I wrote this little bit a while ago and I've posted it in multiple places, but I'd like you all to understand it from a person who's experienced fully well both ends of the stick. A friend of mine just got banned for what, by server rules, would warrant a kick at most, and to some mods no punishment at all. "When you guys say, "Oh, it's just a game." it's not. We all know how much we put into these servers, the friends we make here, the time taken out of our days. Skyblock is a part of us and our lives. It would be legitimate to say that Bioshock Infinite is just a game, that Portal is just a game, even that Minecraft itself is just a game, but Skyblock... we're a community. We are not a game. We are real people with real friends who care about us, and you all need to understand that to the fullest extent, because when you ban a donor100 for nick abusing, you should know what you are doing to that person. You yourself alone are depriving them of their friends and their communications with the people they love. Now, I'm not saying let everything go by, but if it's genuinely not worth banning for, just remember what you're here for. Your job is not to make a person's life miserable. Your job is to make this place safe for everyone else. A curse word here or there is no big deal, even when people get into arguments; everyone has one once in a while, but is that really worth pulling people away from the only environment that makes them feel at home?" Thanks in advance. I hope you guys turn out to be a good replacement for your predecessors. <#
"Other games aren't a community, but here at Skyblock, we are." You don't think other games have communities? This thread makes me want to puke. There's so much wrong with it; the list goes on and on.
But it isn't. I spent a lot of time on this server and it changed who I was. It affected my life deeply. It changed my personality and made me extremely extroverted. Not to mention I am currently dating someone I met here and whom I have also met in real life. I never said other games don't have their own communities. I'm just saying that Skyblock itself is more than the sum of its code. Also, I'd like to hear that list, please.
Every single other game is more than "the sum of it's code." Anyone who spends time on any other game affects their life. People have different opinions. You're doing nothing more than completely exaggerating your experience here.
Nope, really not. You can't form interpersonal connections with a coded video game (inb4 regardless, doing so is not normal). Skyblock is an innately social experience. Playing a single player campaign only lasts so long and only gives you so much satisfaction. It doesn't respond in real time and doesn't know you as a person at all. No matter what you say, the point still stands that moderators need to be aware of what they're doing and put themselves in the person's shoes.
Didn't even need to read it to know that I agreed with it. I love when 2 good roasting people roast each other.
Eh. I don't bother with checking in with new mods anymore. The game has changed for them. I wouldn't even have something to compare to. I've noticed the average age of moderators slowly creeping downwards (I could be wrong, just an observation of mine). I guess the people I'm more familiar with have moved on, either partially or completely. But something that will never change...each and every moderator moderates differently. It's always been that way tbh. And new moderators, you do have big shoes to fill. I don't blame you guys for maybe being a little overtly strict. It's kind of all you know. And Sleepy, your success story on here is fantastic! But honestly, for most people it's just a game. An addicting game, sure. A game with people attached to it that may become good friends. But still, just a game. So don't agonize over every kick wondering who's life you may be ruining. They probably should go outside and get some fresh air anyway
This was not meant to be hateful. This was actually the opposite. I was welcoming the new staff team and realizing that their mistakes are only made due to lack of experience. I was trying to give them some perspective to help them on their journey, but I got backlash anyway.
*Casual interjection in the ongoing argument* ^ This. Skyblock is mainly (if not purely) a social experience to many of us, including myself. I've met so many people that I would have never come to know and love if it weren't for this community. I'm not trying to get mushy here, though, so I'll cut to the chase. If you get bored of a singleplayer game, you stop playing. Many of us are bored of the base game, yet still show up in-game. Why? The community. Many of us still come on to talk to old friends. As for me, you're most likely to find me in-game for 30 minutes on an obscure Sunday afternoon, but I'm on the forums daily for hours. I'm not here for the game. I'm here for the community that has had a large impact on the last year and a half of my life. This isn't an exaggeration. I've learned a bit more about life from those both more mature and less mature than myself, and I continue to do so as I engage with new people here. I've become more confident in being who I am and gotten better at laughing at those who don't respect that, because I knew that I could come back here and find people who do.
My bans only remained denied when the person didn't seem apologetic. Bans are meant to be a punishment, not a death sentence.
I honestly don't know why. I don't try. You can see my intentions obviously. How can this possibly be misconstrued? I haven't the slightest idea.
I understand that, I just find them all end with one person having a different idea and the threads going berserk. I think this was a well intended thread that was misinterpreted.
