Will there be topic specific classic forums?

Support Customer Support
1

Closer to release will there be a more defined groups of classic subforums rather than the existing catchall?
IE: Guild Recruitment, Classes, Realm Specific, Etc, like the original vanilla forums?

1 Like
2

I can’t say for certain, Broken. It certainly is possible, but they’ll likely want to see what kind of participation is there and not unnecessarily bloat the number of topics available.

2 Likes
3

Classes, with the specific class inside.

Recruitment with the subforum for guild recruitment inside.

Realm specific ones are at the bottom.

4

Cannot tell if serious. You are not really suggesting that classic and modern should share those existing subforums, right? Or are you using them as an example as to how classic subforums would/should be?

Can you clarify what you mean by this?

During vanilla with the original (best) forum format, each game element had it’s own subforum and they all had healthy numbers and participation in threads. If they were all in the same one forum under the same banner, it would have been a mess. A place for everything and everything in it’s place.

1 Like
5

While I don’t think blues or anyone knows this answer yet, I would guess the forums will be based on need. They aren’t going to add 15 new forums and subforums if there are (for example) 100 active classic posters, whose posts could all be contained in one general classic forum like we have now. I expect it will have a general forum and maybe a couple others to start with and if there is high demand they’d add some more.

6

Counterpoint: Less people would use the forum if it was difficult to find what you were specifically interested in. Also, those that post are not all that view.

There will be a ton of people new and returning to vanilla/classic, looking for info, advice, etc. Not having the infrastructure/organization ready for this would do the game an injustice.

7

Your conjectute is that classic will be a huge hit with lots of people returning, active, etc. If that’s the case then I’m sure the forums will quickly be adjusted to suit that demand. But I expect blizzard thinks classic will be a niche endeavor with a moderate player base. Making the forums before we know the necessity of them is putting the cart before the horse. Having 20 dead forums won’t make classic more successful.

2 Likes
8

By what are you going to define “huge hit”?

  • Fact: all current subscribers (upon release) will have access to classic. A large % of them may have never played prior to the HUGE changes to the game.

  • Fact: Many people who will be playing classic who either left the game entirely of have never played WoW is going to be a not insignificant number.

  • Fact: A not insignificant number of people paid $50 just to play it’s demo.

Your conjecture that Classic is just going to be a “niche endeavor” is a bit silly.

9

What happens in the first few months does not reflect on what the on-going interest is going to be.

10

Just because you want it to happen, it doesn’t mean it will happen. They will add forums when needed and only if its needed. They’re not into the habit of adding this, that and the other thing because maybe someone may use it.

1 Like
11

What do you mean “what happens”? There would still be an orderly organized forum for the remaining players. Seriously, what are you folks envisioning as a downside?

That sounds suspiciously like a “wall of no” post. Ease up on the combative tone.

12

By unnecessary bloat? I mean that there were forum subgroups that we’ve had in the past that were redundant and were underutilized. Not specifically with classic, mind you. I imagine we want the forums to be useful so want to focus on forum categories that will be used.

I’d question that, Broken, as I doubt you had access to the data reports that showed how much traffic each forum received. Outside of having that, you couldn’t really claim that all those forums had “healthy number and participation”. You feel that the level of participation on the older forums were healthy, which I grant you has validity, but perception is not the same as fact.

Please keep in mind, I can’t say what is in store for the Classic forums, since my team doesn’t have any involvement in their creation. I can only give you my best guess, which is based on my experience with the forums, both past and present.

I don’t know about that, Yindar. I imagine we hope the level of participation is high, based on the feedback/interest we’ve seen over the years, which spurred the project in the first place.

3 Likes
13

Point made and understood. With all of that said, with this new format (will not give my opinion of it beyond a preference for the original WoW format), is it more difficult to moderate as a group of subforums compared to a catchall?

14

In the original iteration of the forums it was much more difficult to moderate the many different categories we had. Not that I’m a fan of a catchall forum, but based on the tools we had at the time more forums complicated moderation from my experience.

The last iteration of the forums, that started in November of 2010, were much better but these new forums make it a lot easier overall for our Moderation team.

1 Like
15

I didn’t mean to knock classic really, if it came across that way more than I intended. I think forums will be added as needed, and the expectation is that an entire duplicate set of forums won’t be required out of the gate, but I may be wrong.

1 Like
16

When classic first releases, there will be a flood of players for it but after a few months, that will settle down to some lesser monthly average.

I would expect to see a few initial release forums followed by other forums depending upon what the classic population stabilizes at six months after release.

No point in having 15 forums for every possible category if you only have 10k players and no point in only having one or two forums if you have 2 million players.

2 Likes
17

I understand Vrak’s dislike for catch-all forums, but I personally don’t see a need for many feedback ones. Feedback is usually, not solely, for suggestions in development. They’re really not going to be … developing…classes. N’est-ce pas?

2 Likes
18

In that particular case I think it will be more about players discussing the class and strategies, etc… instead of suggestions/feedback on the class.

1 Like
19

Hmmm…

Didn’t think of that.

20

It is arguably a completely vastly different game. People coming back or trying vanilla/classic for the first time would be confused as all heck if they went to the existing class forums for insight (Not to mention that they would likely get blasted by anti vanilla/classic players for doing so)

Are retail players going to be very welcoming of all the returning or new players in the retail forums? After all they will then be paying a sub and will have full access. Do you think the subforums for retail will remain untainted by vanilla/classic chat about classes, guilds, servers in the general forum, the class forums, the guild forums?

It is not just about giving classic players subforums specific to their game, it is important to keep the discussions separate.

I would hate to be a moderator dealing with that.

Precisely.
Besides, if subforums die down in traffic, they are that much more easily moderated. :slight_smile:

Since existing BFA players can come and go between the two games, with potential spikes during “droughts”, how is that going to factor into your opinion that classic needs or does not need subforums?

I absolutely believe it would be wise to be proactive and get in front of this rather than attempt to clean up the potential mess.