ideas given by players were all really good!

But for me, it was only a glimpse, because I'm not on Twitter. So I'm on the outside looking in, reading the conversation days later after someone on the forums complained about it.

So when Gina says...

https://twitter.com/GinaLBruno/status/1476395912431915010?s=20

I feel like I'm sitting here on the forums, adding my two cents long after the conversation is over.

wolfie1.0.

To be completely honest here I don't use Twitter. Zos has this thing called a website where they post things like events and contests and stuff. They should use that tool more often.

As for forums, zos has an annoying process for gaining access you have e yo essentially send a support ticket in. Forum access should be tied to your account name and be granted upon purchase of an eso account.

Ravensilver

kind_hero wrote: »

How about more feedback in the Housing forum, where we don't see any info from the housing/furnishings team, and no reaction to our discussions? We only get feedback on houses players create, which is fine, but does not address our issues in the game regarding housing.

This!

My absolute current (and past) pet peeve about ZOS communication has to do with the Housing forum. I'm an ardent housing fan, in a housing guild, owning 55 houses (so far) and seeing housing as one of my main activities in ESO. Housing is the reason I'm in this game.

Two (!) years ago, @ZOS_CullenLee posted a sticky thread on the housing slot limits, basically saying 'duh... can't be done' and adding 'but give us your feedback and ideas - we wants them'.

Since then, we have heard....nothing. Not a single post in feedback. Not a single response to any questions. Every time I see that thread, I have to *really* hold myself back from either gnawing at my keyboard or posting something really, really nasty.

This is a prime example of how I, as a paying customer, feel marginalized, ignored, more or less given the virtual middle finger and told to toddle off and not worry my pretty head about things.

Of course I still play. But this kind of thing influences my ingame decisions.

The absolutely abysmal programming of furnishing plan drops in Fargrave has made me so mad, that I refuse to buy *anything* from the crown shop having to do with housing from now on. The lack of communication on the various housing issues has stopped me from investing in crown houses.

Many of these issues have been discussed here on the forum. Response from ZOS? None.

And yes, I'm also one of those players that will look for information *here*, the *OFFICIAL* forum. Not on Twitter. Not in Instagram. Not on Facebook or any other external platform.
I don't watch the streams, because they usually are not compatible with my personal timelines (being in Europe and not in the US - which is another factor that seems to be forgotten... that there is a very large *non-US* player base that definitely isn't being regarded as worthy of being kept 'in the loop' - or at least that's what it feels like...).

Yes, ZOS has been *severely* lacking in communication in my eyes, and it's high time that they get their [snip] together and do something about it.

[edited for profanity bypass]

Elsonso

VaranisArano wrote: »

I feel like I'm sitting here on the forums, adding my two cents long after the conversation is over.

ZOS will talk about this internally for weeks... Right now? We at the beginning. It is far from over.

LalMirchi

FluffWit wrote: »

[snip] I would be surprised if you get a response to this. I would be shocked if that response was more then three sentences.

They essentially want all announcements and communication with the community to happen on twitter and twitch. Both of which just aren't very good for either thing.

OK this is not ideal but very good to know. Many thanks

[edited to remove quote]

Artanisul

VaranisArano wrote: »

Artanisul wrote: »

_Zathras_ wrote: »

VaranisArano wrote: »

The "tweets" you linked are between Gina and a few people in what amounts to a very brief moment. The audience was not what it would be here on the official forums. Does anyone NOT think the forums would be used by more of the player base if we could actually see what they think and feel?

They put up a place actually labeled to be the info hub and feedback area and then fail to use it. Putting anything meaningful out on places where you have to follow select people to maybe get a response is just asking for negative feelings.

As to the one about "what if the answer sucks?" like "we needed money", If the game developer can't word that in such a way as to not suck....well, they need to hire a better marketing person. "We chose to make X change because revenue streams have gotten tight. We felt this was the least intrusive way to push us forward to make the changes we are dying to bring our player base."

Communication becomes allot easier when people are honest with each other.

furiouslog

VaranisArano wrote: »

I feel like I'm sitting here on the forums, adding my two cents long after the conversation is over.

I think that stuff like this is an evergreen process, where you keep learning and feeding back into your system so that things improve. At some point, you get to a point where your systems address all of the stuff you intended to address, and then maybe you freeze it and declare victory. Gina and her colleagues are not going to just stop where they are at on the basis of the Twitter feedback that they received, particularly since the conversation is limited to a certain number of characters, but also because they are not yet at the point of declaring victory. They have been staffing more community positions, so they are probably still figuring out how to best manage and utilize those resources, so they are still at the front end of revamping their communications approach. I'm pretty sure you'll get heard.

Also to the folks who think Gina should respond here, give her a chance, it's the weekend and she deserves time off like anyone else. I don't personally want or need a response anyway, but I do hope that she reads it, because I thought about it for a while and I posted it with the full intention of trying to be helpful.

That does go towards how our feedback is collectively managed and addressed, though. The housing forum guys who posted here clearly feel unheard - a lot of people provide other sorts of feedback that is so common that it's ubiquitous (e.g. overland difficulty, dark convergence set). Players who provide feedback would like to know if they were heard or not - they took personal time to express a preference - it would benefit ZOS to let them know that they were at least heard even if there is no intention of implementing their ideas.

I think there are three "list" types of information that ought to be organized and managed, which would also help with this concept of being heard:

• Roadmap: containing all current initiatives and tasks that are planned or in progress, with timelines for completion that include a date or range of dates.
  
• Bugs: Bugs that were reported, with line item status updates as so : Reported, Investigating, Investigated and not a bug, Investigating and is a bug but not yet slotted to be fixed, Bug is being fixed (moved to roadmap), Bug is fixed.
  
• Suggestions: Player feedback that is recorded, with line item status updates like so: Suggestion heard, Suggestion being evaluated, Suggestion will not be addressed (and why), Suggestion being addressed (moved to roadmap), Suggestion implemented.

I think that covers most of what players care about?

The thing about this level of transparency is that it's on us as players to behave maturely when we don't get what we want. I see some people get obsessed over not getting what they want and injecting toxicity into all forum and social interactions in response to denial - that would need to stop, because it teaches ZOS that when they are great about transparency it's still a losing proposition. What helps in mitigating that obsessive behavior is clearly explaining ZOS's decision criteria - it's a lot harder to rail against something if there is a good rationale behind it. I'm sure that ZOS would try to make everyone happy if it were possible, but they can't - they have limitations.

What they can do is say why they can't do the things that are going to make some of these engaged players happy, and hope that those explanations are accepted. It's not our business or role to prioritize ZOS's management of resources, revenue streams, calendars, etc - we need to accept their constraints and trust that they are a given, and also react with a more accepting tone when they have to re-prioritize big fixing or feature implementation instead of complaining about it. It's not on us to solve or manage their problems. We just need to express them, but we are also deserving of a response when we do. If they did that, and the information was out there, it would result in far fewer complaint/suggestion threads - and this forum would take on a much more positive tone because the lists and roadmap would become the lightning rod to absorb complaints. Maybe we'd even get more original content contributed instead of rehashing the same issues over and over.

I can tell you, the two things ZOS implemented in the past two years that really made me happy as a subscriber were the sticker book, and adjusting the probability of loot tables to be contingent on a player's item collection. If I had known that they were thinking about that, or even acknowledging it as an issue that somehow needed to be addressed, I would not have posted near as much about those issues as I did, if at all.

Amottica

AlnilamE wrote: »

VaranisArano wrote: »

EdmondDontes wrote: »

For me communication means being honest and telling the truth.

If the claim of "we're working on it" is supposed to mean things are being worked on. Not four years plus down the road announcing a plan to start working on it and tell customers it's going to take more time.

In my opinion this forum is where any game announcements or discussions should take place. That's why this forum exists. Social media is only for disseminating misinformation. So many of us will never read anything on those platforms because we refuse to participate on those platforms.

I don't know what viewership they have on those other platforms, admittedly.

I know that they's said the official website gets a lot more views than the forums, though that's usually reserved for big announcements.

I just checked their Twitter account and the official TESOnline has over 800k followers.

(Gina has 10k followers and Rich as 9k)

So there are definitely a lot of people that follow them there that likely don't come to the forums.

That said, I agree that any official communication should be made on the forums (either first or as well).

But how many of them are still active players? Just as the forums has a lot of people who are no longer around, I would not be surprised if many of the followers are no longer active in ESO.

I agree with Varanis that this forum, or maybe the website, is where official game announcements should take place. Twitter is a very poor choice for handling important information.

NeeScrolls

Amottica wrote: »

I agree that this forum, or maybe the website, is where official game announcements should take place.

Twitter is a very poor choice for handling important information.

imo, the bold ^ is a no-brainer (forums & website = 1st line of communication)

And what's so funny is: The very same "controversy" is happening on SWTOR forums right now too.
(because 1 of the integral BW devs there basically refuses to use their official website forums and instead prefers some random player's "community" Discord channel to post some of the most important & impactful details/changes to the game lol )

---

btw @ZOS_GinaBruno , communication is best when it's delivered with honesty combined with details, so as to help players at the very least understand the 'why' . Trying to please the vocal-minority, however, is utterly futile...and typically makes matters worse.

VaranisArano

Amottica wrote: »

AlnilamE wrote: »

VaranisArano wrote: »

EdmondDontes wrote: »

For me communication means being honest and telling the truth.

If the claim of "we're working on it" is supposed to mean things are being worked on. Not four years plus down the road announcing a plan to start working on it and tell customers it's going to take more time.

In my opinion this forum is where any game announcements or discussions should take place. That's why this forum exists. Social media is only for disseminating misinformation. So many of us will never read anything on those platforms because we refuse to participate on those platforms.

I don't know what viewership they have on those other platforms, admittedly.

I know that they's said the official website gets a lot more views than the forums, though that's usually reserved for big announcements.

I just checked their Twitter account and the official TESOnline has over 800k followers.

(Gina has 10k followers and Rich as 9k)

So there are definitely a lot of people that follow them there that likely don't come to the forums.

That said, I agree that any official communication should be made on the forums (either first or as well).

But how many of them are still active players? Just as the forums has a lot of people who are no longer around, I would not be surprised if many of the followers are no longer active in ESO.

I agree with Varanis that this forum, or maybe the website, is where official game announcements should take place. Twitter is a very poor choice for handling important information.

Here's a recent specific example of what I'm talking about with my suggestion where I'd like the team to check the forums and see if there are topics that could be updated with an answer that's been given on Twitter.

When Crimson Oath came out, players noted that there appeared to be a cooldown on the new motif.

On Twitter, they got an answer:

https://twitter.com/thefinninator/status/1478850756648312834?t=vmhRMDUUccJmQSK4ihYOIw&s=19

On the forums...well, I found out secondhand because someone posted that link. Afterwards, I've seen a couple threads asking about the cooldown on the motifs from people who hadn't seen that information. And I don't see any comment to that effect on the Dev Tracker either.

If an answer can be given over Twitter, and the same question comes up on the Forum, then I'd love for the Team to comment with a post that will show up on the Dev Tracker. Otherwise, we're basically relying on the people who check Twitter to relay secondhand information like "Good news, ZOS knows about this bug and it will be fixed!"

LalMirchi

Too many channels means less overall output in many cases. IMHO

I can see Twitter et al as easier channels to use if one is busy and very stuck on a 'phone but still think a web-forum like this every one is perhaps the best channel for information and updates, rather hopefully.

NeeScrolls

VaranisArano wrote: »

On Twitter, they got an answer:

On the forums...well, I found out secondhand because someone posted that link.

LalMirchi wrote: »

I can see Twitter et al as easier channels to use if one is busy and very stuck on a 'phone but still think a web-forum like this every one is perhaps the best channel for information and updates, .

One thing i forgot to mention in my earlier post: Why not have some type of auto-integration 'widget' here within ESO forums/website , so that any official tidbits of game info posted on Twitter would be more easily viewed by more actual $ubscribers here?

Iron_Warrior

One of my problems with eso is how few balance patches we get. We get like what? Four patches a year? So now that the period between patches is too long i would like it if the devs sit somewhere and have some talk with players once in a while like every 2 weeks or even once a month and just talk about their observations and things that they may or may not do for the next patch.

For example: "we think that this skill is overperforming right now" or "the new set that we released seems kinda weak and we may make some changes to it" or "there is this bug in the game atm and we are working on it"

This way players will start to trust the devs more and players can also discuss about the topics that the devs talked and possiblly give them ideas.

I think This is a lot better than 3 months of complete silence and suddenly getting hit with too many changes at once.

Also keep the communication on forums not twitter or other social media.

merpins

Let's hope ZoS does a better job at transparency and communication [snip]

[edited for bashing]

Amottica

VaranisArano wrote: »

Amottica wrote: »

AlnilamE wrote: »

VaranisArano wrote: »

EdmondDontes wrote: »

For me communication means being honest and telling the truth.

If the claim of "we're working on it" is supposed to mean things are being worked on. Not four years plus down the road announcing a plan to start working on it and tell customers it's going to take more time.

In my opinion this forum is where any game announcements or discussions should take place. That's why this forum exists. Social media is only for disseminating misinformation. So many of us will never read anything on those platforms because we refuse to participate on those platforms.

I don't know what viewership they have on those other platforms, admittedly.

I know that they's said the official website gets a lot more views than the forums, though that's usually reserved for big announcements.

I just checked their Twitter account and the official TESOnline has over 800k followers.

(Gina has 10k followers and Rich as 9k)

So there are definitely a lot of people that follow them there that likely don't come to the forums.

That said, I agree that any official communication should be made on the forums (either first or as well).

But how many of them are still active players? Just as the forums has a lot of people who are no longer around, I would not be surprised if many of the followers are no longer active in ESO.

I agree with Varanis that this forum, or maybe the website, is where official game announcements should take place. Twitter is a very poor choice for handling important information.

Here's a recent specific example of what I'm talking about with my suggestion where I'd like the team to check the forums and see if there are topics that could be updated with an answer that's been given on Twitter.

When Crimson Oath came out, players noted that there appeared to be a cooldown on the new motif.

On Twitter, they got an answer:

https://twitter.com/thefinninator/status/1478850756648312834?t=vmhRMDUUccJmQSK4ihYOIw&s=19

On the forums...well, I found out secondhand because someone posted that link. Afterwards, I've seen a couple threads asking about the cooldown on the motifs from people who hadn't seen that information. And I don't see any comment to that effect on the Dev Tracker either.

If an answer can be given over Twitter, and the same question comes up on the Forum, then I'd love for the Team to comment with a post that will show up on the Dev Tracker. Otherwise, we're basically relying on the people who check Twitter to relay secondhand information like "Good news, ZOS knows about this bug and it will be fixed!"

That is odd since it seems ESO has a good community management team.

But again, there should be a single page we can look at for known issues that notes their status and when a solution is pending a patch or has been patched the date is noted. The Dev Tracker system ESO seems to utilize is to disorganized to be very useful to the player.

LalMirchi

NeeScrolls wrote: »

VaranisArano wrote: »

On Twitter, they got an answer:

On the forums...well, I found out secondhand because someone posted that link.

LalMirchi wrote: »

I can see Twitter et al as easier channels to use if one is busy and very stuck on a 'phone but still think a web-forum like this every one is perhaps the best channel for information and updates, .

One thing i forgot to mention in my earlier post: Why not have some type of auto-integration 'widget' here within ESO forums/website , so that any official tidbits of game info posted on Twitter would be more easily viewed by more actual $ubscribers here?

In the New Year of 2022 one could hope for some integration of various channels, perhaps with some magical runes to consolidate the output.

EdmondDontes

Why is ZOS even posting on social media?

It goes without saying that the first place to look for information on the game should be the official forum.

Social media is only good for spreading misinformation and hate. How is it possible that more information about the game is being released on social media than on their official forums?

Sylvermynx

ZOS is posting on "social media" because the younger people spend their lives there. Those of us who have no use for "social media" (a lot of us very much older) are.... being "second classed" - even though we have a lot of money to spend, and actually do spend it here. Real money....

It's a problem. I don't use (never have) "social media". Garbage, waste of my time. My friends and family and I email back and forth daily - we don't need "social media".

LalMirchi

Sylvermynx wrote: »

ZOS is posting on "social media" because the younger people spend their lives there. Those of us who have no use for "social media" (a lot of us very much older) are.... being "second classed" - even though we have a lot of money to spend, and actually do spend it here. Real money....

It's a problem. I don't use (never have) "social media". Garbage, waste of my time. My friends and family and I email back and forth daily - we don't need "social media".

There are "Modern Day" technologies that can tie all these informational channels together, why it is not done by an enterprise with proficient programming skills is rather questionable IMHO

It could be quite trivial programmatically to integrate Twitter feeds etc into the forum, and if not there is considerable expertise available @Sylvermynx for example.

MilitiaMasterV

EdmondDontes wrote: »

Why is ZOS even posting on social media?

It goes without saying that the first place to look for information on the game should be the official forum.

Social media is only good for spreading misinformation and hate. How is it possible that more information about the game is being released on social media than on their official forums?

As a long time gamer who's played many MMO's/online games, I can tell you that this is actually really common. Heck, even the game I played a few years back that's been around for something like 20 years, the devs were 'dropping the ball' trying to 'get their message out' via things like social media and hoping to 'spread the word' about their game through nonsense like ads that show up in your social media feeds (Ironic, since a lot of us use ad-blockers now, or learned how to ignore their ads to begin with.). Many of them are even moving towards using 'Discord' channels as their 'main platform' for releasing game information, while totally misunderstanding that people that are considered 'boomers'/etc aren't even all on those platforms. There's a younger crowd of people who 'grew up online' who are so used to casually using things like this that they don't even stop to think about it. Forums seem to be 'going the way of the dodo'.

It all comes from a disconnect/not realizing they aren't able to reach the people they want to reach or because they are specifically catering to a certain group/crowd.

I'm a 'millennial', and even though I grew up online, they are leaving me in the dust even. (I haven't managed to figure out Discord either, though I understand how it functions...because I'm partially deaf IRL voice-chatting was never a good idea to begin with, and that service is basically a chatroom with mics and mine's broken.)

I don't personally touch things like Twit(ter), or reddit because of the types that hang out there. I use FB, but only as a personal platform to speak my thoughts out to the void and long since removed most family/friends. I watch Twitch nowadays for some entertainment, and those types that hang out in the chats on there are practically oblivious to reality/live in their own fantasy worlds echo chambering, those chat rooms are basically a way for the streamer to not be bored talking to themselves/attempt to engage their fanbase, while those people come in there just to talk about their lives and not actually engage with the streamer/others most of the time. It's just a place to 'decompress' by unloading whatever is on people's minds. (Which lately, isn't much substantive.)

I think the 'corporate' types try and suggest something they heard in a boardroom for how to communicate with us laypeople and that's why we get all this miscommunication...[snip]

Heck, I've got a social phobia, and even I'm better at 'socializing' than most of these types...(From trying to practice/figure out my way in the world.)

(PS : Love your name's reference.)

[edited for bashing]

Dolphinsgal

I will NOT use social media, the only exception is band for my guilds. Having things posted on twitter, fb, twitch ect is in my opinion unacceptable for a game company that has official forums and is as big as zos. Communication on the forums even if it's a "we know about x,y,z and are looking into it" or even "we did this to make money not to please the player base" at least it's honest even if the response angers people.
@ZOS_GinaBruno

HawkFest

AlnilamE wrote: »

I just checked their Twitter account and the official TESOnline has over 800k followers.
(Gina has 10k followers and Rich as 9k)
So there are definitely a lot of people that follow them there that likely don't come to the forums.
That said, I agree that any official communication should be made on the forums (either first or as well).

[snip]

I'm not saying that it's a bad thing for them to engage into social medias and juggle with whatever buzz they could create about the game, on the contrary (for instance, they could organize guild or group activities, invite and chat about gaming streams etc., as gamers/individuals who are socializing between gamers/individuals). I'm only stating that it should not be the main area where we can find essential/important information and feedbacks about the game itself, in order to ask for help, report bugs or discuss them, get informed about in-game events, mechanics and future plans or updates. Any additional - and utterly small - cost of maintaining some blog/section for the Web Manager, shouldn't be an issue since the Forum already exists.

Last but not least... For us customers who have the right of getting all important communications in regard to the game status and functionalities (which is part of the product that I'm paying for in a SaaS model), Zenimax is also responsible in regard to our personal information: handing this to other social media platforms is in complete contradiction with such responsibility, since it's similar to multiplying points of security failures along loss of customer's control in this regard. Gamers are free to use social medias on their own, to stream gaming live feeds and such, as do Zen's representatives along game discussions and such. But, IMHO, those activities have nothing to do with the current topic.

[edited for bashing]

cro25519

Excellent! We need more people like you in the community. Incredible post really.

magnus01

I would like to say just use the god dam forum.

twitter is garbage..... im sorry but that's just what it is.
twitch is garbage unless its a devoted Q&A and that Q&A is posted on the forum.

facebook or do we call it METAVERSE yea no thanks.

That's the reason for the complaints.
No use of the GAMES forum.

you already have my bank details and my money, i have no interest in joining any of the sites you push you're info through.

Im a simple man with money to burn and ive been MMO gaming for almost 28 years.
only in the last gen of console did you decide to move from the most convenient method of talking to us basement boys and girls, you made it a mess and a chore.

i dont live on my phone and i dont give a dam about social media .

Lysette

But I understand as well where Gina is coming from - take the announcement of Matt about server-redesign for ecxample - that was a quite honest announcement, stating basically "we tried hard, but we cannot do it with the current design and have to address this first, everything else would just be a band aid and leads nowhere, we have to do that now, it is a difficult task, which actually makes us quite anxious to attempt it, but we decided to go for it, because we think it is absolutely necessary".

And how do people react?- He was dead honest with this, and Matt deserves some praise for being brave enough to do it.