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Aion Newsletter - The Perks of Community

Posted October 29th, 2009 by Savanja

Does a game's community team play a vital role in that game's success?

Even before my time with Ten Ton Hammer, I craved an active community.  I feel that a game is a game, but the special thing about an MMOG is the aspect of camaraderie that you really just cannot get anywhere else.  This is why I've always believed that a game's community team is a pinnacle part of that game's success.  Bringing players together, hearing their voices, and communicating to them the goals and thoughts of the development team is more than just a job for game CMs, it is a crucial part of the growth and a game can rise or fall based on how well a team does these things.  Those games that have been brazen enough to launch without official forums or those who have put community interaction on the back burner have come to regret that choice later on.  People pay you money for a service on a monthly basis and make a commitment to support your product, you better darn well make sure that you are there every step of the way to know if you are satisfying your end of the bargain with those players.

This is why I was quite pleased to see NCsoft make their most recent updates with a new Community Manager and a much desired forum upgrade.  The recently introduced Aion CM Andrew "Tamat" Beegle is well versed in community interaction.  I've seen him in action as a voice of other community sites over the years and as a player advocate making him a solid choice to be sitting on the other side of the fence.

I'm also beyond pleased to finally have an Aion official forum to post on!  Our own Ten Ton Hammer forums have a wonderfully warm family feel and we welcome anyone to come join our discussions.  Our topics tend to be well thought out and our posters are considerate making it a safe haven to discuss concerns or questions without dealing with "Stfu noob!" that often arise on official forums and while our forums will always be my first love, official forums offer a more, umm, colorful look at the game which I cannot deny is oddly fascinating.

Some players may consider official forums and an attentive game CM as a luxury, I would consider them a non-negotiable necessity.  What do you think?  Can a poorly managed community team harm a game or are they simply the mouth piece for more important people who truly shape the game?

Let us know your thoughts by visiting this thread.

-Savanja, Aion Site Lead

Lack of loot in instances getting you down?  Be sure to add your 2 kinah in this thread.  Hopefully the Aion gods will catch wind and do something about this frustrating feature!

Ten Ton Hammer Features:

News From Around the Community:

Tip of the Week - Aion has a dressing room feature to check out what armor will look like before you buy it!  Hold down your Ctrl key and click the item once to get that sneak peek.

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Getting mistaken as a bot just a little too often?  Be mindful of your name choices!  While we just love amusing names, going with a jumble of letters such as "Gttfflm" is likely to get you reported by over zealous bot hunters and multi-boxers beware!  You could become a target too.