My Thoughts. Would like input.

[Vanquish]

I think it's fair to say that exclusivity kills games and that having a small selection of very competitive clans amidst a sea of random pub players isn't encouraging the growth of the game.

completely agreed.
I think being part of a clan is the reason that most of the long-term players stuck around as long as they did. The trouble is, most new players aren't aware of the existence of clans, and the ones that are end up joining random teams that are doomed to live for no longer than a month at a time or something simply because their recruitment is inherently exponential rather than sustainable and the clan basically implodes as a result.
I still think raising awareness of the AC forum to people playing ingame would help a lot tbh, so that newer players could understand that there's actually a somewhat alive community out here who still enjoy playing the game, and that as an AC player, they should be welcomed to participate in said community in whatever way they can. I'm willing to bet that a significant number of public players don't even know about the forum's existence (I certainly didn't until like four months after I started playing or sth).

[Idioplex]

I agree. The first step in growing a community is letting people know that there's a community in the first place. I'm sure MOTDs have mentioned joining the AC forums? Is there a way to increase the size of MOTDs? Should such a parameter be added in next release? Another option might be to add a "Create Clan" option to the main menu that refers the player to the forum when they select it, similar to how the Help option refers players to the README in their AC directory.

MOTDs are too small to grab a player's attention and there's not any basic caveman-style integration between the forum and the game. These are small tweaks that I think could make a significant impact.

[NoArmZ]

Marketing is what brings people to a game. key features to a game is what gets them to play. clans and pub groups / friends gets them to stay. Can't have one without the other.

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Also adding a video or a quick tut on game play modes weapons etc... may keep people from joining into a server getting dumped on and leaving and not logging back in. A bit of content on what the game is will help people understand the game which in turn will make it easier for them to start playing and really grow this game to a larger scale. But what do I know I have no arms

[al3rt]

As I see above from a lot of other peoples' experiences and from my own, we see that a lot of us started playing this game and only after about (sometimes a few months) a year, some maybe 2, we discovered the community and everything that is behind this game. This is what then kept us here until this day (those that have stayed). However, we've only been the lucky one's because if we look at the download statistics and then at the amount of players that are active on these forums (or we look at active players in-game, in comparison to active players on forums) we see that we are the minority.

What we need is to link the forums and IRC(maybe?) into the game. This could be achieved by setting up a login system/authentication system into the game that is the same as on the forum. We automatically force the players to register on these forums and thus expose them to them; they will most probably look through them. This would then expose them immediately to the community. On the forums we could also prepare a section with tutorials and guides that they could potentially go through and learn from, thus they see the whole picture of the game and they avoid what we ourselves experiences and what those that left this game after a few months, without even discovering the forums and the community.
So simply said, the susceptibility for people to stay and enter this community lies in their exposure to it. I do not believe we need to promote this game to a larger amount of people, that could be the next step. I think we should now focus on the 4,807 that downloaded this game on sourceforge this week and get them directly connected with the community, so they from the very first day of their experience get a feel for the community and the people.
The other day when my girlfriend first tried out this game and she was a complete beginner, I was on my own to explain everything to her and that was when I realized how poorly set up this game is for complete beginners. I saw her struggle of first understanding the basic game functionality. Therefore, I urge we set up some kind of system that forces the new players to register on these forums because if we do not expose them, they will never be exposed.
+ the authentication system would also disallow any impersonations and would reduce the amount of hackers to a minimum.

[Idioplex]

I agree with a lot of what you said al3rt, but I think a player authentication system would be a little much. It would just be a hassle for admins and players alike. And a system like that doesn't really go hand in hand with AC's tendency to keep things simple. But yes--this is less about advertising the game and more about advertising the community. I think some kind of link from the game to the forum, however simple, is a good first step. It could be something as simple as incorporating the forum address into the loading screen of next release.

[MathiasB]

Authentication is cool, but I wouldn't obligate it. Give authenticated users an other color in game (or make them in an other way recognizable) and other users will also be interested in having such a fancy name/color/icon ...

P.S. Authentication could also make it possible to have a system with admins that have access on all servers...

[Idioplex]

That's actually a pretty interesting idea Mathias.
And like others have stated I also think a video or series of videos explaining a few key elements of AC would be awesome. At first glance I think a lot of players might be a little dismissive of AC without really digging into it and finding out what the meta-game is all about. On it's surface, it looks and plays like a simple old school FPS, and in most ways it is. But there's actually a pretty high skill ceiling and the simplicity of the game necessitates teamwork over individual skill (in CTF), as a good team operates like clockwork. Timing has to be pretty precise with covering teammates and taking enemy flags, and the flag runner has to know how to navigate the map backwards at high speeds. AC's simplicity translates to one of the rawest, most deceptively satisfying games I've ever played.

I think there's an unfortunate misconception that AC's simplicity means that there isn't a lot to the gameplay itself, when in reality those basic, core elements of AC act as a platform for exciting high-skill play. I think getting players to understand this is just as important as getting them to understand the different weapons and movement.

[PhaNtom]

P.S. Authentication could also make it possible to have a system with admins that have access on all servers...

This is in Sauer, and is a feature I personally despise.  I don't trust someone I don't know with admin access to my servers.

They may not have the admin standards I do, and may give my server a bad rep.

[MathiasB]

P.S. Authentication could also make it possible to have a system with admins that have access on all servers...

This is in Sauer, and is a feature I personally despise.  I don't trust someone I don't know with admin access to my servers.

They may not have the admin standards I do, and may give my server a bad rep.

Of course there would be a option on the server to disable it :)
It was just a general example.

One could make lists of admin users and share that lists with other server admins. (to give an idea.)
Auth would also make that you don't need to store passwords in plaintext.

Auth also makes it possible to officially register clans, nicknames, ...

If wanted I have no problem contributing to AC by writing the server back-end for an auth.

[Money$hot]

All our problems would be solved if we simply had more players. Spread the word about the game on your damned FB pages and other social media. It's just a down and dirty shooter thats quick to play a few good round before dinner. Not too involved, but there is some measure of teamwork with it. Quick and fun.

We need more people, because I need more fresh faces to soil.

[1Cap]

Do not ask for the current staff if they care about the community. The community is running out as a result of the attitudes of these guys.

These people have answers for everything. A ton of old arguments. The same moderation who banned and removed many, many players. The same owners of servers who have chosen the status rather than fun. The same devs that build this game to play with your friends, other nerds. The same players who are at the same time in two or more clans. Aliased and with different IP's. I know you, my IP's list is bigger than Jamz IP's list.

What can I say to those who really care about this game ? ...
Bring back the Brazilian players. They give a special chemical to this game.

[PhaNtom]

I know you, my IP's list is bigger than Jamz IP's list.

I highly doubt it, considering jamz has access to both the CBL and the masterserver.  And last time I checked, you don't.

Also, please stop posting your crap in various places on the forum like this.  You're not going to change a thing by spamming.

[G1gantuan]

I dont think the problem is AC's current state of development or that there are no new players coming

yes, the problem is that there are no new players staying. 

[Marti]

Bring back the Brazilian players. They give a special chemical to this game.

Yes, i miss the lag and cheats

[DeathCrew77]

I dont think the problem is AC's current state of development or that there are no new players coming but rather that us regulars are to peacocky to play with our real names and clan tags outside of inters and cm's.

How will a new player get to know the competitive/regular scene if the only thing he meets ingame are seemingly superb aliases that he will most likely never see again. Also noobs are very rarely accepted in inters, they usually consist of mid-skilled players and above only.

The gap between high and low skill is to high imo and I think it might already be a step in the right direction if lower or mid-skilled players get an actual chance to play among high-skilled players more.

You play most of the time aliased.

[Marti]

- Robtics 36h 12m

[MorganKell]

Never fear, MorganKell is here