The "General Games Chat" forum, which includes Retro Game Reviews, has been archived and is now read-only. You cannot post here or create a new thread or review on this forum.
Some threads are interesting and I like to get involved in them, but mostly I find them dull and lifeless.
Now I'm not saying they are, I'm saying that I find them that way.
Now this is going to sound a tad rude and some may take offence, but that's also part of the reason I'm posting less and less:
I post crap here mainly because it passes the time whilst I'm at work, but in another forum here I tend to be more serious and engage in chat/debate.
Because an awful lot of threads are full of dyslexic, hostile screaming babies that can't decide what they want for tea anymore than they can reasonably discuss which console they prefer.
It's always "This console is best and the others suck".
They're just bloody games machines.
If you spent half as much time thinking and learning as you do scrapping over games consoles, it wouldn't feel like I was Diane Fossey quite so much.
And the sad thing is, about 10% of people will get what I mean.
And I don't use phrases like that to be big and clever, I use them because that's how I talk.
But it ends up with "I fink dis console is da best m8" and it makes me despair.
There are posters here that I value and chat to, email, send them CDs etc, but for the most part I can't be bothered to log on and join in.
Partly because I just don't care.
What's the average age of people here?
13-17? That's cool, but I'm 28.
When I want to try and discuss things that interest me like politics and religion, life and love etc, there's no point because idiots clog it up with mindless comments garnered from playground mates and it descends into furious arguing, yet totally groundless and based on nothing more than "Well I've heard" or "You're wrong" without a willingness to discuss on a level approaching adult.
"Xbox sucks" "No PS2 does" "No, Gaycube does"
Jesus christ, they all suck ok? They're all just hobbies to pass the time.
A discussion is where somebody says "I disagree, however I can remain neutral and try to explain my viewpoint reasonably" without it descending into hair pulling and spitting.
I know I'm opinionated, I know I mouth off.
But it's never serious and I always, always accept when I'm in the wrong and, more importantly, I am willing to listen to other people just in case I learn something.
This is a very cool set of forums, customer service is second to none and you can actually converse with staff members and sometimes, the owner of the company.
You don't get that anywhere else on the web.
But the weight of absolute trivia and mindless tail-chasing is really starting to get to me.
This isn't me saying "These forums must change", this is me saying "I'm getting fed up with it to be honest".
I have better things to do than read yet another topic about "Why the xbox is da worst and u all know it".
I'm going to sleep now for 4hrs before I get up and do it all again.
I'm not saying "Right, I'm off".
I'm just saying that it's getting harder and harder to make the effort anymore.
And it's not because I "idolise" Goatboy, YH.
You're one of the best posters on the site, as Happy said. Maybe you could just ignore FOG Chat, and concentrate on Movies? Most of us "good" posters stay there, again as Happy man said. Um..I seem to be repeating what he's saying.
Because, to be honest, I'd rather read one "pixies suck because they have beards" post by you than another Does Nu-Metal suck? or BradW - How To Be a Gimp in 1 Easy Stage. It's like that post by you I keep coming back to - Make it count. I'm telling the truth when I say it inspired me.
Sure, if you feel like a break, take one, but be sure to come back.
Cheers for the CD again, mate.
Then you have the newbies, regulars system which encourages people to copy and paste articles to bump their word count up and post reams of meaningless spam to have more posts all for a purple name.
If you do go the forums won't be the same. There will still be Meka Dragon, Stryke, Sheepy, Grix + others but the number of interesting posts is going to fall substantially. I do realise that I hardly know you as a person, but as Goatboy you've written some of the few posts taht have changed the way I think and opened my eyes a little.
Someone thanked me the other day for recommending them a film that they never would have watched otherwise and that made me feel good. If it wasn't for you I would never have read any Chomsky, kept thinking that the Bill Hicks alternative cover for Aenima was tool being ironic, and loads of other things. Last night I downloaded the Gorecki symphony that you suggested as a beautiful song and it was: another thing that I never would have done otherwise. ANd the post you wrote about your accident was one of the only times I've been speechless. This all might sound a little sycophantic but if it helps you find a reason to stay then I don't really care.
I hope people pay some attention to what you've said, and I hope you at least find some reason to stay in what I've written. Otherwise the forums will certainly miss you and I will too.
Some threads are interesting and I like to get involved in them, but mostly I find them dull and lifeless.
Now I'm not saying they are, I'm saying that I find them that way.
Now this is going to sound a tad rude and some may take offence, but that's also part of the reason I'm posting less and less:
I post crap here mainly because it passes the time whilst I'm at work, but in another forum here I tend to be more serious and engage in chat/debate.
Because an awful lot of threads are full of dyslexic, hostile screaming babies that can't decide what they want for tea anymore than they can reasonably discuss which console they prefer.
It's always "This console is best and the others suck".
They're just bloody games machines.
If you spent half as much time thinking and learning as you do scrapping over games consoles, it wouldn't feel like I was Diane Fossey quite so much.
And the sad thing is, about 10% of people will get what I mean.
And I don't use phrases like that to be big and clever, I use them because that's how I talk.
But it ends up with "I fink dis console is da best m8" and it makes me despair.
There are posters here that I value and chat to, email, send them CDs etc, but for the most part I can't be bothered to log on and join in.
Partly because I just don't care.
What's the average age of people here?
13-17? That's cool, but I'm 28.
When I want to try and discuss things that interest me like politics and religion, life and love etc, there's no point because idiots clog it up with mindless comments garnered from playground mates and it descends into furious arguing, yet totally groundless and based on nothing more than "Well I've heard" or "You're wrong" without a willingness to discuss on a level approaching adult.
"Xbox sucks" "No PS2 does" "No, Gaycube does"
Jesus christ, they all suck ok? They're all just hobbies to pass the time.
A discussion is where somebody says "I disagree, however I can remain neutral and try to explain my viewpoint reasonably" without it descending into hair pulling and spitting.
I know I'm opinionated, I know I mouth off.
But it's never serious and I always, always accept when I'm in the wrong and, more importantly, I am willing to listen to other people just in case I learn something.
This is a very cool set of forums, customer service is second to none and you can actually converse with staff members and sometimes, the owner of the company.
You don't get that anywhere else on the web.
But the weight of absolute trivia and mindless tail-chasing is really starting to get to me.
This isn't me saying "These forums must change", this is me saying "I'm getting fed up with it to be honest".
I have better things to do than read yet another topic about "Why the xbox is da worst and u all know it".
I'm going to sleep now for 4hrs before I get up and do it all again.
I'm not saying "Right, I'm off".
I'm just saying that it's getting harder and harder to make the effort anymore.