Taking Control of the Community
#1
Exclamation 
Hi there fellow non-"management" plebs,

My name is Vauld. Most of you probably have 0 idea who I am so I'll briefly introduce myself. I joined City RP in 2011, the community was thriving, the server was constantly maxed out at 75 players. We had a constantly full queue to join the server - the demand was literally maxing out the server capacity.

Things were loose, fun, light-hearted and most importantly - community focused. Check out this video to get the vibe.


Oh how things have changed. I realize 2011-2015 probably wasn't as great as I remember it, nostalgia after all - I know that period has a special place in my heart. But looking at today; things have definitely taken a turn, unfortunately - for the worse. I keep hearing this sentiment "Players come, players go - the community is stable and things will return to normal. I think we all know deep down, that's simply not true. 

Things have changed and player numbers drop daily, people say "the gmod player count hasn't moved" - also false. The Gmod player count averaged 60k in 2015 and 2016, and is now down to 40k in 2021 and 2022. https://steamcharts.com/app/4000. Popular gamemodes are being ported into standalones, I'm sure we've all seen the popular gamemode "Prop Hunt" outside of gmod. The reality is that Gmod is getting dated, and S&Box certainly isn't going to help overall player count.

So the first step to this whole process is getting out of denial, things are not going swimmingly. Is the community straight up dead? Nah, but it's definitely not thriving either. Numbers might go up in the summer, but we're on an overall decline with seemingly no plan ahead.

Let's talk about the community itself, I'd love to hear other's opinions. My first thought though is -  Management is stagnant. Uninspired, inactive, and coasting. It's not a personal attack, I really don't know anyone on management well and I've also been in that same position. But I can just tell from looking holistically at this situation, the problem lies at the top. That's not to say that everyone on management is uninspired, I'm sure there are champions for change who are being ignored, or can't speak their mind, I want to encourage these people to speak up as well. I've also seen a lot of community members who are enthusiastic and want change, but there's this MASSIVE divide between the community and management. They've enclosed themselves into a bubble, and are vehemently protecting the in-group. If you're an admin and speak out against management, you get a slap on the wrist, you can't like posts going against management. Is this some type of dystopian corporate overlord situation?


So how do we move forward? Management has given no transparency into a plan, is in denial about the existence of a problem, and is guarding any movement from the community or veterans. If they're taking things into consideration they definitely aren't being clear or communicative about it outside of "we're working on things". Which by the way, isn't an answer.

There is not a true leader in this community, taking control - and pushing an agenda.

The question I think we need to ask ourselves as a community is, what do we want, what do we demand, and where should we go? Let's hold management accountable, get rid of the shielded conversations and secrecy. Management is creating a power vacuum that is going to collapse as things decline around them until there's nothing left. If we want this community to live, we're going to have to take control and create pressure until we see change. DM me or reach out on discord if you're interested in having further discussions and voicing opinions.

I realize saying things like this definitely isn't going to win me any popularity contests, especially with admins/management. But I think it's the reality of the situation, and needs to be addressed. What do you think?
The following 2 users Like Vauld's post:
  • Rossi, User 21796
#2
As said previously, all discussion about the current state of the server should stick to the already large thread there is on it. There is no point in making several threads about the exact same thing.

You can find the other thread here: https://fearlessrp.net/showthread.php?tid=99623

Closed.
Pollux
Fearless Management
bork
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