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I'm surprised about the amount of negativity towards this whole approach, but in a way one could have seen this coming. It's not a secret that you didn't exactly care to maintain a great relationship to your (forum-)users over the years.
Banning and warning left and right for every other posting on the "constructive criticism, negativity = trolling" wildcard, locking threads, overzealous moderation infering in discussions etc. etc. Moderation (= forum- and therefore community management) on this site has been a hot topic forever and has even been discussed on other mmo-forums.
Defending your highscore "reviews" for crapware failing 6 month after launch against hordes of upset scammed and lied to readers/buyers, for "your longtime friends from company XY" with the big add in the background. Borderline insulting "all you guys just dont get that F2P is your future" Aihoshi-articles and "luukatme nerds, ima gamer gurl" teens with little clue of what they talk about fishing for compliments in the comments didn't help either.
Little surprise that many users aren't willing to now shake hands and give this site some benefit on this Ad-subject.
I agree with Geezer. MMORPG's intentions aren't in question. The fact is this site use to and probably still does get targeted a lot. What was it.. a year or so ago for like one or two months, every week, there was some new ActiveX malware popping up trying to be installed from this site. I've since switched browsers that have addons which allow me to protect myself.
I don't expect this site or any to take responsibility unless they are deliberately distributing the malware. To call me a pirate for protecting myself is just as absurd as me wanting to hold MMORPG.com responsible for being compromised. There are ways to have ads which don't have issues with no script or addblockers, I say they should be using them. This sites got a very shaky track record when it comes to malware.
I like MMORPG.com but if it's my security vs. MMORPG.com going the way of the dodo, so be it. It won't be because there aren't other options for your adverts though.
Well since Mister CEO seems to call his userbase stealing pirates. That's what I'll be than. Sorry never going to whitewash this site ever.
Want me to change my mind issue a formal apology to the userbase
In big bold later on the main page for a month.
Hmmm.
I have adblock here at work and this site's ads are blocked. Crappy PC, crappy connection, not going to whitelist you (here) any time soon. At home, no problems and done.
However...
I also don't have the big red banner telling me that I'm blocking ads. Brilliant
While I do understand the drive for the banner, I can't disable AdBlock on my office computer.
I will, however, whitelist this on my home computer, as you have been a great source of information and entertainment.
Better to be crazy, provided you know what sane is...
Well, 16 pages and a few chuckles later, I've got a couple of points to make.
1) I am, in fact, a consumer. I use goods produced by companies all day every day. Be it looking at a web site written by a code monkey or what I had to eat for dinner, someone had to labor to create that "content", as it were. I understand that it takes time, effort, and resources to create these things. And I also understand that you do deserve compensation for my consumption of your product. That's only fair.
2) I use an adblocker. Why? Adverts are annoying. I'm not a dumb consumer. If I want a product, anything really, new burger joint, car, computer tech... I do research on it. I look for things that are out there to consume. I read up on them, I find out what their merits are, their failings, and make my decision on what to buy. This renders advertisements moot to me. Absolutely, and irritatingly, moot. 9 times out of 10, the more agressive the advertisement, the less willing I am to give their product a shot. It's a simple matter of "They have to try to sell it? Thing should sell itself if it's a decent and actually useful product." by my terms. I use an ad blocker to filter out the reffuse content and get to the core of what I'm looking to get. I see just about all adverts in the same manner: they're patronizing, condescending, and irritating by means of simply existing. The only interest in advertisements I have is how quickly and most effectively I can annihilate them. Would honestly love to see the entire concept of "advertisement" go down in a horrible, abyssmal fireball from which there is no recovery. I don't have an alternative in mind, but I'll jump on that boat as soon as it's ready to sail.
3) Said, and said again, but I'm gonna have to repeat it. "Pirate"? Bad call man, bad call. Yeah, I understand you make your money in the adverts, and us blocking them causes your revenue to drop, but seriously, there were a dozen different ways to put that, and you picked that one. Strong stance: good. Agressive and insulting stance: bad.
4) As for content, yeah, you guys are good. I used to use MMOhut.com for news on upcoming releases and some information on what I wanted to go hunting for, and switched to you almost as soon as I found you. I'd be willing to pay for it if it meant an end to advertisements. I already pay a cable company bill for phone, tv, and internet access. I don't have much for disposable income, so if I'm going to be paying for a supplimental service, in ANY shape form or fashion, it better damn well do what I want it to do. That said, out of a site like this, I'd expect fair reviews of games, quick news on developing games and new features added to existing games, and forums or open debate and whatnot... users will be users. And you deliver.
I can't bring myself to drop an adBlock, on principle. However, offering a pay-for-no-adverts system? I'm all down for that. And I honestly hope this becomes the trend that puts advertising in the same category as the Dodo bird and honest politicians: extinct. Be the change you want to see in the world.
Takes the piss tbh
yes, I have an addon that blocks adverts installed in firefox, but it is actually turned off just now, and yet you still slap a big red banner at the top just because I have it installed.
It is not actually blcoking anything at all just now, but apparently you dont like it that I have it installed.
and as for claiming you only get revenue from adds? looking at some of the reviews/previews you have had on this site, it sure looks like you have revenue from other sources ;P
A creative person is motivated by the desire to achieve, not the desire to beat others.
I would be happy to pay you guys for an adfree version of this website, the forums offer enough entertainment to justify a 'subscription'.
It is an interesting reversal of cause and effect.
Same justifications used by every telemarketer alive. Here in Chicago, a 'voluntary' blood donor organization is one of the most aggressive telemarketers in the city. Because you gave them blood once (they insist) you agreed to allow them to harass you nightly for the rest of your natural life, checking if you're ready to donate again. You volunteered for this (they insist). And because it's a 'charitable organization', they're immune to do not call...
The FTC is finally putting the clamps down, after tens of thousands of consumer complaints.
Self-pity imprisons us in the walls of our own self-absorption. The whole world shrinks down to the size of our problem, and the more we dwell on it, the smaller we are and the larger the problem seems to grow.
The trend is due to many factors. For one, sites like this don't create the ads. They are paid by 3rd parties to place ads on their site created by 3rd parties. This has lead to many security issues on many many sites allowing Malware to spread like wildfire. Secondly they tend to be overly intrusive more often than not. Also even if we pay for content we are still forced to endure many of these ads unless we run ad blocker or something similar. Then to make matters even worse we constantly get email spam on top of everything else with those very same ads because sites like to sale your information.
I don't mind paying a fee to use this site ad free, but the ad blocker trend will not cease until there are some regulations put in place that protect the consumer from intrusive ads, malware infected ads, etc.
Until you care about us, we don't care about your revenue from ads.
Such an intelligent reply you got there. Yes, this site and many others have had issues with ads trying to distribute viruses and other malware. Thats a fact, sorry. If they need revenue of some kind charge a friggin monthly fee and I'll pay. It isn't about getting one over, to think otherwise is idiotic. It's about blocking these asinine ads that have and will cause issues of one kind or another. Whats funny is I whitelisted MMORPG.com and Boom my flash player crashed lol. Back to being blocked.
I'll pay, but I'm not going to do so by viewing or allowing ads to show up on my computer.
Actually may simply consider not using this site and going here instead since they already offer the pay for ad free plus a few extras...
The Best of
Ten Ton Hammer
I would donate. Would they make more via donations than they would via intrusive ads? I'm asking seriously.
Ask Ten Ton Hammer, they seem to do fine with charging vs. ad revenue.
I whitelisted you guys, but there was a reason I blocked in the first place. You say they're not intrusive, but already I'm kinda regretting the decision. First off, I really wish they would pass some law of limiting the amount of data being used for ads on websites. Call it something like "The 50k Act" where no single page could have more than 50kb worth of ads on it. Easily done.
Now what irritates me the most about specifically MMORPG.com's ads is the Flash ads. Flash's time is over. It's slowly, but surely becoming extinct. And for good reason. I don't want to see a single flash ad on this site. If I continue to see them, I'll blacklist you again. If you block us from visiting due to adblockers, I'll say bye bye. I don't care, hell I'll make my own damn site with ads so subtle, the people will flock in for that very reason.
P.S. The whole "We're no better than pirates downloading movies" bit that the Admin said, is not going to work to your favor. That right there pissed me off almost enough to make me want to drop you guys right there.
Is there a way you could bypass Ad-blocking addons and still show the ads?
Like as an image disguised as ad, for example blended with the background.
Perhaps a software that could generate a background image with an embedded ad as the user retrieves the information on the server.
I am no programmer nor designer, but imagine that you have a background image for this site, and an area at the top and/or sides have black squares where you would normally place ads.
So this software would generate a new background image and pick from a pool of pre ordered and pre designed images to fill in those black spots.
Then, when the user asks the server for the information of the site, to load, then it would be presented with that dynamic and temporary background until say the next 5 loads, which would then generate another background with the preset imbued graphics, and so on...
Sorry if I didnt explain well, but hopefully you get the idea.
New players can get a welcome package and old/returning players can also get a welcome back package and 7 days free subscription time! Just click here to use my referral invitation
Nope.
A simple way to look at how the ads work in the case of MMORPG.com is like this. The ads have a program attached to them that monitors the traffic to the site, and where the users go on the site (to varying degrees, don't be alarmed) It automatically "pays" when the ad is viewed. Then it pays more if the ad is clicked, and typically it pays a bit more on top of that if the ad generates a purchase. Or at the very least MMORPG.com is compensated if the ad draws a user to a different portion of the internet.
ABP blocks that program. So ad services can't see where the user goes and therefore doesn't generate information for MMORPG.com to sell to them for cash. (Not saying you didn't understand that already Seel, but figured those looking at this discussion and didn't know could benefit from the info.)
Selling static .jpg or animated .gif ads without that technology was a Web 1.0 solution. More akin to selling billboard space. There are very few places on the internet where that's considered profitable any more.
a yo ho ho
Oh please.
Are some of you guys really that delicate? You mean to say that if we were all out at a con, having a beer, and conversing about things that we would have to watch every little thing we said because feelings would be hurt?
I highly doubt that.
or go ahead, call me a pirate. or whatever you'd like. Wouldn't bother me at all. Why? Because I'm not one so it wouldn't really be an issue. And if I was one? Then fine, I'm all for accepting who I am, positive and negative.
Getting back to the actual topic, how many sites sell your info without telling you? How many sites would open a thread telling you why they are doing what they are doing and invite discussion? I think it's fine that people want to block ads for a variety of reasons but this site has said (on numerous ocassions) that they get their money from ad revenue and that blockers threaten that revenue.
As my girfriend says, no one wants to pay anything for "anything" but we have to be fair. We have videogames because developers want to make a living at doing what they love. We have music because musicians would like to make a living at doing what they love.
We have video game websites because there are people who want to have a place where gamers and non-gamers a like can come and talk and see news and see interviews and those same people would like to make a living doing it so they can pour their all into it.
So you can either have sites where the owners/employees are at least up front and honest and "regular people" inviting discussion or you can have sites that are run by sleazy scum bags who wouldn't care if they sold every bit of info they could get from you and they would be laughing al the way to the bank.
Godfred's Tomb Trailer: https://youtu.be/-nsXGddj_4w
Original Skyrim: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/109547
Serph toze kindly has started a walk-through. https://youtu.be/UIelCK-lldo
Ah, thanks for the info.
I guess the ad blocking problem is more complicated than I thought.
I do have that Ad block plus addon, but its mainly for non gaming websites, as gaming websites such as these tend to show me some interesting games that I would otherwise not know.
New players can get a welcome package and old/returning players can also get a welcome back package and 7 days free subscription time! Just click here to use my referral invitation
Actually if you read the responses people seem willing to pay, what they aren't willing to do is unblock the ads. There needs to be an option to pay and get ad free service otherwise we are simply going to block the ads on our own.
Yes, I saw that from a few people and I would agree, that's a fine way to do it.
Godfred's Tomb Trailer: https://youtu.be/-nsXGddj_4w
Original Skyrim: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/109547
Serph toze kindly has started a walk-through. https://youtu.be/UIelCK-lldo
I'll happily pay in the vicinity of £10 a year to be ad-free, but I won't unblock ads on account of having been infected by them in the past. I'm sure you get a lot less than £10 from any impressions that I make if I unblocked anyway.
Something like a 'supporter' forum tag would be an extra incentive.
Exactly, I mean they are setup to even encourage visitors to pay.
Supporter forum tag is always welcomed
Priority for Beta keys
Extra "Tickets" for contests
Ad Free
I'd pay for that, I'm pretty sure many would.
I started blocked ads the moment you allowed very risky "almost" soft-core porn like ads to run. You know the ones i'm talking about
.
I may consider unblocking again next week or something, but if I ever see another one of those unacceptable ads I'll perminantly block ads for this site without exception.
I whitelisted you guys, the ads you have are pretty un-intrusive from what I've seen. The people I've read that won't do it, because they fear for thier computers safety is bull-pocky....
You should ban them....