Too much negativity in the forums.

exoib · September 2023

I mean it's all valid the way this game is going, everyone seems to abandon it at this point. Imagine a brand new player who wants to be a part of a community, learn, discuss stuff etc they join the forums and just see negative posts in the General Discussions page then they try to find good guilds or vet players/teachers to teach them stuff, which are mostly absent, very hard to find them all in all. It's really sad to witness this after spending 6 years of my life with ESO.

wilykcat · September 2023

I'm disappointed with the toxicity/negativity within in the ESO community too. I feel ya. I'm a newer player who joined eso 11 months ago and I even saw an increase. I've seen so much more negative feedback recently and it all happened so fast. It gets overwhelming sometimes. I myself even need to learn how to deal with it.

There is still hope. I know there are still nice players out there (both in game and on forums) who are desperate to find a friend to play with, waiting for someone to join their guild or a guild, and for the positive experiences too.

thorwyn · September 2023

actio est reactio

Galiferno · September 2023

ZOS and Bethesda Softworks are not innocent, sweet, fragile orphan boys. They are companies providing a service that we pay for. Customers have every right to complain when our voices are unheard, when we're barely told anything about the state of the product, and when the product is managed poorly.

Lags · September 2023

yaaa zos has done this. It is very sad to see, and its depressing to see the way things are now, and so many people leaving. But im an optimistic person and i think zos could change things and bring people back. The question is will they, and im not very confident in that.

Lozeenge · September 2023

started regularly checking the forums about a year ago (didn't create an account for posting until shortly before the gifting drama) and like every other week there's a new thread about how the game is hemorrhaging players. i understand the sentiment given how chaotic things have been since High Isle but the fatigue is starting to set in.

zaria · September 2023

It always been this way, I dropped out of ESO after a year, I came back just before housing, was thinking of going back some times but checking out the forum stopped me

I say an huge part of people come here to complain, sometimes for good reason like stopping crown gifting.
But its a lot of negativity.

KlauthWarthog · September 2023

exoib wrote: »

I mean it's all valid the way this game is going, everyone seems to abandon it at this point. Imagine a brand new player who wants to be a part of a community, learn, discuss stuff etc they join the forums and just see negative posts in the General Discussions page then they try to find good guilds or vet players/teachers to teach them stuff, which are mostly absent, very hard to find them all in all. It's really sad to witness this after spending 6 years of my life with ESO.

Well, the combat team keeps chasing them out of the building.

Katheriah · September 2023

exoib wrote: »

I mean it's all valid the way this game is going

I'm afraid this is the important bit.

I don't want to be negative, but I also can't pretend I like how things are going. Plus... If we're all happy happy joy joy, we're absolutely sure nothing is going to change.

GooGa592 · September 2023

Customers have a right to voice their approval or disapproval of how their product is managed or how said product's employees treat them.

Rohamad_Ali · September 2023

Yes it is true the forums produce negativity and criticism however, if one enjoys watching chaos then this place is a beautiful garden of rich voices. Life gives you lemons my friend, squeeze them in your enemies eyes.

LukosCreyden · September 2023

The official forums will always be a negative place. This is not JUST because people want to complain but because this is where feedback is most likely to be seen and for feedback, saying "hey devs my new sword is cool thx" is a nice thing to say and a positive thing, but not really something that needs addressing. One of the game's many problems though? A bug, bad balancing decision or exploit? That is feedback that needs to be given.
All games, no matter how good, have issues that want for addressing.

And so, always will it be that official forums will be a spicy and negative place, filled with grievances and people arguing if those grievances really ARE grievances or not.

A golden rule for new players joining a game; do not visit the official forums unless you REALLY want to learn all about all the problems a game has. Instead, you could visit the reddit, or another third-party forum for the game where there will be a more healthy mix of posts.

ikzaa · September 2023

It has always been like this, every time there is a drastic change it is the same.

but the forum is like 5% of the game's population so it's not that bad.

It's fun, sometimes the forum is more entertaining than the game, it never ceases to amaze me how some take it too seriously, it's just a game.

that sooner or later, it will disappear.

wilykcat · September 2023

Social media is worse though. I've seen it all.

I hope the negativity will soon disappear too. Otherwise pull out the snacks and drinks 🤪, time to watch someone debating with someone else about an odd trending topic 🙃 😅.

The_Shipwrecked · September 2023

It'll fade after awhile. The thing is though the company has made some bad decisions and people are allowed to be mad and vent about it. I don't agree with a lot of things being said but I just keep scrolling and move on. Might be good to do the same.

fizzylu · September 2023

I also think it's because this is the only place players can voice their concerns about the game in hope of Zenimax seeing it. It's like the saying "no news is good news". If people are happy and enjoying the game, I don't really expect them to come here to say that.... but if people are unhappy with something and would like Zenimax to change something, I would expect to see that on the forums.

wilykcat · September 2023

There is still positivity on the forums. New suggestions, ideas, good reviews/feedback, compliments, liking posts, helping others, etc. There are lots of good things to say about the game on the forums too. Not everything here has to be and is negative.

Elsonso · September 2023

Katheriah wrote: »

exoib wrote: »

I mean it's all valid the way this game is going

I'm afraid this is the important bit.

I don't want to be negative, but I also can't pretend I like how things are going. Plus... If we're all happy happy joy joy, we're absolutely sure nothing is going to change.

The thing is that this negativity around here is not something that is new. Someone in the forum has been planning a funeral for ESO since April 2014.

Not the same someone, of course. ESO tends out outlive them, figuratively speaking.

Subjectively, this place has been more negative than it is now, and less negative than it is now. While it follows the various debacles from the development team, it is not really a good a bellwether for the overall direction or health of the game.

Trundik · September 2023

Blame ZOS.

Seriously it is enough to whiten the black. This negativity is only a consequence of their bad decisions. Maybe the forum is only five percent of the players, as someone wrote above, but I personally only come here when bad decisions or bugs blow my <snip>. It's simple, otherwise why would I go to a forum when I can enjoy the game.

<snipped for language>

wilykcat · September 2023

Hey. It's against the rules to use profanity on the forums. Also swear words are very toxic.

SeaGtGruff · September 2023

I don't blame ZOS. Each of us is responsible for ourselves. We choose how we react to the world and what kinds of attitudes we adopt. We decide whether we want to watch and listen to positive and fun "influencers" or to negative and polarizing ones.

If we want the forums and the community to be more positive and enjoyable, we (all of us) are the ones who need to make it so through our own words and actions and reactions, because no one is going to do it for us.

blktauna · September 2023

Brother you are absolving ZOS of their responsibilities.

A working product makes for customers who are too busy playing to spend time complaining on a forum.

Elsonso · September 2023

SeaGtGruff wrote: »

I don't blame ZOS. Each of us is responsible for ourselves. We choose how we react to the world and what kinds of attitudes we adopt. We decide whether we want to watch and listen to positive and fun "influencers" or to negative and polarizing ones.

If we want the forums and the community to be more positive and enjoyable, we (all of us) are the ones who need to make it so through our own words and actions and reactions, because no one is going to do it for us.

While the internet will be the cesspool that it is, I do place some of the blame on ZOS. At several points in time, ZOS could have made choices that strengthened the community. They chose... unwisely... in that respect. Not always with action, but sometimes with inaction, and not infrequently with words. These things did not help. They hurt.

muscle_witch · September 2023

Katheriah wrote: »

exoib wrote: »

I mean it's all valid the way this game is going

I'm afraid this is the important bit.

I don't want to be negative, but I also can't pretend I like how things are going. Plus... If we're all happy happy joy joy, we're absolutely sure nothing is going to change.

This. [snip]

[edited for bashing]

kah · September 2023

I get that negativity can be a huge bummer when you're trying to have fun, but there are a lot of good reasons for all the recent complaints and, generally speaking, they're not just complaining for complaints sake. People want to see improvement; they want to see their valid criticisms, especially when they've been raised again and again, addressed.

Vulkunne · September 2023

wilykcat wrote: »

I'm disappointed with the toxicity/negativity within in the ESO community too. I feel ya. I'm a newer player who joined eso 11 months ago and I even saw an increase. I've seen so much more negative feedback recently and it all happened so fast. It gets overwhelming sometimes. I myself even need to learn how to deal with it.

There is still hope. I know there are still nice players out there (both in game and on forums) who are desperate to find a friend to play with, waiting for someone to join their guild or a guild, and for the positive experiences too.

Right. And you know what, there will be more. My friend, sometimes the Truth hurts. And really, I would think the purpose of these forums is so we can be honest in a calm, clean and professional manner.

So not only is it not realistic that the forums should be positive all the time however, in treating ESO just like a friend, we are not doing any good by not pointing out issues as we encounter them.

I mean look, if the negativity on the forums bothers you that much, just wait until you start reading zone chat in game.

BahometZ · September 2023

This is a forum to talk about the game, and conversation about the positives go something like this:

1. hey zos thanks for adding remove shoulders from the outfit station, great move!
2. Yes, agreed.
3. Great addition by the team hooray

Riveting stuff huh

Meanwhile discussions about the numerous missteps and bad moves involve long, subjective and contentious debates that go for pages, while moderators sweat and strain at the edge of sanity. Generally more interesting tbh.

Most players are either contentedly playing the game, and too busy to hit the forums, or they dipped out because eso eventually stopped doing it for them.

Then there is us. When I have something positive to say I will say it. When I have a complaint I will share it on the official forums. If you want rainbows and moonbeams go hug a carebear.

AvalonRanger · September 2023

Basically say, I want to stay "honest". Good is good. Bad is bad. Simple enough.

katanagirl1 · September 2023

Negative feedback is what it is. Are we not supposed to discuss the parts of the game that we feel aren’t going well? That is the only way it will get fixed. We give reasons and examples as to why things aren’t right, to build a case for change, not just badmouthing (in most cases).

I would suggest not getting emotional about these discussions. It’s hard not to sometimes, when you feel invested in whatever it is you like doing and it is not working as it should and you get frustrated. Trust me I completely understand that. I think in general the discussions here are not toxic because if they start trending that way then there are people here to deal with it.

The “negativity” you see is directed at the game not at individuals. I know social media has created an environment where people find it hard to have a discussion and instead use personal attacks. I would still like to discuss these things in a rational manner.

abigfishy · September 2023

Don't worry about the forums, people in game are still really nice.

AstroST · September 2023

You can promise to improve communications and not deliver only a certain amount of times before your customers start feeling that you are making fun of them.