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Yes. I am finally speaking out for this. This is only a suggestion, I am not jabbing at any staff at all or trying to start anything. This is a SUGGESTION ONLY!
But I've really been noticing that FeralHeart is indeed dying. I've tried keeping hope for it and trying to defend it, but even I'm getting a bit skeptical. People are leaving left and right for many reasons. I've been noticing that more and more inappropriate people are coming out, since they know staff aren't always on anymore. It's really getting ridiculous. I know that making reports helps in a way, but I mean come on. There are never any staff online to make reports to! I know they have a life outside of FH. I understand that. But what needs to happen....there needs to be new faces.
I've heard staff say they need more people on their team. That there are never enough staff to oversee the game. But why do they not promote new ones? There are many of us that would make wonderful staff. And it would be nice for me (and others) to have someone online to make reports to. That way the game is taken care of and people feel more welcome.
Some people are beginning to question the staff, such as "Do they even do anything to help? Do they even log on? I never see them?" And that right there is an answer to that question in itself.
Staff need to understand that not all of the people that actually volunteer to be staff are just looking for power. Many of us genuinely care for this game and just want to see it succeed again, and they want to help the game achieve that. If you all are so worried about being short staffed, I would think you would appreciate it anyway.
And there are more things besides the staff issue that needs to be addressed. Registration needs to start being opened. I know the site ain't done. I know that we just need to be patient, but it's been down for months now! People are slowly going to stop watching for registration to open (they probably think the game is dead for god's sake) and it will just get emptier and emptier here. And many of us don't want that.
Please staff, just at least consider this post. I really care about this game, and I'm just another voice that needs to be heard and listened to. For the good of FH.
Thank you.
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I agree with you. I would hate to see the game die out where to the point there is barely no players online. I respect the moderators a lot, but hopefully they can open the registration sooner or later. It would be great to see new faces around the community and the game. But hopefully the game won't die out despite the registration being closed.
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I joined this game back in November 2011, and since then have held it very near and dear to my heart. It's brought me together with so many wonderful, amazing people that I would give up the world for. It's brought me out of a dark place many times when I felt like I had no one. The people on the game showed me that yes, people do indeed care about me and that I am loved.
I'm not one to complain about anything, as I know that the staff always try their best to keep the game healthy and happy, but as Arctic said, there are some things that I do indeed think need changing. This game is like my baby, I love it so, so much, and although I do get sick of it sometimes I can never just up and leave permanently without coming back for another run. I for one do not want to see it die out like everyone is saying it is.
The staff has seemed to go a bit inactive, yes, and as was already said we understand that the staff are not robots that are supposed to dedicate their lives to the game. We know that the staff have lives outside of FeralHeart and we do respect that. Though it does not cover up the fact that we need more active staff members that are strongly willing to help this community get back to where it was before. We are told by the staff that they're always looking for people who are seen as eligible members of the community to become staff, so my question is: where are they? I've seen numerous people come and go and that are even still here today that would be wonderful staff. We understand that the staff are trying to keep power-hungry people out of the team. There are people who care about this game and want to see it come alive again as it used to be. The FeralHeart that used to have 500-600+ members on a day and that had such an amazing, wonderful community.
With that, there's problem #2: The community. We used to have such an incredibly kind community that was always willing to help those in need. There were so many helpful people on the game that always contributed to making the community a friendly, safe place for people to enjoy playing. What I've noticed, is that since the update, the community seems to have gotten not only smaller, but also more toxic. This isn't me bashing on the update at all, in fact I absolutely adore the update, but that doesn't change the fact that I've noticed the community beginning to go down hill after it was implemented. There are argument in The Grounds in the daily, and surely there are arguments daily in other maps as well. Nowadays people are going around insulting people in local for their designs, rp ideas, beliefs, and everything else. When you try to defend yourself or the person being bashed on, you'll be called disrespectful because of "freedom of speech". Nobody seems to understand that there's a difference between freedom of speech and being blatantly rude anymore, and it's frankly quite disappointing. I've expected so much more from this community and a year or two ago, it was quite possible that they've reached those expectations, but now, it's likely impossible.
I do hope that the staff read these and at least think about them. Think about ways to help better the community. Because all we really want to do is help make the game as great as it used to be.
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Land, Gold, Mineral oil, New players. What do those all have in common? They don't make them anymore. We could make new players but i'm starting to believe the conspiracy theories. (Players that were single handedly bringing the community together again get log in issues...)
You mention the staff not being active enough but i see them around. More so when activity is high.
Would be nice to get new faces in here, especially seeing a certain IT server closed down in the past week i thought that'd be an opportunity to welcome some new people in if they were looking for a place to go...
P.S. Even before the update some people were advertising in places like dA that they wanted an FH account but couldn't catch registration when it was open. When looking for Xbox cheats a few months ago i saw someone willing to trade real money steam games for an FH account. Some people must be desperate. Not making this up.
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i really feel like the lack of open registration will be the great death knell of FH - people will move on, with no one to replace them. Registration being closed seemed to serve a purpose long ago, when the amount of in-game users caused the server to be unstable, but those seem to be the times of long agoooo. perhaps it should be implemented only when average server resources exceeds a threshold of stability for some (unspecified) amount of time? but yuh, six months with it (almost) not opened at all is a bit much too long, even if it isn't entirely fixed still.
point #2 also seems indirectly related to #1 - more people in the community would mean more people to (potentially) help out! =3!
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First off, I apologize if some of this doesn't seem to make sense or feels unorganized. I haven't been concentrating well these past few days.
Thank you for bringing this up. I definitely feel the same way as you, and others according to the replies about these couple of issues.
1) I think we're overdue for some new staff members to be trained and put on the task at stopping some of these annoyances that seem to be happening quite a lot. People seem to think that because there aren't any staff online, that it's okay to run around breaking rule after rule. I believe that yes you need to be careful when choosing new staff due to people acting power hungry, controlling and just a bad choice overall for a staff member, but please consider that some of our greatest members on the forums here are some of your most valuable options. And I'm very proud of our staff team so far for the work they do, and I realize that they have lives outside of this game, but we need more staff members to compensate for the amount of time that you are all offline and busy. It isn't really necessary to have a huge team of staff, but at the moment, we do need more. Whether that be 2, 3, 4 or 5 more, anything at this point will be a major improvement, and infact should make it easier when you reopen registration.
2)As Arctic said about the registration, I completely agree. And yes, we have taken into consideration that Raz is still working on things and I'm sure he is dealing with some real life obstacles as well. And that is maybe contributing to the length of time that registration has been down. Not to mention the hack last year adding to the list of problems. But it has still been down for a long while. I know that there was a DeviantArt post you had all put together to explain some of the fixes being implemented, but I think an update as to the progress on the registration opening may ease some minds. Even if it's a short few words from Raz saying that he's still working on it? Like Arctic said, that is just a suggestion ^^
I really do care a lot about this community. I have been coming around a lot more than when I was younger because I really enjoy being around. Right now, i'm going through a very difficult time in my life and I've felt very alone. Even though I don't get on a personal basis with people here, this community has a way of making me feel welcome. I feel like I have the potential to make really great friends here. And I still feel like we have the potential to become the expansive community we were. I know these past months have been difficult as a lot of people have been bringing up this subject, but I really hope that you as a team discuss some of the points we've addressed. Most importantly, know that we appreciate you entirely, we just feel like we have to speak up about this, as so many people have been discussing it and it seems to be a bit of a major issue for our community right now. Thanks for taking the time to read through this.
Edit: Here is the Deviantart Post I mentioned. It lists through the fixes being made.
http://feral-heart-art.deviantart.com/journal/F-A-Q-Guide-to-the-Website-Changes-645695371 (http://feral-heart-art.deviantart.com/journal/F-A-Q-Guide-to-the-Website-Changes-645695371)
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First off, I apologize if some of this doesn't seem to make sense or feels unorganized. I haven't been concentrating well these past few days.
Thank you for bringing this up. I definitely feel the same way as you, and others according to the replies about these couple of issues.
1) I think we're overdue for some new staff members to be trained and put on the task at stopping some of these annoyances that seem to be happening quite a lot.
i spend way too much time here & i barely ever see anyone break the rules TBH. i do see people get upset over petty things though. But those things don't really matter.
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i spend way too much time here & i barely ever see anyone break the rules TBH. i do see people get upset over petty things though. But those things don't really matter.
It doesn't happen too often on the forums. And the times I've seen it ingame, the rule breaks weren't super serious, but they were still bad ones. There was one I saw a few nights ago that was being extremely inappropriate. It was important for me to bring up because people are beginning to think they can get away with whatever because of the staff not being around all the time.
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i spend way too much time here & i barely ever see anyone break the rules TBH. i do see people get upset over petty things though. But those things don't really matter.
It doesn't happen too often on the forums. And the times I've seen it ingame, the rule breaks weren't super serious, but they were still bad ones. There was one I saw a few nights ago that was being extremely inappropriate. It was important for me to bring up because people are beginning to think they can get away with whatever because of the staff not being around all the time.
Normally you just warn them and they stop. You don't even have to look scary or use a harsh tone or anything.
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i spend way too much time here & i barely ever see anyone break the rules TBH. i do see people get upset over petty things though. But those things don't really matter.
It doesn't happen too often on the forums. And the times I've seen it ingame, the rule breaks weren't super serious, but they were still bad ones. There was one I saw a few nights ago that was being extremely inappropriate. It was important for me to bring up because people are beginning to think they can get away with whatever because of the staff not being around all the time.
Normally you just warn them and they stop. You don't even have to look scary or use a harsh tone or anything.
This is true for some cases, though I do know of a lot of cases where the person either doesn't listen or gives an attitude about having to listen instead of just following the rules and listening when asked to stop. Which is why we seem to need more active staff, because this happens a lot of the time that staff are offline, and nobody has any staff online to turn to for any help with rulebreakers.
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Playerbase erosion is still an issue people...
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Playerbase erosion is still an issue people...
We understand this, nobody said it wasn't an issue. Though the fact that the playerbase is ever so slowly getting smaller is based on the fact that registration has been closed - which was mentioned multiple times already.
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Much of the issue relies within its memberbase. But to be honest, a staff members absence does not dictate that you cannot intervene when something inappropriate is happening. Don't shove authority around, but do your duty as a member of Feral Heart because the staff can't do it themselves.
The toxicity floating around is due to big heads, everyone wants to be literate and mature and popular but no one wants to have fun and use the game as it was meant to be used, to make friends, have fun and roleplay. To state that you are a "mature" group means that you are anything but mature in actuality. No, I don't mean elements of gore or sexual violence. The fact that every second group has that in their bio is off putting to begin with.
Yes, registration needs to be addressed, but I believe there are enough staff for the current dwindling memberbase, if not too many. It is up to the loyal members to stand fast and do THEIR duty in creating a safe environment without the emblem of "staff" stitched to their chest. But no, everyone does a good thing and thinks they have a shot at being staff because they help, they report, they make an offer of commitment, but as soon as you are denied, you become as toxic as the others. To create a better community, go to its core. Its members, because that is where the fault will be found.
(I was on my phone when typing this.)
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Much of the issue relies within its memberbase. But to be honest, a staff members absence does not dictate that you cannot intervene when something inappropriate is happening. Don't shove authority around, but do your duty as a member of Feral Heart because the staff can't do it themselves.
The toxicity floating around is due to big heads, everyone wants to be literate and mature and popular but no one wants to have fun and use the game as it was meant to be used, to make friends, have fun and roleplay. To state that you are a "mature" group means that you are anything but mature in actuality. No, I don't mean elements of gore or sexual violence. The fact that every second group has that in their bio is off putting to begin with.
Yes, registration needs to be addressed, but I believe there are enough staff for the current dwindling memberbase, if not too many. It is up to the loyal members to stand fast and do THEIR duty in creating a safe environment without the emblem of "staff" stitched to their chest. But no, everyonr does a hood thing and thinks they have a shot at being staff because they help, they report, they make an offer of commitment, but as soon as you are denied, you become as toxic as the others. To create a better community, go to its core. Its members, because that is where the fault will be found.
I will have to 100% disagree with you due to Hooli & I's experiences lately, which is a big reason why I believe this thread exists.
I sit in The Grounds nearly every day. There are many people who try to quell issues when they come up, but members have absolutely zero authority over other members. So not only can members not make people stop breaking rules or generally being problematic, but if you try to reason with someone, you are normally met with sass & resistance, & an argument ensues. This has happened a ridiculous amount of times to Hooli & I lately in a very short amount of time, because we DO try to calmly deal with people being inappropriate (specifically people using "freedom of speech" to badly excuse rudely stating opinions about other players who are right there).
The better way to resolve the issue is to be able to silently message a staff member, or for one to already be there to take care of it. That way, when things began to hit the fan, there would be someone with authority to stop it. When arguments ensue & there are no staff around to even call, it completely disturbs everyone in Local. People often respond differently to a moderator than they would a regular member because a regular member has no authority over them. But, even if they disagree with a staff member, they have little choice but to comply. If they don't, they get kicked or banned. Either way, the problem stops. I feel that you're greatly undermining the importance of staff & forgetting why they must exist & be around.
Due to the fact that these instances have been happening so frequently due to these egotistical people going on about their "free speech" & no staff have been around to assist in the issue, yes, it is a problem, & I would say that this is indeed a sign to get even just one or two more staff members to fill in time gaps the current ones may be unavailable. It would stop Local from being flooded with arguments quite a bit, as well as other things.
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That is exactly what I"m taking about as well. Regular members are literally treated like trash anymore, just because you ask someone to watch the language or act a bit more appropriate. You're just accused of mini-modding most of the time. IT would be nice to actually have some staff on hand more often so things like that can be dealt with.
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Much of the issue relies within its memberbase. But to be honest, a staff members absence does not dictate that you cannot intervene when something inappropriate is happening. Don't shove authority around, but do your duty as a member of Feral Heart because the staff can't do it themselves.
The toxicity floating around is due to big heads, everyone wants to be literate and mature and popular but no one wants to have fun and use the game as it was meant to be used, to make friends, have fun and roleplay. To state that you are a "mature" group means that you are anything but mature in actuality. No, I don't mean elements of gore or sexual violence. The fact that every second group has that in their bio is off putting to begin with.
Yes, registration needs to be addressed, but I believe there are enough staff for the current dwindling memberbase, if not too many. It is up to the loyal members to stand fast and do THEIR duty in creating a safe environment without the emblem of "staff" stitched to their chest. But no, everyonr does a hood thing and thinks they have a shot at being staff because they help, they report, they make an offer of commitment, but as soon as you are denied, you become as toxic as the others. To create a better community, go to its core. Its members, because that is where the fault will be found.
I will have to 100% disagree with you due to Hooli & I's experiences lately, which is a big reason why I believe this thread exists.
I sit in The Grounds nearly every day. There are many people who try to quell issues when they come up, but members have absolutely zero authority over other members. So not only can members not make people stop breaking rules or generally being problematic, but if you try to reason with someone, you are normally met with sass & resistance, & an argument ensues. This has happened a ridiculous amount of times to Hooli & I lately in a very short amount of time, because we DO try to calmly deal with people being inappropriate (specifically people using "freedom of speech" to badly excuse rudely stating opinions about other players who are right there).
The better way to resolve the issue is to be able to silently message a staff member, or for one to already be there to take care of it. That way, when things began to hit the fan, there would be someone with authority to stop it. When arguments ensue & there are no staff around to even call, it completely disturbs everyone in Local. People often respond differently to a moderator than they would a regular member because a regular member has no authority over them. But, even if they disagree with a staff member, they have little choice but to comply. If they don't, they get kicked or banned. Either way, the problem stops. I feel that you're greatly undermining the importance of staff & forgetting why they must exist & be around.
Due to the fact that these instances have been happening so frequently due to these egotistical people going on about their "free speech" & no staff have been around to assist in the issue, yes, it is a problem, & I would say that this is indeed a sign to get even just one or two more staff members to fill in time gaps the current ones may be unavailable. It would stop Local from being flooded with arguments quite a bit, as well as other things.
I never insinuated that we should call out people publically I said you can intervene, so don't assume so, by intervening, I implied many things, but NEVER did I say that intervening implied calling people out or starting and argument or "going about it calmly" that is up to YOU to decide how YOU intervene. (Reporting, screenshots, etc) I said it was your duty as a member to ensure that the environment we are all in is taken care of. By reporting by INFORMING STAFF, and expecting nothing back, no rewards, no praise. Don't put words into my mouth.
I am there, just as you are, every day, I never bicker with the rule breakers, nor do I say anything because the staff are capable of doing it themselves, but if each good member takes a moment to take a screenshot and send it through, they are more than helping the staff as well as they can, not by shoving their self-entitled authority down the offenders' throat. If the memberbase stops bickering and complaining and actually helping with the simplest things, the toxicity can go away.
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That's just the thing. We DO send in screenshots. We DO make reports. But sometimes they get overlooked. Me (and many other players) do try to help out, and we don't shove anything down anyone's throats. It's not very nice when we just try to remind people of the rules and then THEY go and get all worked up and pick arguments with US.
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That's just the thing. We DO send in screenshots. We DO make reports. But sometimes they get overlooked. Me (and many other players) do try to help out, and we don't shove anything down anyone's throats. It's not very nice when we just try to remind people of the rules and then THEY go and get all worked up and pick arguments with US.
It's never nice, and you shouldn't be in a place to do so, I completely understand. Yes, screenshots get overlooked, we do make reports, but we're all only human too, so perhaps, even if the staff have not replied to your report, or overlooked it, you did what you could. You helped, and unless you feel that you'd be an ample staff member who will look at every single report that is both severe or just someone trying to be prissy about a mishap they had with someone else, by looking closely and deeming the tiniest detail as inappropriate, then by all means.
Unfortunately that is never the case and I'm sure the staff have a hard time deciphering what is actually inappropriate and toxic versus what is actually just one members misfortune with another, and believe me, I have heard of countless ridiculous reasons for people, from my friends, getting reported, countless. Sift through those reports that are sent, perhaps, if you're ever granted that opportunity, its not an easy task. And my heart goes out to the staff that have to deal with that.
Its tough on everyone but I stand fast, do your bit, try and help, it will pay off with time. Patience is a virtue, you know.
P.S: I'm not saying you or anyone is wrong with their opinions. C: I'm just ridiculously relentless during discussions. <3
P.S.P.S: Because I may have implied a finger pointing deal, when I say "you," I'm actually not implying YOU but everyone. :)
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Aye, you're fine. We all have our own opinions. But you make some very good points. And I'll continue helping out. I didn't post this just for myself to try and get a staff position or anything. Just my thoughts on everything in the game. cx
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Aye, you're fine. We all have our own opinions. But you make some very good points. And I'll continue helping out. I didn't post this just for myself to try and get a staff position or anything. Just my thoughts on everything in the game. cx
Oh, no I know you didn't, I'm sure no one is in this thread for that. I was just implying that if one feels so capable of fitting that shoe, then be my guest. xD (Of course, that statement is an especially irrational thought that is highly unlikely, but yeaH/)
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As ArcticGalaxy said, we do report people. Many members report people. However, the issue I am referring to specifically is something that needs to be addressed as it happens. It doesn't matter if you report someone; by the time a staff member would be available, it would have been said & done, unfortunately. I'm mainly talking about someone just being able to simmer issues down as they happen. This issue is the most toxic one, not silly trolls & spammers.
I don't bother with trolls, however it's different when people are being completely serious in Local. Also, as Arctic touched on, we're really just reminding people of the rules, which is about the most any member can do in such a situation. I really wouldn't call that entitled authority; that is mini-modding, which is acting like you are a mod & threatening to get others in trouble. However, people get defensive, & many times those simply trying to remind others of the rules get absolutely ganged up on.
We aren't simply "bickering & complaining" while doing nothing more. Not only do we report people frequently, but we are giving suggestions to possibly help the community. My point still stands due to the specific issue I'm speaking of that we could do with even one or two extra staff members. Obviously, there will always still be problems, but it would be nice.
Edit: Also, to add, having more staff would mean being able to delegate reports more easily, issues could be dealt with sooner, & things would be less likely to be overlooked.
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As ArcticGalaxy said, we do report people. Many members report people. However, the issue I am referring to specifically is something that needs to be addressed as it happens. It doesn't matter if you report someone; by the time a staff member would be available, it would have been said & done, unfortunately. I'm mainly talking about someone just being able to simmer issues down as they happen. This issue is the most toxic one, not silly trolls & spammers.
I don't bother with trolls, however, it's different when people are being completely serious in Local. Also, as Arctic touched on, we're really just reminding people of the rules, which is about the most any member can do in such a situation. I really wouldn't call that entitled authority; that is mini-modding, which is acting like you are a mod & threatening to get others in trouble. However, people get defensive, & many times those simply trying to remind others of the rules get absolutely ganged up on.
We aren't simply "bickering & complaining" while doing nothing more. Not only do we report people frequently, but we are giving suggestions to possibly help the community. My point still stands due to the specific issue I'm speaking of that we could do with even one or two extra staff members. Obviously, there will always still be problems, but it would be nice.
Edit: Also, to add, having more staff would mean being able to delegate reports more easily, issues could be dealt with sooner, & things would be less likely to be overlooked.
I have acknowledged what you and Arctic Galaxy are saying, but it seems I must iterate it again. I understand that everyone does their bit when they can, but patience is a virtue.
People want one or two extra staff members, fair enough, I'll add to that, for it is needed, though not absolutely necessary at the moment. What would need to be considered is delegating staff for the specific time-zones when the usual ones do not come on. However, staff don't leave room for "simmering" down situations, one either conform or one doesn't, there shouldn't be a grey area, and by simmering, I feel that means staff need to spoon feed people into conforming to the rules and refraining from causing a fuss, which shouldn't be necessary in the first place. If this place caters for the age group it does, one shouldn't have to calm a situation down with a staff member, if the staff member gets involved, shush or suffer the consequences.
Or has the authority not been taken so seriously that we may need a counselor to settle our disputes as well? Forgive me if that came out as conniving, but I'm actually being serious in believing that calming or simmering a situation down requires a "delicate" and "understanding" hand. Of course, don't take the statement to heart, its just how I may see it, someone else may see it differently after all. I cannot deny that perhaps a proper mediator may be better than a banhammer.
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I am saying that I don't think patience is solving the issue, which is why I am proposing a different solution.
And I completely agree, the main thing would be having staff members able to be on at varied times of the day.
Rules shouldn't even be necessary, but they are, because people are immature, regardless of how old they may be. I really don't think having staff readily available in-game is "spoon-feeding". They already do this, but I would like for them to collectively be on more & for longer. It's simply more helpful for them to be able to be called to resolve issues directly & immediately instead of going through the slow process of taking a screenshot, sending a report via PM, & then waiting for the problem to be resolved. Either way, they are essentially doing the same thing, but one process takes vastly longer than the other. I don't see being able to immediately solve an issue as "spoon-feeding" while having to resolve it later is something different. Correct me if I'm not understanding you, though.
They also already resolve disputes when they come up. It's not that they aren't taken seriously, but they aren't always around, that is the issue. It's a part of their job to be a mediator, as being one is an important part of keeping the game a friendly place. A ban is not usually necessary, but them just being there to be mediator & authority figure helps.
Edit: Perhaps a further suggestion is to take a page out of IT servers' book & have moderators specifically for the forum & others whose focus is in-game instead of requiring forum activity.
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First off, let me just start this off by mentioning that I've had the pleasure of meeting & befriending a handful of staff throughout the four years that I've been here, and I can tell you that every single one of them had and has the game's best intentions in mind. Those who are appointed to a staffing position aren't there for no reason at all; they're there because they've shown an interest in maintaining the game and are qualified to do so. I understand that some people have their qualms with this whole staffing issues and whatnot, and all that I can say is, yes, it's not perfect, but yes, it does work for a small game like so.
I understand that some of you out there think that you know who would make a good staffer. You see people around the community who help out and care for this game, and yes, you believe they would be a good staff member. You feel as if the system where a current staffer appoints a new staffer has the potential to be biased and power heavy. I can completely understand that. But let me point out that in a way, the community does have a say in who becomes a staff member. For example, MOTS, the praises board, the Floof-O-Meter. These are generally all ways in which the community can show their appreciation towards a member of the community. Am I saying that a mod should be appointed based on these alone? No. But what I am saying is that this isn't a complete hierarchy. There is a hint of democracy where we, as responsible community members, can voice our opinions about potential staffers and lead the current staffers in the right direction.
I do agree that more staff members would work in this game's favor. Not because the game necessarily needs more (I think what we have is sufficient as per staff to user ratio), but because two heads are always better than one. The more people on the staff team, the more ideas, opinions, and beliefs that are likely to be circulating around. Not only will this solve the issue of staff activity (Which I don't see any immediate problem with, by the way), but it will increase the chances of progress for this game.
We need ideas. Nothing in this world lasts for long without new ideas. Why do you think Apple keeps coming out with a new iPhone each year? Or why do you think Sony has to keep making PlayStations? All for the same reasons. We as humans are inclined to get board without change. So when the net loss of interest starts to override the net gain of interest, then it's time to change something. And that's what happened. The staff recognized the potential decrease and interest and released a wonderful new update for us all. It took a long time for the community to get used to, but it's working. The fact that there are people desperate to register means that there is a surge of new players who are now interested. Show a person a polished diamond, and they'll take it. Show them a raw diamond, and they're call it a rock.
We need a revolution of ideas, not so much better staff or better players.
We also need to shift our minds away from this whole staff obsession complexion. I understand it's natural to want power. There are some members out there who are and will always be fighting for power, recognition, and popularity with little to no actual care for the game. But this whole community has let it get to their heads. We need to stop craving power and become more genuine. We need to see the staff as people just like you and I. They are no greater than the rest of us just because they have the power to moderate. Revering them like gods and goddesses is a kind of ridiculous manner to go about things. If you want to be popular so bad, then work towards it in other means. I know plenty of people who became "popular" in this game by simply being talkative or friendly, or by running a successful group, etc. But really, popularity here is fabricated. There is no real gain besides perhaps a simple feel good. And if it is a feel good that you are seeking, why not cause that emotion through other means besides popularity, such as through a good role-play, making new friends, etc.
As far as the immaturity that is occurring in game: speak up. There is nothing wrong with telling someone to stop something that you think might be against the rules. When the staff aren't around to stop it, then you need to be a productive and responsible community member and work to stop it. And if they don't listen to you and continue, then so what? At least you tried, and at which point you can escalate the issue to a staffer. I think it was pointed out in a post above that escalating it to a staff member doesn't always seem to work. But how do you know that? How do you know that it gets overlooked? Just because you don't see action taken against the problem causer doesn't mean that your concern wasn't taken into consideration. The staff might have deemed the issue not a serious enough offense for action, or they are in the process of confronting the agitator in order to solve the issue.
I'd also like to point out that this game is meant for children. Although most of the users here seem to be in their teens or early 20s, this is in fact a game intended for a younger audience. The privacy policy even entails that it is a 13+ game. So if you are aware that this game has a younger audience, then be prepared for immaturity. Younger people don't always know better, but it doesn't give us older players a reason to get all frustrated and angry. Patience is of a virtue, and it can really come in handy when dealing with agitators, especially those who do not have the same sense of maturity that you possess.
I'd like to conclude with a simple statement: We are a community. We do things together, and we are responsible for where we want this game to go. In the end, it's up to us to decide the future for this game. We can decide if we want to strive as a community. To strive to be entrepreneurs, to be inventors, to be problem solvers, to be do-gooders. We can also decide if we want to strive to be immature, to be complainers, to be arguers, to be fighters. The choice is entirely up to us. The more we come to terms with this, the sooner we can put our heads together in order to do the ultimate good for this game. I hope I was coherent to all reading my argument here. Thank you for listening.
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First off...
Your post confuses me. We know the staff want the best & work hard, & no one said any specific criteria for which to choose staff, just that there are people who would be qualified. Yes, many things go into considering someone as staff for anything. We need more ideas yes, but there is not much you can do with FH without the source. I'm not so much the one discussing the registration being closed, though it has been a considerably long time.
Who has a "staff obsession complexion"? Who in this thread is seeing the staff as gods? We see the staff as people; Hooli knows several of them. I am simply acknowledging that by definition, staff have authority over other users, meaning people will actually listen to them, even if they do not listen to other users' requests. Who wants to be popular in this thread? Who is power-hungry? Who said the system of staff picking more staff is biased & power-heavy? I don't have a problem with it.
Also, did you read our previous posts? We have already discussed that we report users as well as tell them if they are doing something against the rules. And I am assuming Arctic is speaking of not getting a response, or perhaps seeing someone running around still doing whatever rule-breaking they were doing before. Regardless of what the staff decide to do, the one giving the report needs some sort of feedback to know whether the issue has been dealt with, or if the staff don't see the issue as against the rules, or what.
The people I'm talking about in terms of toxic behavior are around 15-18 years old. I'm not frustrated with children being children. But yes, immaturity is expected. It's expected in literally any video game community. That's why I said rules unfortunately must exist & why it's a good idea to have quite a few in-game moderators. Patience doesn't do anything when people are hurting other people's feelings & everyone is arguing. Having in-game moderators who are around during the busy hours of the day, however, does.
I can't tell if you're talking to us directly or just in general, because you're bringing up a lot of things we didn't mention at all, or things we already said we do. Sorry if I come off as rude, I don't mean to, I'm just a little confused as to why you mentioned a lot of things you did.
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thanks for the nazo. sometimes people come in here rushing in and not fully understanding the conversation; blurting and complaining about things that have not really been touched on or not at all. i do not want to come off completely rude, but it gets on my nerve when something is shut down simply for one misunderstanding.
the misunderstandings; in game and out, have gone way too far.
i suggest that the staff implement "mini-mods." people with a smaller amount of power but the ability to kick and warn players. it would be easier to have a larger amount of them; and if the staff worries about "power-hungry" people then they wouldn't be able to get too much. if one of them is a troll, it'd be easy to remove the status of power, and eventually a genuine and active team of mini mods would be readily available to make the situation come down quiet.
i'm willing to converse if my opinion has anything wrong with it that i haven't discussed enough. i tend to be straight and to the point, and so i miss details often.
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I feel as though this thread is going in a circle and that a bit of animosity is breaking loose...
However, I think BoxTox is on to something. I have seen the Forum Moderators, and "Mini-Mods," though the Mini-Mods here are on the forum itself and run the child boards for their respective groups and nothing more. Perhaps this can be transferred in-game as well, without the whole running of specific groups thing to entail. But also, staff don't necessarily have to have the power to ban or kick people off the bat, they can be perfectly capable of enforcing authority without those additions as well. Think of them more as.... ambassadors? Perhaps you can enforce muting as a soft ban, so if someone is saying inappropriate or rude things about something or someone, an "ambassador" could have that ability. The duration can be anywhere from an hour to forever.
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What's all this reporting talk about? i never report anyone.
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What's all this reporting talk about? i never report anyone.
If you're referring to what I said, I was mainly speaking for myself, Hooli, & Arctic.
As for "mini-mods" (the name would likely need to be something else due to the original usage being negative/to avoid confusion), I'm not sure. I have no idea how the staff go about picking & training other staff. I'd think choosing someone they know is highly responsible & trustworthy is enough to make them a regular moderator. I also say this since I don't think there is a power to simply mute someone, so for them to have any sort of moderating abilities it'd just be kicking, & that alone only seems so useful. Maybe it'd be enough to get a point across in tame situations.
I'm curious to know how the staff feel about this subject & if they would consider switching something up in regards to choosing staff, & if so what they would do. It's not that I feel FH is burning to the ground, but perhaps something to consider to make things run more smoothly.
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I am very glad you stood up for this Azura!
I've been awaiting someone to speak up for mods not actually doing their job and sort of slacking.
As new players come in more people will act in certain ways. And we have a lack of mods on the FH community, And I would adore you or even me to become a mod; And petrol the FH community.
I wish good luck to the FH community and the new players to come.
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I'm really glad you guys are keeping this civil. Makes me proud of some of the members in this community!
But mainly why this thread is honestly going "in circles" is because of the issues being addressed. However, why not suggest new ideas besides the two I had? FeralHeart needs all the ideas it can get honestly. However....what other ideas are their besides opening registration? We can't do another update. And....what else is there?
I'm not saying there isn't any other ideas, but I'm simply not thinking hard enough for them. xD
But all of your opinions are valued, and I appreciate all of you.
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Thank you for bringing up this topic, Arctic. +floof
Not a day goes by where I am not faced with the fact that there there is a bunch of rulebreakers online and no mods at hand to deal with them. It's not like the staff haven't considered some people but there are usually a few reasons why potential MIT's do not actually become MIT's. Being a mod is not a full time job and you don't get paid for it. They work for free to help everyone and make the game a better place fo everyone to play on. They deserve their freedom to play the game before everything, but I'm not saying that this is an excuse to don't monitor the game at all.
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I personally believe that once when registration is opened once again, then things will change for the better. It's the fact that ever since November of last year with the unfortunate events that occurred, requiring the introduction of the login tab, it has been a big part of the lack of members. Although I know that the login tab is of course implemented for our safety, it has caused a lot of members problems connecting to the servers. Now with the registration being closed there is no way for new members to join. Once when the registration is back up and running however it should be up to us, the FH community, to introduce anyone who could be interested to the game. Tell our friends, post it every where online. Whatever we do, if we want FH to become as active as it used to be along with friendly members and watchful new faces of the staff team, we need to promote FH as best we can. On to the topic of the lack of online staff, I do as well see very little activity of staff members online, but we all know that they have lives behind the screen, as we all do. To fix this it would be nice to see new faces to the staff team, faces that can be trusted, responsible, and active. No matter, I still do enjoy FH and it will always have a special place in my heart. I hope it will last for many more years to come!
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I know I haven't posted on here in awhile, but I almost 100% agree.
FH definitely needs some new staff. Even if all the current staff ARE working hard, and I'm sure they are, a lot of them don't really... publically display that, I suppose. Obviously staff don't need to keep all of their moderating duties out in the public, since I'm guessing a lot of the staff deal with more reports and technical things instead of being out in the maps moderating. (Keep in mind I don't know the staff, so of course I don't know what they're doing, so these are all just assumptions). But, I feel a lot of things need to be looked at from the perspective of an average player or even just a person who just learned about Feralheart. If someone were to come on here and see that the staff were rarely on and that people are breaking the rules left and right in-game (as I've read earlier in this thread), it gives off the wrong impression. Though people like the regular forum-goers might recognize that the staff are just dealing with more 'behind the scenes' things, its possible a random user would just see that the staff are inactive or don't care about the game. This might even make them more likely to break rules. From there, rumors can spread, and I know a lot of people think the game is completely dead already or that the staff have just left/don't care.
I've been on some other game websites lately, so I've been able to see some staff systems that are run differently than FH's. I really think that some new staff need to be added to the team, especially some people who have different time-zones and could be on when the other mods aren't. Heck, I think mod applications might even need to be a thing, instead of just the staff occasionally picking out someone. Maybe even helpers, though I understand why that's been shot down in the past, so that's probably not likely. But I guess I just feel like the current system used to pick staff members might need a bit of changing in some way.
One more thing I'd like to bring up, albeit maybe a bit controversial... I'd really like to see more communication between the staff and members. I think that the opinions of the playerbase need to be paid more attention to, and that we should know about big changes being made before they're implemented, and have enough time to voice our opinions on it and argue against it if need be. And even now, I know a lot of players feel like they're just being kept in the dark, and it makes a lot of people feel powerless, like that they don't really matter. I don't think the staff have any malicious intent here, but it just feels like the members don't really have a say in what happens or that they can do anything about it. And I feel like this is why a lot of the negative opinions and rumors surrounding Feralheart have gotten started. I was pretty happy to see that FAQ thread on the FH deviantart, though, that's kinda what I'm talking about. Letting members know exactly what is happening like that before it's finished is definitely a step in the right direction!
Sorry, this is kinda a ramble and jumbled mess of my thoughts, but basically I just think that more staff would be nice and that there needs to be more communication between staff and members on what's actually happening, and pay more attention to the concerns of the playerbase. Hopefully this isn't taken the wrong way, I respect the staff and what they're doing, though I just feel a few things could be improved.
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I'm afraid there's not a lot I can say about this other than that I agree with Azzy (Azura). All the way.
tbh all I can suggest here is a mass Signal Boost, since The People Up Top need to see this!!
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I've been watching this thread for a while and decided to drop my thoughts in here. I think it's important to say first that as far as a few of your concerns,
You are not wrong.
While I have to disagree with a few of your points, I agree with others. I think you've brought this up in a very mature manner, which I respect and appreciate. The concerns you've brought up are very valid and not something I, or any of the other staff members, take lightly. I feel like much of what is written here is with good intent, but I hope I'm able to clear up or at least shed a bit of light on your worries. I will probably skip around on a few points but try to address this as thoroughly as possible. I can only speak so much for the other staff members, but here's what I know to be true.
Yes, we do need active staff. Members of the community are what everything is surrounded by, but the truth is that we are always looking for a helping hand. We always are, and this isn't breaking news. As for actually choosing someone to be part of the team-- there is a lot more that goes on behind the scenes that is not always shining in bright lights. We have discussed members in the game and on the forum who we have considered to be potential MITS. There are reasons why we choose not to offer this position to just anyone-- even people you may think deserve it. The position of a MIT is not an award that is given to people who deserve it, it's about keeping our eyes on a person(s) whom we believe will be able to uphold the responsibilities, principles, and the weight of taking care of a community as a staff member. These are two very different things, and it can be hard for some people to see this. Whether you believe yourself to be a qualified member to join the team or see someone around the game/forum whom you think should be given the position, this does not make them qualified. Simply being nice or friendly does not always qualify. There are discussions about a user's background, maturity, activity, and other things that go beyond simply seeing someone and thinking they would do good. You should know that no MIT is chosen by approval of one staff member-- all of this is carefully discussed, while one user may be suggested as a potential MIT, it's out of the best interest that most of the team agrees that said user might be a good addition. I will say this in the most honest way that I can, but there are things that we take into consideration that may have never even crossed your mind. If you step into a staffers shoes and think "what would I look for in a staff member, to represent this community and uphold its values?", you may find yourself spending time thinking about a large list of things-- perhaps things you hadn't really thought about before. Perhaps you have, but that is one way to look at it. You may find that "active" and "friendly", even "helpful", aren't the only things on the list. You might find a few other qualities on that list, and of course, the list will be different for everybody. Obviously, this general "list" is not completely realistic, and there will always be flaws to everyone, but there's a different way to look at it. I don't look at potential MITS in a list-format, but if that helps anyone put it into perspective a bit, you may find this helpful. I think the first step to understand where we-- the staff- is coming from is to look at it in a way where you can see yourself in the same position. We carefully consider potential MIT options. This is not something we take lightly. We spend much time keeping tabs on users we think would have a good shot at joining the team, perhaps even as we speak. I cannot ask for you to look at this in the way that I do, but if you are taking it merely at face value, not much effectiveness will come from it. While I cannot speak for myself on this (I have not experienced much of this, myself, as I have not been a staff member for all of these situations), we have had many staff members in the past who have joined this team with seemingly high hopes who have turned out to do quite the opposite of good for the community, people whom were trusted with the responsibility of a staff member. I will say that we are probably a bit more strict in choosing MITS in recent days. If you allow people you don't know well enough or trust on the team, however, it can end up doing you more worse than good. EVEN IF someone if very active, this doesn't necessarily qualify them to be a good potential MIT. We are willing to give people chances, but they have to show us that they are capable. In most cases, we aren't looking for people to try and be what we think a good MIT would be, some of it is just natural qualities, things that aren't always done intentionally or with a mind to become a MIT. This is not just about activity, and this is a point I'm going to nail through. Activity is important, but it's not the only quality we look for when choosing a MIT. I would, personally, rather have a lower staff count than have a staff team filled with people who I do not have faith in. In all regards, this hopefully does not have to be an either-or situation, and we can find a nice balance in between.
Staff need to understand that not all of the people that actually volunteer to be staff are just looking for power. Many of us genuinely care for this game and just want to see it succeed again, and they want to help the game achieve that. If you all are so worried about being short staffed, I would think you would appreciate it anyway.
Here is the thing-- a staff position is not something you volunteer for. On other games and websites, this may be how they do things, but from how things have gone in the past, the last thing we need is people whom we aren't sure about joining the team. I understand that many truly are just wanting to help, but that does not mean we are going to go around and just give powers to take action in game to people we are not certain if they would be responsible to utilize properly. The only thing worse than having few staff members is having many users abuse their responsibility and powers in a way that hurts the game. While I'm sure that the majority here has everyone's interest at heart, this is something we simply cannot take a risk on. It's not pointed and it's not a nab at offending anyone, I'm simply stating how, realistically, I don't think this is a good option. A few comments here and there have suggested that we change the way we choose MITs-- I would have to disagree. There is nothing bad, in my eyes, about having a system set up where we feel confident, or as confident as we can, about the people we offer the MIT position of. There was some talk of offering "mini-mod" positions, and I believe there was some use of this in the past, and it didn't turn out well. The problem with mini-modding is that it gives people the power a staff member would have (or limited power) without being properly trained or monitored. If we are giving such a position away, we might as well offer them a MIT position. The cycle circles back around-- it's not about not wanting new people, it's about carefully choosing those we think would be capable of the position. Those who will be offered the position must prove it, even if they are not trying to prove anything at all. We're looking for people who are capable, reliable, dependable, active, friendly, yes, but we don't offer MIT positions if we do not see this in someone. For those who may not know about the thread, we have a general guideline for what we look for in a staff member here (http://www.feral-heart.com/smf/index.php?topic=21992.0).
I do think the Registration is a contributing factor. It's well known that the Registration brings in new users, and as soon as that is cut off, there are no new people joining. I think that once we are able to open it up, there will indeed be new members who join. I feel like I have already made the point on a few other threads that we're still looking to fix the Registration, so I will not regurgitate that onto you. I chatted with Raz a while ago, and he has said that we (or rather-- he) physically has to rebuild the Registration in order to open it. Raz needs time to build it.
For those of you who are concerned with the lack of staff activity: Yes, we have a few staff members who are MIA or have taken time off. It is their responsibility to inform the community if they will be absent (one week is one thing, but if we're talking 2-3+ weeks, they need to take the decency to inform our userbase of their absence). If you have messaged a staff member and they have not responded back, and if they are MIA but have not properly left a note in the Leaving board or in their profile, this is a concern, and you have every right to message an active staffer about this. The active staffer you message will bring up this concern with the staff members who failed to properly inform people about their absence, and it will be addressed.
For those who are concerned about troublesome offenses in-game without staff being online, we have said before, yes, we cannot be in every map 24/7. This seems to be generally understood, so I won't repeat it again. Indeed, it would be helpful to have active staff patrolling around to keep an eye on things whenever possible. As I said before, some of our staff team is MIA-- whether it be for vacations to spend with family during the holidays, time for work, etc.) which is why you have been seeing fewer of some staff members. I make a point to log into the game every day, to the best of my abilities, so if one were to say that no staff is ever online is just not true. We could always use more helping paws, and active staff will always be better than inactive staff. For those who think that the behavior is worse off than it was before the update, I should bring up a point that The Grounds is now quite the most popular map-- whereas, the activity was a bit more spread previously between Fluorite, Bonfire, Ficho, etc., you will naturally notice more noise in The Grounds because all of those users who used to be spread out are now in one map. Three maps worth of chatter and bursting energy into one is going to be something. This doesn't mean that there are more trouble-makers, you just see them a bit more, y'know? This doesn't mean that there aren't more, but this doesn't mean that there are.
I never insinuated that we should call out people publically I said you can intervene, so don't assume so, by intervening, I implied many things, but NEVER did I say that intervening implied calling people out or starting and argument or "going about it calmly" that is up to YOU to decide how YOU intervene. (Reporting, screenshots, etc) I said it was your duty as a member to ensure that the environment we are all in is taken care of. By reporting by INFORMING STAFF.
It seems that there is quite some talk of reporting, so I want to talk about that. To make it very clear, the best way to handle a situation, if you actually want something to be done for it, is to screenshot and send a report to staff. Whether some simply don't know about this or feel like it is not direct and to the point, a report is always better (or I should say effective) than acting on your own. Whether you choose to screenshots and then proceed to say something in the chat, that is fine. But if you genuinely want the best for the community-- for that user to be taken care of-- a report will always be best. If you believe that your report is being overlooked, we are never disregarding it. I have never looked at a report and turned my head away. If you send in a report, I will either thank you for the report, ask questions if needed, etc. If I don't reply to a message you've sent, I either have a very good reason for not responding, I'm away, or your message didn't send through. I personally don't know other staff member's policy on responding to messages, but I would hope they take the time to respond and thank you for your report, as well. If you have reported a user and see them running around the next day, it's possible that we did not find the action deemed enough to take action. Sometimes we message the user personally, you cannot ascertain that we have done nothing beyond the report. To say that we have looked at the screenshot and done nothing is usually not true, from everything that I know. We always view our reports with care and carefully analyze them. If you are wanting a staff member to tell you whether or not the report you sent in is report-worthy, we will either inform you or say thank you, and leave it at that. Some staff members prefer to be more detailed about it, but you must understand that a lot of what a staff member decides when it comes to a report is not to be shared with anyone but the user who was reported.If you feel like you are in the dark in terms of how long an action is placed on them or even if you ask, "did you do anything about the user?", this is not something we should be sharing with you, as it is considered private information. If you send in the report, we will assess it and take care of it from there. Just doing that is a BIG help. It is considerably more helpful to us than someone telling someone what they did wrong in the game. We appreciate it significantly. You can help besides having the position of a staff member. We really do appreciate you taking the time to send in reports. You do not have to send in a report if you don't want to, but we do appreciate it.
If your concerns are with the fact that you shouldn't have to send in a report and that no staff members are online to message, this is true at times. I have to agree that I would like to see more staff member active and in those maps. While some offenses are best met with immediate action (a staff member dealing with the situation as it happens) rather than waiting until a few hours to a day or so until receiving a report, usually, a report does just fine. We take care of the situation, whether we are choosing to place limits that keep them off of the game, and if the situation needs attention, it WILL be handled. Please don't hesitate to send in a report. Most staff should respond to their inboxes in a reasonable amount of time, but moving onto that...
Bringing up the concerns about staff members who do overlook your reports or don't look in their inboxes-- that worries me. It's one thing for a staff member to be busy or away (as mentioned before, they should clarify this in their profile asking to message other staff members or in a thread), but it is another to neglect their duties. If you are very certain that you have sent in reports to a staff member and notice that they haven't been online for weeks, this is troublesome. Staff have a right to take time off, but they should properly inform you if this is the case. If you notice this happening, I would ask that you do two things. 1.) Message an active staff member concerning your report. If you know that a staff member is away, there is no use trying to message them instead of someone you see active, although it is your choice. 2.) Let an active staff member know which staffer you messaged and have not heard a response from. A matter of days is one thing. Please don't message another staff member about a report if it's only been a few days since you've reported, unless it has been weeks. If it has been weeks, nudge an active staff member, and we will address that concern with the staffer who is neglecting their inboxes (which I hope is not the case).
To sum everything up-- yes, we always need new staff members. It's not as simple as it looks. We are still looking, so please don't think that we have disregarded this thought. The Registration does need to open. The staff team physically cannot do this without Raz physically building it again, so we're just as stuck as you are, until we fix this. I've probably forgotten a few other points, but I'm happy to address any other concerns here. I might look through some of the comments and respond to those, as well. I appreciate you bringing up these concerns, and I hope you understand that we do consider them. Sometimes we cannot speak much about things if we aren't sure where it's headed yet, or when it comes to matters such as the MIT process, as that is more private info, only to be discussed with the MIT. I believe most of you have best interests at your heart, and I know it's hard to see things come and go in the community, some good and some not so much. We're doing what we can with what we have, and I don't want you to think that we are neglecting you or anyone-- whether it's purposefully or without knowledge.
Guys, I want to mention something, too. You can message us, personally. If you feel like a staff member is not doing a good job (and this doesn't mean if you have harsh feeling toward a staff member and simply don't like them), if there is a valid concern about a staff member's activity, or something you want to bring up that is probably a bit too personal/private to mention in a thread, you can address this concern to us. You don't have to make a big thread about it. Threads are fine, too, but the idea that we will only respond if it's in a big thread is not true. We do care about your thoughts and we do listen.
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I have to say, I agree so very much to this.
We need new faces. We need more staff. I know its hard for them to pick new people, as to be fair. But by doing nothing, they look even worse. The game needs more players for all the hours.
Whenever this topic used to get brought up, someone would always shut it down and change the topic. And by a good person to be chosen, I mean someone who works hard, has put good hours into the game and wants to see this game continue to prosper. Not just someone that is a friend to the mod. Because then that's just unfair when they only choose their own friends. We need more people like you. Flat out honest on that. I've seen how you are in the game, and you are astounding for what you do. We need more players like you.
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I have to say, I agree so very much to this.
We need new faces. We need more staff. I know its hard for them to pick new people, as to be fair. But by doing nothing, they look even worse. The game needs more players for all the hours.
Whenever this topic used to get brought up, someone would always shut it down and change the topic. And by a good person to be chosen, I mean someone who works hard, has put good hours into the game and wants to see this game continue to prosper. Not just someone that is a friend to the mod. Because then that's just unfair when they only choose their own friends. We need more people like you. Flat out honest on that. I've seen how you are in the game, and you are astounding for what you do. We need more players like you.
I'm very glad you think that Cas. Actually honored. But I am not what this game needs apparently. I'll continue being there but.....eh.....
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Hmm, if I had a dollar a FeralHeart user brought this up, on-site and off, I would be wealthy.
Sometimes the community and it's userbase can be fake. I am talking about the users who blame the staff for being "corrupted." Once in a rare while, it is a user who was active and well-liked within the community. You will see this EVERYWHERE. People who were ashamed of what they did and were punished for, so they go straight to blame.
FeralHeart is not necessarily dying down if you think about it. We still have an open forum that is constantly posting new things everyday, and there is still an abundance of players running around and spitting out lines right and left. The server hasn't crashed or been hacked lately, people aren't having major problems, and if they do they will either stick around the forums or find a solution.
However, there will always be those who grow out of the game. Yes, that happens, whether you like it or not, you will too. It is a part of growing up, and it will happen eventually. Even the staff will, knowing from prior staff members that left to pursue collage and whatnot. Honestly, everyone needs a break once and a while, even if they do not come back in years time. Speaking for those who joined back in 2011 and made a newer account in 2015, there will always be a time where you need to refresh yourselves.
Though, the community isn't as healthy as it could be. There can be the occasional disagreement, quarrel, or nonsense about. Yet, like I said, that sort of thing happens and will happen no matter where. We should only focus on ourselves, meaning FeralHeart as a whole. If there happens to be a traitor in the bunch, then so be it. Do not fuel the fire and it will die out.
Ahh, there is my two-cents.
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I have sat here and literally read through every single reply on this thread. There are so many valid points being made here but also some assumptions and misunderstood statements... I hope to be able to clear some things up here. I apologize if I miss any points as there is a lot being addressed here.
Firstly I'd like to thank you all for your care for this community. Regardless of how one has presented their ideas or opinions here it is apparent that you all share a love and deep concern for this game and it's community. The fact that you all took the time to share your thoughts and discuss things honestly speaks volumes. The staff here at Feral Heart hear you and respect you all and appreciate the continued devotion this community has to its preservation but overall betterment. So thank you all for helping us do our best.
1.) There seems to be a consensus that Feral Heart is in need of more staff power:
This I agree with. We can never have enough staff for this game. There are many hours in a day and many maps that need monitoring throughout the day. As of right now we are severely short staffed, although I do strongly believe that our current staff make an incredibly commendable effort at managing things around here (the FH game, site, Tumblr, and DeviantArt.) Though we may be few we are prideful of the standard of quality that our staff hold true.
And quality is what we value here most.
Quality over quantity.
Quality is why we take our time to do everything from selecting staff to the slow but steady process of renovating the site. We want to provide the community with only the best that we can manage. If we simply focus on filling the empty spaces we will never focus on cultivating and growing the few good staff we do have to their full potential.
2.) The staff fail to see and appoint qualified users to staff positions:
Qualification for a FH staff position is different in everyone's mind. Qualities that staff may seek and value, other users may not see as necessary. Qualities that staff may consider negative may be overlooked by others... and this is often why it seems as though staff are "failing" to see "potential".
I guarantee you that every user with a decent amount of "staff material" potential has been observed and scrutinized by the staff at one point or another. The problem we most often come across when we've sifted down a good few candidates is their age. We have an age limitation for a very good reason and we intend to uphold that requirement no matter how qualified the user may seem in all other avenues.
Other issues that arise are the users rate of activity, general interest in the community, attitude towards others, understanding of the game, maturity, etc.
Managing Feral Heart is a huge responsibility. It's not just about being a good person. It's about understanding and balancing the needs of the community but also the game & server. It's about making time and investing your efforts fully. It's about teamwork but also leadership. It's about sacrifice and understanding that things will not always work out but trying your hardest to see it through for the best of everyone. It's about good and bad times...
and so much more.
Many of these concepts aren't fully tangible unless you've worked directly with Feral Heart and you know what's required. This is why at the end of it all it's the staffs' final decision who becomes staff from what the community recognizes and offers as it's best.
At first glance some users may seem qualified but at the end of the day they fall short as they involve themselves in petty dramas in the community, lie about ages, pretend to care, etc... Truth is most like to gild themselves and aren't all they try to prove the community out to be. It's the staff's job to see through that... and that's why we value few but quality staff.
3.) The staff only select friends to be staff:
Not true.
Back when I was asked to be a member of the staff I was not friends with any of the staff team. I knew who was who and respected them as individuals and strangers but we were not friends. Back then the staff team was Red, BigSkippy, Ramine, Wolffox, Delay, and Crin. In fact I didn't think I'd get along with a number of them not because they were mean, because they weren't, but because they seemed to have personalities incompatible with mine. Of course as I came to work with them I grew to understand some of them better, and even befriend some but that was because we were a team.
What staff do try to do is befriend users they see potential in so that they may get to know them better, get more comfortable with them, and feel the person's qualities out. This is what I think people mistake as staff only picking their friends as staff.
Truth is we aren't going to elect strangers into such a delicate place in the community either. So no we don't select friends for staff positions, but we do try to get to a level of friendship with potential "staff material" users.
4.) You have to be a member of the staff for anything to happen or change in the community:
Again not true. I don't understand why people think that a staff title gives them any more or any less "power" or say in the community. If you care about the community that is all that should matter regardless of what position you hold in the community. You don't have to be a staff member to influence the community. Look at this thread itself, it's not written by a staff member. Most of the replies here aren't by staff members but it's threads like these because of users like you all that influence the staff to do and think differently. We staff are here for the community. We represent the entire community. We staff depend on YOU.
So when users get upset and say that they're not being recognized for their potential and what they can offer it's untrue. Worst is when users quit simply because they worked so hard to get noticed, to get a staff position but it never came. This just proves the point that some "qualified" users aren't exactly "staff material" if they don't see any use in standing by the community unless they have a staff position.
There's so much more that needs to be said and can be said here by me... but I'll leave it at my main point.
Quality is what we need and work hard for. It's why we take our time with the site update as we did with the game "update" itself. We don't want to rush things simply because there's empty spaces that could be filled or because we want things a certain way already. Part of being a staff member is patience and understanding that the game and server has its own needs just as the community does. Quality can't be rushed. We must all make sacrifices like (ex: keeping registration down for now) while other things are worked out. Staff are as much a Feral Heart user as anyone else and we too are eager for progress, but we have to be understanding.
Things will come together again in due time... in the meantime it's our job to stand by Feral Heart as we make our way into this transition. Bumpy journey or not, Feral Heart has had its ups and downs and it's the collective community and staff strength and support that pulls it all through.
<3
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This is a really well-thought out reply, Sura. I really appreciate your thoughts on the issue and I'm glad you agree on some of the points made here.
4.) You have to be a member of the staff for anything to happen or change in the community:
Again not true. I don't understand why people think that a staff title gives them any more or any less "power" or say in the community. If you care about the community that is all that should matter regardless of what position you hold in the community. You don't have to be a staff member to influence the community. Look at this thread itself, it's not written by a staff member. Most of the replies here aren't by staff members but it's threads like these because of users like you all that influence the staff to do and think differently. We staff are here for the community. We represent the entire community. We staff depend on YOU.
I believe when people say they feel you have to be a member of the staff for anything to happen, they mean when dealing with the community. Often, when someone is breaking a rule or doing something they shouldn't be in local and a member with no power whatsoever asks them to stop, they will not listen because the person asking them to stop isn't staff. We can send in reports yes, but it's always best to at least tell the person breaking the rules to stop so that they don't continue to break rules until a staff member sees the report, y'know? It's just unfortunate that people don't listen even when asked nicely if the person asking is not a staff member.
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All points Sura and Nynx made are very valid answers, and I appreciate them taking the time to read through all of the responses and responding to this themselves.
But what Hooli just said is exactly what I mean. I know we don't have to be a staff to help guide the community. That is not what I meant. It's just hard to help guide the community when the players you are trying to help just turn on you and tear your throat out saying "You aren't a mod! We don't have to listen to you! You're just mini-modding!" and they just show you complete disrespect and disregard for the rules. No matter WHAT position you have on FH.
But all I honestly have to say is, I made this thread for a reason. And it was NOT because I thought it would give me a chance at a staff position. I know most of you probably don't think that (I HOPE most of you don't think that) It was because I have watched the community for the past year and I've seen its downfall. No, it's not falling apart completely as of now, but how everything is right now isn't exactly good for the game. But I really hope that things DO get done and things get better. I WANT this game to succeed. I WANT to stick around and help guide the community. This is the only reason for this post. It was not to attack the staff at all. I have high respect for them, even though there are times I wish things would kinda work differently among them, but that is not my place. That is their own thing to do, and I have no wish to undermine them.
I knew in the back of my mind that this post would further ruin any chance I myself had of becoming a staff, but honestly that was ruined long ago by some drama I got involved in. But if that was my main goal, to become a staff, why would I have kept going on and helping the community after all of that? It's because I CARE about this game. I don't CARE if I'm a staff or not. And I made this post to bring up some suggestions, not because I thought it would somehow better my own chances. I am not that way, and I feel terrible that I've led some (NOT ALL) people to believe that, and that I'm being seen as a power-hungry person just wanting fame in the community.
And I know you don't mean anything by it Sura, but no, I didn't "leave" because all of my hard work didn't pay off and I didn't get a staff position. And all this post had in my decisions is the fact that I'm embarrassed about bringing it up when it was really not my place to do so. This all probably would have been better left unsaid, and I am deeply sorry. But for the most part, it is the community and how nasty it is becoming. I love to help out, but when I try and get met with nothing but sass and disrespect, even though I'm not a staff, it hurts. It makes me feel like I'm not doing good enough. And I just hate seeing a game I love so much becoming a toxic waste dump for lack of better words.
I DO believe that this game can change. I never meant to really say it won't. I called this game trash more for the trashy community, not the game itself.
These are my final words on this matter. Once again, I am truly sorry for bringing this whole topic up, and I'm sorry for being an immature brat about the whole thing. I've let FeralHeart down yet again, and I'm not really sure I can pull myself out of this hole this time around. I just really hope that this game can get situated and start getting better. And I would be honored to help out in any way I can, for any staff, old and new alike.
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I'm suprised on how mature everyone has taken this. If this was taken to actual in game it would be taken as something immature and not have had this big discussion.
I agree with Hooli's and Arctict's points that the community should be taken more seriously like the mods. As we are the ones who are playing and experience more; I am not saying the mods don't realize what is happening in game, But as in maps like Cherika and Seaside, I have seen such a lack of mods; And yes, I know Grounds is the most popular place and has to be the most 'clean'. But there will still be innocent children roaming about and exploring FH. If there were some people like mods patroling the areas, I think it would make the community a nicer place.
This is most likely going to be the last thing I say on this topic.
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I feel like there isn't much left here that I can say, though this post in particular by Arctic really made me think-
But I really hope that things DO get done and things get better. I WANT this game to succeed. I WANT to stick around and help guide the community.
This alone is what will keep this community afloat. Not the game, the game will live on for as long as Raz can keep the server up and new people keep joining. The community, however, is another case.
You, Arctic, along with many others have said that the community is turning toxic, but this is not just because of the staff situation, the staff are not the key solution to this community's many problems and some of you need to realize that if you haven't already. What I mean is that you can't just sit around and wait for the staff to fix everything and make this game what it used to be. I have nothing against the staff at all. I have not interacted with the majority of them but from what I've seen they are not bad people, and the ones that we have at the moment do their job well. But think about it: eight people alone cannot turn a community of thousands of people around and make them "good" again. Which brings as back to "we need more staff" and "people won't listen to us anyway".
Yes, we need more staff. Yes, they have stated that they are looking for more, and from what it seems they are being careful about it which is very smart.
No, people won't always listen to you. That's why you have to keep trying. No, I'm not just talking about how when you tell someone to stop doing something in-game and they call you a mini-mod. I'm talking about how giving up on this community and leaving won't do anything. Do you want this game to change? Then change it. Making this thread was not a mistake in the slightest. By posting it you have made a difference, believe it or not. I feel like a lot of things were brought up in this thread that needed to be brought up and discussed, and with that some questions have been answered that I, at least, feel much better knowing the answer to and even have more faith in the staff than I did before.
Anyways, I hope what I have said made at least a little bit of sense. I did not intend for this to be a personal attack, so please do not take it that way. ?
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But I really hope that things DO get done and things get better. I WANT this game to succeed. I WANT to stick around and help guide the community.
I'm talking about how giving up on this community and leaving won't do anything.
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Be the cat you want to see in the world!
(i broke the quote & can't be bothered fixing it.)
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First of all, I'm going to say that I'm glad topics like these are not getting locked on the whim like in the past. It's showing a lot of improvement.
Remember that old meme "Mods are asleep, post ponies"? With no mods online, members can do anything they want without much confrontation. This happens in every MMORPG there is, especially with no filters. For example back in the day when FH was still new, there was a huge explosion of sexual activity in-game, including characters and parties. I think parents and older kids got a little concerned and blamed the mods for this, and soon enough all of that has stopped. But the fact is, no matter how "family friendly" an online game could be, there will always be misbehavior. This is why online RP games are usually unrated. It's the members job to help this game become family-friendly and speak up/report these types of people when the mods are not online, and it's the staff's job to give a justified response to these reports. In my opinion I wouldn't waste energy banning people who mildly troll, spam, or have not-so-PC opinions (which the block button should come into play), but the people who are actually causing harm to the community whom are under-the-hood more often than not.
If full-time moderation is absolutely necessary to make this game completely family friendly, I would suggest staff members of opposite time zones and free enough schedules to moderate the community. Since this is a free to play animal game and I don't think the staff get paid because of this, I can understand how difficult it is to find someone who's willing enough to do that.
About the registration, I agree it should've been reopened by now. The (guesstimated) average of 350 people online in-game upsets me and we need more beautiful people to come join. I mean, if traffic is so bad to handle, I suggest doing what Flight Rising does and announce it opened for certain days. This will make the registration more easier to catch, and reduce the desperation of people asking for a FH account because it's pretty ridiculous.
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I shall just throw in a shorter reply, mostly becase Nynx and Sura have already posted well-written replies and I agree with them fully.
But also secondly because I am on my phone at work.
I find it important for you guys to see that we do actually care, even those of us who may be MIA at the time.
I am aware that my personal activity has dropped like a rock, but in all honesty, I've been quite busy. It's my bad for not posting a proper leaving thread to notify users that I'm not around as much. Yet the reason for this is because I never expected to be away for so long.
I just want to apologize to the community on my behalf, for not being there as I should.
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However, personally I don't see much of a change in the community in regards of how people behave. The community has had a lot more friendly players, as well as the toxicity. - Most due to the registration being open at all times and new users coming and going at a constant rate.
The game and community has been a lot harder to maintain, and people now see the game as dying because they don't frequently see new users coming in, because users who actually want to stick around, tend to stay.
I do understand with the registration, that roleplays have a harder time to survive, since there's no fresh meat coming in.
Hopefully this will change once registration opens again.