A Discussion on What the Hell is Happening

I have some questions, the reason this is not put in questions & answers is because it's supposed to be a discussion.

To start it off I want to say something that'll outline the rest of this thread: The regulars on this community are far too concerned with the WRONG things. When I say the wrong things, I mean things that are so trivial and stupid that it's putting a complete halt on the important things.

I can't say everyone, because it's not everyone. But a lot of people including the staff are getting really caught up on things like the rules or the staff team. Here are a few examples:
https://www.seriousgmod.com/threads/report-against-jabba-the-slut.55627/#post-588208
https://www.seriousgmod.com/threads/harassment-question.55614/
https://www.seriousgmod.com/threads/report-against-another-report-against-jabba.55626/#post-588181
https://www.seriousgmod.com/threads/can-we-all-agree.55395/

Now I know nothing about Jabba, barely even talked to the guy. So I want to stress that this is a completely unbias opinion. But it seems like the community, people who have been on this server for 3+ years, hate it. Yeah, it seems like a lot of you guys hate this community. And I want to know why? What's really changed? The rules are fine, the rules are the most specific, thought-out rules that any TTT community has. Yet we still find the littlest thing that doesn't necessarily need clarification, and blow it out of proportion making it seem like a problem. When really it isn't. For some reason it seems like a lot of you guys can't ask a question about a rule without getting into a full-blown argument, which then turns into harassment and someone getting banned which in turn starts a whole other argument. It's a constant cycle of people who clearly don't like certain people, complaining and being petty. A lot of us here, are just really petty. If this community is good at anything, it's complaining about one of the current leads. It's been happening ever since I joined in 2016. People were complaining about leads then as they complain about leads now. What's changed?

I made a thread suggesting a new server, and I really honestly couldn't care less if that server gets made or not. But the response I got from one of the leads, was that we need to bring TTT back to what it once was. Which confused me. What about TTT is not like it was two years ago? The only thing that I can clearly see a difference in, is our population. It's diminishing, only Vanilla and maybe West even have players on them. And it isn't because of the rules, and it isn't because of our staff team. It's because we stopped trying.

Seriously, we really seemed to stop trying. We don't need more updates in rules or petty regulars who've been on the server since 2014 complaining about the staff team. If we give a single shit about this community making it past the 8 year mark. Then we need to start moving forward for once. Can any of the leads, or any admins, or maybe even just a regular. Explain to me why we have no developers? Is it because there are only developers who want to get paid? Or is it because we need someone who Highwon can trust implicitly? I don't see anyway for someone might be interested in becoming a developer actually become one without contacting Highwon directly. The only thing that we need is at least one developer. A lot of you complain about the rules and how the staff team are nazis, or you complain because other people are complaining about the staff team. But that isn't helping anyone. The staff team is fine, and the rules are fine.

Maybe this is dramatic because it's a gmod community, and some of you might think I don't play often enough to pass judgement. But I don't see this community going anywhere but down unless we actually have shit added. Shit needs to be changed, implemented, as much fun as TTT is. It's not gonna stay fun forever, that much is clear with our diminishing population. If this were a suggestion post I'd suggest we get a developer, because we desperately need someone to start adding shit. And this is not some flame post on @Highwon I understand he doesn't have all the time in the world. I don't expect him to. But SGM is at a serious standstill and things need to start changing quick. TTT needs a developer and deathrun needs a developer. This community isn't going to grow anymore if things stay like they are. I think we all know that. New people aren't going to join as much as they used to, and we'll just have to start shutting servers down one by one. We NEED actual change. Not another bullet point in the extended rules.

So if we're trying to get TTT back to "what it once was", then what are we really doing to make that happen? Everyone is wasting there time on the rules and complaining about getting banned or because someone hurt their little feelings or complaining the staff team are nazis, blah blah blah. It's dumb. So like, what the hell is happening? Why aren't we doing better? Why can't we do better?

 

I think higher ups need to look at what's for the betterment off the community, not select few (including mods and regulars). Regulars should leave if they don't like the staff here. For a lot of us, it's because we've invested time and effort here. You don't grow as a person from playing gmod or (in my case) reporting people again and again because the game is dull when you have thousands of hours like regulars do. Point is, most here don't see the game as a newcomer anymore, and don't see the game as just a game, and I think at least staff should-- if they want this community to survive til the end of the year anyway.

glhf.

 

To answer your question about what is different, the answer is The Lead Admins. Their enforcement of their own bias, their pushing of the meaning of 'discretion' to its absolute intergalactic definition to the point of where they may as well just be making their own rules up, their empowering of thin-skinned people who get offended at the most minute occurrence which gets people banned... I lost my point.

Anyways, I think we CAN do better. But we need to re-evaluate staff protocol. They cannot keep selectively punishing people based "on their history" when the staff themselves have created that history BY BANNING THEM for the most tiny things.

For the collapse of TTT, I blame corrupt staff teams which worship you for a week after you donate, but then they treat you like garbage if you've broken a rule. The nepotism, the brown nosery, the US vs THEM mentality that staff have? That is why TTT is collapsing.

 

Oh, also also, Staff need to realize that Toxic people are WEAPONIZING THEM by using them to enforce their BS reports. Like, Reporting someone for saying "your stupid". SERIOUSLY? IS THIS KINDERGARTEN? Is this kindergarten? Moreover, the staff actually follow through and ban people for calling someone stupid. At the very least, they give them a warning, they PUNISH for that.

I understand we're not all adults here, the youngest players are probably 13 or around there, but even at that age, if you're getting offended at being called stupid then honestly, you do not belong in an online community.

 

Hey man, I understand you're like upset and all. But this is the exact reason I made this thread. Please don't use this thread as a platform to spew whatever confused feelings you have about this community. Use it on one of your own threads por favor. You can have one post where you complain, but like all your doing is proving everything that I said right. Don't try to justify yourself, you're not helping anyone.

 

What is there for a Developer to develop? What is the way forward?

 

There are addons perhaps, especially for deathrun, that get swept under the rug. If we have a developer who's sole purpose is to add things into the server or take things out as needed. Then we can have the staff team focus on the workings of the community. A developer would on the outside of the staff team, only focused on adding things when needed. And adding things many people seem to want. We no longer would have the leads or admins focused on every single aspect of the community.

We would be able to split up the workload, if someone doesn't like what the lead admins are doing, then the leads can focus on that. The developer wouldn't though, because it's not his job. The developer can just, keep going. There are ways to improve the server, half of them are on the basis of how the community is running and the other half is how things are being developed. Make the people feel like the servers are being cared for, new things being added constantly making us more unique, making new people interested in our server.

While we're at it why not add PR people? I know it's a GMOD community, but why not have people dedicated to bringing other people in? I know that there are people who can do it so well that it seems like a talent. When did we decide SGM should stop growing? Like what @Python~ said, we should treat the community as if it's a completely new one. That's how I think we move forward.

 

Can I get a mother fukin uhh tl;dr

 

Add a deathmatch mode once you are dead to TTT and you’ll instantly see an increase in players. Boom.

For what it’s worth, I agree. The most exciting time was the Halloween update because there was new shit and that Boss battle was fun as hell. There’s still a clip of Highwon spawning a bunch of deathstations and getting everyone killed. THAT is effort. Unfortunately, the more things stay the same, the smaller the player base will be. You can only appeal to the player base you once had if you don’t change, and that player base is getting bored of gmod. So unless we move forward, this server will sink to the bottom of the server list.

 

I made a game in Lua once

 

your stupid.

Anyways, yeah, I think that more content updates would be nice. I think we lack developers because Highwon wants to keep the server going in his vision, and has trust issues for some rather obvious reasons (lot of past drama really burned him). Ultimately though, SGM is SGM.

also fuck Jabba that guy is a big ol slut

 

This stuff is still happening here lol.

 

Someone did just message me, and they can reveal who they are if they like, but they were worried about backlash.
But I agree with what he said...

Basically they said that it's some of the players that make new players so scared to join the community. That it isn't the staff, and the staff are doing well. In fact the only reason someone would want to be apart of a community is because they see good leadership within the staff team, and by extension good moderation.
It's the few toxic people that flood the forums with unnecessary drama. Now although this doesn't account for all of the people who decide not to join the community. I believe it does for quite a few. If I were a new player and I went on the forums and saw all these threads about how the Lead Admins are abusive, and see a bunch of regulars harassing each other. I'd be quite turned off from the community too.
When I joined it wasn't like that at all, I rarely saw a forum post so dedicated to targeting the staff team and even specific players themselves. But now, if I joined because I thought it'd be a nice community and I saw the mess that was the report section, Q&A section and even this section itself. I wouldn't think that anymore.

I know there's not much to do about changing that in terms of punishing players or adding new rules, because the rules are fine as they are. But maybe for a lot of you regulars, if you like SGM and you want to see it grow, maybe be mature for once? A lot of people are acting like highschool freshman who just love starting drama wherever they can. Show the community you aren't that, and if you can't do that. Then leave. Because why stay in a community that's so obviously causing you turmoil?

Anyway that was someone who I very much agree with's two cents combined with my own rambling. I know I can't fix the community members, but it's worth it to call out that bullshit like it is.

 

Lua is easy 0.o

I agree with a lot of it, in the years I've played here on and off it's been nice for it to have been familiar but it's so familiar that it seems like nothing's changed lol.

 

You should contact @Highwon anyone who knows Lua should. Perhaps he'd be open to a trial-dev type thing. Idk.

 

I did after reading this We'll see if anything comes out of it, maybe I can help some haha

 

Maybe if there wasnt a 60 page rule booklet (that anyone hardly reads untill they inevitably break a rule, and get serverely punished for it), and the mods werent such hardasses and people could just... Play the game without worrying if they are going to be banned things would be different but as it stands staff is too busy circlejerking the rules

 

https://www.seriousgmod.com/threads/ttt-extended-rules.54957/

60 pages? yikes.

 

Lol i havent checked that shit in literal years but they somehow made it longer

Congrats on this, seriously.