That user profile stuff next to each post looks incredibly cluttered, and I feel like you guys are doing everything you can to encourage spamming.

Post a lot! - Achievement Unlocked!

It reminds me of all the Pistols Only servers in Killzone 2 just so people could unlock the stupid Revolver.

Or better yet, it reminds me of guys like Jesus Kung Fu Magic, who admitted to making his "Western Game Design is Great, Eastern Game Design Sux" thread just for attention, only now these guys will be getting automated pats on the back for it.

Edit:

And I love the Ico fanart you used for the "Don't Forget to Save" badge, machina.  So perfect.  xD

If it means anything. This website has been cluttered and full of spam long before this nonsense. All you can do is play along these days.

I liked No.1 best ><

I'll put 'em both in for now then, and if they're the final designs we'll let the voting decide.

I prefer the new sidebar profile design (not that I had any part in its design), looks neater and more polished.

The idea of the badges is to encourage more involvement in all aspects of the site, including posting in the forums, yes. But, simply put, we feel the pontetial benefits outweigh the cons. Not to mention we have a moderation system in place to prevent/punish gratuitous spamming, and that won't change.


@Ico - You have Tor to thank for that one :P

Well, "gratuitous" spamming is only part of the problem.  You'll still have issues with duplicate threads, threads with misleading and/or inaccurate thread titles (which also leads to duplicate threads), and threads posted in the wrong forum (which leads, yet again, to duplicate thread). 

To put it simply, we have way too many stupid or redundant threads being created, and this achievements system will only aggravate that problem.  This could be alleviated through a few steps, however:

• Add back in a forum search function (one that works this time), and press upon people to search for pre-existing threads prior to making a new one.

• Crack down on people who make inflammatory, misleading, or redundant/duplicate threads.

• Allow moderators to remove a user's thread creation privileges, making that the punishment for those who repeatedly make inflammatory, misleading, or just plain old stupid threads (the latter of which I'm sure some content rule we already have would cover - add in a rule about grammar or presenting a thread/post in a clear and legible manner, and this would no longer be an issue).

• Allow moderators to move threads, so if the Worldwide sales thread gets made in Gaming Discussion, it can quickly be moved to Sales Discussion, preventing someone from accidentally making a duplicate thread in Sales Discussion.

• Allow moderators to edit thread titles, so that if new information about a topic arises, a moderator can edit that info into the OP and thread title, preventing people from either continuing to post about the incorrect initial post or from being forced to create a new thread just so people know new information has been discovered.

• Allow moderators to merge duplicate threads (should they be made within a reasonable timeframe of each other).

Many of these ideas have been brought forth in the past, yet instead we get achievements.  -_-

Insted? how do you know they're not coming and were put before the badges idea?

Well, that would be nice, and I guess it's very possible that is what's happening, but when I hear about achievements and none of this other stuff, that's not the impression I get.

I apologize if I jumped to any incorrect conclusions.  I've made threads about similar issues on the staff forums over a year ago, and despite the responses I received, things were never really changed, so I've become rather pessimistic about such features getting implemented.

Indeed they have. A lot of what you're suggesting is being worked upon or has been requested, but you've been on the other side of the fence, so you know it's not as easy as simply listing things you'd like.

Badges are far from the only changes coming in Connect 2.0, but they are what this thread is about and they do allow for community input in a way that the moderation system does not...