Mods, it's time for change

Now before I say anything at all I will be keeping this post entirely constructive, and I ask any commenters to do the same, firstly in order to try to make sure this thread does not get closed down or worse and secondly because I do not doubt at all that these guys are doing their absolutely best, and they don't deserve any hate, especially with everything on their plate at the moment. That being said this post is not especially positive, and my hope is that the forum mods (who this post is addressed to) will take this on board graciously and without offence. We love you guys and think you are all brilliant.

Now that's out of the way, let's get down to the point of this post. I, and others, sometimes feel like the mods could do a bit more to make the forums, the general community and even themselves happier and more united. As I said I will be keeping constructive so instead of ranting on "don't"s and "stop"s I will instead be listing just a few "do"s and "start"s that I think would quite simply help everyone to feel better.

Total transparency

I just want to say, you guys are so much better when it comes to this compared to not that long ago, and we are all grateful for that. However I do feel like there are still further steps you could take to improve more.

This is especially relevant now, with the huge bugs going on, in times when all we want to know is basically "what the heck is going on?!!" and even if you actually do not know then you are still presenting yourself as more trustworthy, reliable, honest and friendly by simply saying so.

Radio silence when it comes to bugs is never, ever the best option. It makes you seem unprofessional and it makes us feel frustrated and confused. Keeping the community updated will save that confusion and frustration and in its place will be understanding and patience.

Tweaking the way in which you decide to delete posts/comments

This is a topic of special sensitivity, so I will tread carefully and ask that you hear me out.

Usually, you get this spot on. Removing troll/abusive/spam posts and comments and leaving up the good ones.

Despite this, I will suggest two things to improve the state of the forums. One is cracking down harder on general unpleasantness even if it does not necessarily class as abuse. I see this often, unfortunately, comments that are borderline abusive without quite crossing that line. No one wants them around, they are not needed around.

The second is perhaps a little challenging, and something we can all accept is impossible to get right every time. That is giving more threads that aren't particularly relevant/potentially negative a bit of a chance. Instead of cutting these threads off right away, wait until they start to spiral downwards before doing so, because there is a chance that the opposite could happen, and that they actually turn into very nice/wholesome/funny posts. Basically all I'm saying is try not to be too overzealous with the deletion of potentially fun, good time threads.

Interaction

This one is by far my favourite and also the most important. I guess it could fit into transparency but in different context. If you are going to take anything from this post, take these next few sentences.

This is your community, so BE A PART OF IT!!! Join in, have a laugh, answer questions, ask your own, chat with us, celebrate with us, joke with us! It's genuinely not only so much more fun that way (which is the sole reason we are all here) but also infinitely more helpful for everyone.

If you guys were to very actively chat and answer as many questions as you can, no matter how silly they are, we would all be so much happier.

You guys would have an amazing image as a game team, attracting more new players and keeping us who already play wanting to play more. You would have more fun, be more appreciated (which you totally deserve) and probably learn a thing or two.

We would get more questions reliably answered, have more fun, get to know you further, feel better appreciated and all of us would be a part of a more awesome, united and envied community than we already are.

Just be a part of it all!!

There, I've said my bit. Hopefully this thread stays up and hopefully you mods can take it on board. Once again you guys are amazing and the reason this place is bearable. No hard feelings at all, hopefully both ways.

Anything else anyone wants to add, go ahead! But remember to stay constructive and respect the mods like they deserve. Thank you.

Q, signing out.

Comments

Rookiie

This is your community, so BE A PART OF IT!!!

Yes

The_Sentry06

1) Can we also have the warning system clearly explained somewhere? Like for each warning points, you get some punishment, that needs to be explained clearer. I had several back and forths with support over a problem I had and even they didn't clearly know this system.

Malreck04

1) Can we also have the warning system clearly explained somewhere? Like for each warning points, you get some punishment, that needs to be explained clearer. I had several back and forths with support over a problem I had and even they didn't clearly know this system.

I have to agree man, I need to know EXACTLY where to draw the line. I see other people make irrelevant/meme comments but when I do it boom You have been warned. I don't mean to talk down the mods because of course someone needs to be in control but still some clarity would be nice.

Hieitaku

Any type of feedback, whether it be positive or negative, is progressive as long as it's honest and the recipient has right the mindset for it. I'm always, ALWAYS, for transparency wherever it is warranted.

Awesome post Q.

Qacob

1) Can we also have the warning system clearly explained somewhere? Like for each warning points, you get some punishment, that needs to be explained clearer. I had several back and forths with support over a problem I had and even they didn't clearly know this system.
I have to agree man, I need to know EXACTLY where to draw the line. I see other people make irrelevant/meme comments but when I do it boom You have been warned. I don't mean to talk down the mods because of course someone needs to be in control but still some clarity would be nice.

To be honest it's a much better idea to just stay as far away from that line as possible.

If you were walking on the side of a motorway, you wouldn't see how close you could get to the cars flying by without getting hit, you'd make sure to keep a safe distance.

Obviously that's a bit of an extreme analogy but it makes the same point.

I do partially agree though in the sense that SOME comments should be given a bit more leeway and do not deserve a warning. Sarcasm for example, provided it is very clearly sarcasm and not offensive.

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Mauled

I agree with the sentiment.
One of the things that requires the least work but can have the biggest effect is social interaction with the player base, it might go a way to mitigate some of the trolling that the likes of Miike end up being on the receiving end of if they're a bit more active on the social side. Anyone with half a brain knows that the bugs don't fall under the purview over the forum mods but it is their responsibility to be the link between the player and the devs and in my nearly 3k posts on this forum I can probably count on one hand the amount of topics that I've posted on that have also been commented on by a mod as well.
Advice for newer players, a few more congratulations and just a little bit more empathy with genuine problems could go a very long way to helping bind a community that is quite divided.

SpideyFunko

my biggest gripe with the mods is that some of them don’t seem to understand the concept of sarcasm at all

I’ve got warnings for things that are very clearly sarcastic yet are somehow still considered harassment

ItsDamien

my biggest gripe with the mods is that some of them don’t seem to understand the concept of sarcasm at all

I’ve got warnings for things that are very clearly sarcastic yet are somehow still considered harassment. Yeah it does seem like there's been a shift in the moderation and not for the better.

Fit_Fun9329

Totally agree with your points and ideas OP!
Like the idea of being more together.

But, what if … the mods do not play the game (regularly)? What if …the moderator activity is “just” a job like others, too.

Yes, that is a nod

Have a nice weekend guys

Qacob

Totally agree with your points and ideas OP!
Like the idea of being more together.

But, what if … the mods do not play the game (regularly)? What if …the moderator activity is “just” a job like others, too.

Yes, that is a nod

Have a nice weekend guys

The mods do play the game, not that it would make much difference if they didn't.

I just wish they were a bit more on our level to bring the forums together instead of the current them and us state.

Hoodie25

This seems like a good thread to bring up one of my biggest issues with responding on the forums, since it’s tied into the mods’ approval. Why should any comment have to be approved after being edited? I mean the whole point of editing a comment is to try and patch up any mistakes that you might have missed initially, so they should generally be of higher quality than the original version.

Now this wouldn’t be as much of an issue if the mods quickly approved said comments and didn’t filter them so selectively, but that hasn’t been my experience. It’s just frustrating to write out a lengthy response to someone on a productive thread in order to address all of their points, and then because I edited it afterwards the whole thing just vanishes, never to be seen again.

It seems to me that communicating on the forums would so much better if this function were either removed entirely, or the mods were willing to adjust their approval methods

Qacob

This seems like a good thread to bring up one of my biggest issues with responding on the forums, since it’s tied into the mods’ approval. Why should any comment have to be approved after being edited? I mean the whole point of editing a comment is to try and patch up any mistakes that you might have missed initially, so they should generally be of higher quality than the original version.

Now this wouldn’t be as much of an issue if the mods quickly approved said comments and didn’t filter them so selectively, but that hasn’t been my experience. It’s just frustrating to write out a lengthy response to someone on a productive thread in order to address all of their points, and then because I edited it afterwards the whole thing just vanishes, never to be seen again.

It seems to me that communicating on the forums would so much better if this function were either removed entirely, or the mods were willing to adjust their approval methods

This is incredibly annoying, but I have a feeling the issue is actually on the filter's end and not the mods'. Would still like to know more about this though if any mods are willing to clarify.

Hoodie25

Case in point, I definitely messed up part of that last sentence but I’m not gonna edit it for obvious reasons

Demonzfyre

This seems like a good thread to bring up one of my biggest issues with responding on the forums, since it’s tied into the mods’ approval. Why should any comment have to be approved after being edited? I mean the whole point of editing a comment is to try and patch up any mistakes that you might have missed initially, so they should generally be of higher quality than the original version.

Now this wouldn’t be as much of an issue if the mods quickly approved said comments and didn’t filter them so selectively, but that hasn’t been my experience. It’s just frustrating to write out a lengthy response to someone on a productive thread in order to address all of their points, and then because I edited it afterwards the whole thing just vanishes, never to be seen again.

It seems to me that communicating on the forums would so much better if this function were either removed entirely, or the mods were willing to adjust their approval methods

Has to do with how quickly you post and edit. It's a filter that comments get stuck in occasionally.

DrZola

This is a great post, and I agree with nearly everything in it.

The old forums had a tremendous amount of give and take between mods and players. That’s way more sporadic today and the community suffers for it.

I will add another item I think is relevant: thread management. Important threads should be pinned, useful infographics and explainers put into a readily accessible location and similar threads aggressively merged (and the sheer number of threads condensed). Banners when something relevant is happening in game, whether good or bad.

I’d wager more meaningful moderation & interaction would be welcome.

One anecdote: I wanted to see when the Miles update had officially been scheduled and updated yesterday. Fifteen minutes later I gave up—lots of threads asking about it, not the official info I was looking for. Active moderation and pinning important info could have made that much, much easier.

I understand moderating isn’t easy, and I would guess the training isn’t extensively nuanced since it isn’t a profit center. But this is the primary locus for company to customer interaction. The forums could be so much more than it is.

Dr. Zola

TheBair123

Well said, OP. One suggestion that I also have is that think that it would make the forums a lot better if forum members could show the mods what the very important posts are that need to be reviewed. That could be big bugs, threads that need to be closed, etc. There’s no way to get a hold of the mods, and we all know that tagging them does nothing. Likewise, we need more of Miike commenting on random threads with one-liners and gifs

BitterSteel

we need more of Miike commenting on random threads with one-liners and gifs

I hope I speak for everyone when I say this should be a priority

DrZola

Well said, OP. One suggestion that I also have is that think that it would make the forums a lot better if forum members could show the mods what the very important posts are that need to be reviewed. That could be big bugs, threads that need to be closed, etc. There’s no way to get a hold of the mods, and we all know that tagging them does nothing. Likewise, we need more of Miike commenting on random threads with one-liners and gifs

For all the abuse Miike sometimes gets (and he may well feel like a good share of that comes from members like me), I very much enjoy when he gets involved and dishes back and forth with everyone. He’s a terrific forums presence, and his humor often defangs some of the most pointed comments people make. More Miike and Boo and Vydious and others I can’t think of right now would be positive.

Dr. Zola

Qacob

Well said, OP. One suggestion that I also have is that think that it would make the forums a lot better if forum members could show the mods what the very important posts are that need to be reviewed. That could be big bugs, threads that need to be closed, etc. There’s no way to get a hold of the mods, and we all know that tagging them does nothing. Likewise, we need more of Miike commenting on random threads with one-liners and gifs
For all the abuse Miike sometimes gets (and he may well feel like a good share of that comes from members like me), I very much enjoy when he gets involved and dishes back and forth with everyone. He’s a terrific forums presence, and his humor often defangs some of the most pointed comments people make. More Miike and Boo and Vydious and others I can’t think of right now would be positive.

Dr. Zola

Miike gets abuse because he's kind of the face of mcoc, and an easy person to blame when things go wrong.

Game won't load? Miike's fault.

Bad RNG? Miike's fault.

Can't beat Grandmaster? Miike's fault.

It's incredibly unfair and any person with sense knows that miike is an absolute legend. Especially his banter.

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Qacob

They are not decision makers- mods like Miike and Boo are an extension of PR. When they are told they can pass along information, the pass it along. I would love to have a better understanding of the deeper inner workings of Kabam, but that's an issue with higher up decisions than the mods.

That is a very good point. I still think as a whole kabam need to be a little more open on the information they share regarding issues/bugs. Though now I can appreciate that that does not come down to the responsibility of the mods.

Rookiie

Well said, OP. One suggestion that I also have is that think that it would make the forums a lot better if forum members could show the mods what the very important posts are that need to be reviewed. That could be big bugs, threads that need to be closed, etc. There’s no way to get a hold of the mods, and we all know that tagging them does nothing. Likewise, we need more of Miike commenting on random threads with one-liners and gifs
For all the abuse Miike sometimes gets (and he may well feel like a good share of that comes from members like me), I very much enjoy when he gets involved and dishes back and forth with everyone. He’s a terrific forums presence, and his humor often defangs some of the most pointed comments people make. More Miike and Boo and Vydious and others I can’t think of right now would be positive.

Dr. Zola
Miike gets abuse because he's kind of the face of mcoc, and an easy person to blame when things go wrong.

Game won't load? Miike's fault.

Bad RNG? Miike's fault

Can't beat Grandmaster? Miike's fault.

It's incredibly unfair and any person with sense knows that miike is an absolute legend. Especially his banter.

It's unfair but it's also hilarious. I mean he himself has become some sort of a legend in the community and his presence is known in the game. He has his own node right? And his own Carina challenge. Wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for all the flak he gets here in the first place.
#teamMiike

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Sundance_2099

My main complaint: If a thread is not game related, but is still Marvel related, like for a trailer, show or movie: DON'T MUTE IT or whatever it's called so you have to dig around to find it.

Discussing Marvel's shows and movies should be allowed on here, not just the game.

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TrashyPanda

I honestly don't mind clinical mods, especially when they're from corporate. I've been a mod on many forums. It was basically being a normal user, except with janiorial and cat-herding duties.

Corporate is different. You're closer to a customer service, PR agent, and the aforementioned cat-herding janitor. It's very easy to create bad PR with a little bit of bad wording; just ask Miike.

For what it's worth, I agree with 90% of my deleted posts, and 5% can be counted as fringe cases. There's definitely been some questionable removals, but the experience is better than average. Maybe just a little trigger-happy.

There's definitely a trend of passive-aggressive negativity, though, from users and mods alike. Often found obfuscated by neat little sentence-sandwiches, if not laid bare.

Geralt_123

Agree with OP and improvement should be done in this regard.
I just love when mods get involved in any conversation but it rarely happens which is kinda disappointing!

Qacob

Also just want to say thank you to the mods for leaving this thread up.

Hopefully in the future we can chat with you more often like normal people!

Qacob

I honestly don't mind clinical mods, especially when they're from corporate. I've been a mod on many forums. It was basically being a normal user, except with janiorial and cat-herding duties.

Corporate is different. You're closer to a customer service, PR agent, and the aforementioned cat-herding janitor. It's very easy to create bad PR with a little bit of bad wording; just ask Miike.

For what it's worth, I agree with 90% of my deleted posts, and 5% can be counted as fringe cases. There's definitely been some questionable removals, but the experience is better than average. Maybe just a little trigger-happy.

There's definitely a trend of passive-aggressive negativity, though, from users and mods alike. Often found obfuscated by neat little sentence-sandwiches, if not laid bare.

This may be true, but I have heard many stories of comments that do not need to be deleted being taken down.

Regardless, that was the least important of my points. I think the first priority should be interaction, as in turn I think it would kind of solve the other two points as well. The forums just seem disconnected and opposed far too often, and I think friendly mod interaction would genuinely really help that improve.