This is not a whine post about needing new players, it's already been said there will be an advertising drive as soon as the new player experience hits. Instead, I'd like to suggest Funcom reverse a previous decision...
Open the forums up to Free2Play players again.
Here's my reasoning (these are just my opinions, not hard facts);
- New free to play players are not able to communicate via the forums, introduce themselves or interact with the subscribing players of the game.
- New players have to search for other places to get advice which means they turn to 3rd party forums. Not all new players will do this, opting to give up and perceiving AO as being unwelcoming to new players.
- Registering for the game but being unable to interact with the community does not make new players feel welcome.
- The low activity on the forums, in particular the "New Arrivals" area of the board, reflects poorly on the activity that there actually is. Sure there are a few posts, but nowhere near enough.
- The forums give the impression, rightly or wrongly, that very few new players try AO or stick with it. (please don't let this thread get into an "AO is dead" debate, that's not the point)
- The forums should be in integral part of any new player experience, we are the community they need to get to know.
When I previously played as a Froob the forums were invaluable in getting to grips with the game, getting advice on my class, finding an org, finding market deals, even just getting involved in general threads.
I recently came back as a Froob on a new account to see if I would enjoy the game to find myself locked out of the forums and unable to post. I could only get in on my original account. If this made me feel unwelcome, I wonder how the genuinely new player might feel.
Please FC, re-open these forums. Yes you will need to moderate more as a result (more players, potential credit sellers, etc.) but the benefits to the new player should not be ignored. It is the new player you will need to attract and retain in the coming years.
Please feel free to rip the above to bits, it's just my opinion as a relatively new AO player (well, new again) but I don't feel keeping new Froobs out of the forums does AO or FC any justice.
Cheers