How are you enjoying the slow death of TWC?

[Ἀπολλόδοτος Α΄ ὁ Σωτήρ]

Yeah but at least they're not terrorists.

They're funding the terrorists in order to spread fear amongst the populace thus justifying the use of extreme measures such as the Patriot Act which enables them greater control over the population. Remember, 7/11 was a part time job!

[Condottiere 40K]

Well, they aren't Terraists.

[Lord Oda Nobunaga]

You know just constantly saying that it will die isn't doing any favours either. While I understand that this is one of my favourite pass times, it isn't useful. When was the last time anyone here even attempted a meaningful discussion of any substance without immediately after jumping ship when it started to get difficult or embarrassing? What exactly does this say about our members as well, who are unwilling to take part in something that they perceive as being too difficult? That is a separate reason that some others have which is namely one of not having time. But if one wishes to use their leisure time in another way then the question of why still remains to be asked. If TWC dies it is because individuals chose not to post. As for why they may choose not to take part in any discussion is really what the question ought to be. Maybe with some conflation of "why does TWC die?" and "why do we let TWC die?", that is the question which is being asked and if we conflate these then it adds to the confusion. We should also ask "what about the site makes people not want to take part?", because the whole issue is one of participation and what causes that issue is a different question. We must correctly diagnose and declare once and for all that this is first and foremost an issue of Participation. To that end I will ask: Why do people not participate on TWC anymore? From there we can move on by asking other relevant questions.

[Condottiere 40K]

In about five or ten years the internet will fragment, into a few popular websites, and some that support small communities where actual communication will take place.

[Lord Oda Nobunaga]

Hopefully we will have evolved to communicate telepathically by then.

[saxdude]

Meh the Titanic was quicker.

Root causes:
-Total War series is dead
-management of forum is no longer up to task due in part because of various circumstances and the lack of activity of skilled individuals involved in management
-social media and gaming chat apps have destroyed forums
-many individuals that posted regularly no longer do as a result of the above or because they are no longer children and don't have time to post on forums 24/7
-interest in games and other discussions has faded and they only got into it as a fad but did not wish to get a forum equivalent of a degree in history, philosophy, politics etc and they have moved on with their interests

The Total war series is absolutly not dead, hell it's been making more money than it ever has. The Workshop is simply a much more convenient way to get mods. And also making overhauls is a lot harder than it used to be.

TWC is dying because it's a large unfocused forum, outcompeted by steam, with a convoluted ranking system that is rarely refreshed with new people, in an increasingly hostile political enviroment (which is good for the mudpit traffic but little else). Subforums that need to be heavily moderated (D&D) are rarely moderated, while subforums that shouldn't have been moderated so heavily (TD) were driven to extinction.

Why do people not participate on TWC anymore? From there we can move on by asking other relevant questions.

It's not special anymore. It's just a run of the mill gaming forum.

[Lord Oda Nobunaga]

They are no longer making Total War games outside of Warhammer.
Most of the old members don't play enough or buy the newer releases. When it comes to mods they no longer need to come to TWC and can just get them from Steam. However I am referring to the Total War Center community at large and why the forum is so inactive, since downloading mods does not necessarily equate to making very many threads or posts the way that other parts of the forum would.

[fkizz]

I could be considered a rookie here, but cause is likely more related to TW series. We all got here because of something related to a total war game, right?
Lets see the evolution.. there's Rome Total War, a heck of a game. Then mods. Then Medieval II, mods.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

then Empire TW but not my taste

Then Napoleon TW, and then Shogun 2.
I didn't bother to play Rome 2, but from the reaction of TW fans it's obvious Rome 2 was not to Rome "1" what Shogun 2 was to Shogun "1".
Attila is not bad, but you're bombarded by plenty of DLC on menu even at first play.

Gut feeling, but Rome 2 possibly dealt damage in interest of TW series. TW is a franchise with powerful battles that other games never had. Rome 2 battles didn't project that aura that something big was happening. Battles don't last 3-5 minutes.

[Kyriakos]

Most people stop playing computer games, at least often, as they age. Eg i haven't played any computer game - apart from some small indie adventure games - for... 5 years iirc. Don't have any time, even if i felt the urge to - and i don't. :/

It may be similar -to some extent- to how you stop playing lego or other such stuff, despite spending hours on them as a younger child.

[Inkie]

Meh the Titanic was quicker.

Root causes:
-Total War series is dead
-management of forum is no longer up to task due in part because of various circumstances and the lack of activity of skilled individuals involved in management

I'm with saxdude on TW series being far from dead.

Could you elaborate a little regarding the 'various circumstances' and such?

-many individuals that posted regularly no longer do as a result of the above or because they are no longer children and don't have time to post on forums 24/7
-interest in games and other discussions has faded and they only got into it as a fad but did not wish to get a forum equivalent of a degree in history, philosophy, politics etc and they have moved on with their interests

Most people stop playing computer games, at least often, as they age. Eg i haven't played any computer game - apart from some small indie adventure games - for... 5 years iirc. Don't have any time, even if i felt the urge to - and i don't. :/

It may be similar -to some extent- to how you stop playing lego or other such stuff, despite spending hours on them as a younger child.

These things have always been true, but what matters is that there aren't enough new members hanging around to replenish the losses.

[Lord Oda Nobunaga]

I don't remember.
Probably things such as members that post a lot have moved on so people with lower post count and lower interest in the site do not take kindly to certain moderation. Commitment to the site and its rules might not be as strong as it used to be. Particularly in the area of Hexes and Moderation. Many people have increasingly found certain Moderation to be irksome and you can see that in areas of the site that are bound to be argument prone, but which may be seen in other more straight forward parts of the forum.
Things such as moderators don't seem to have such a quick response as they used to or some of the so called great moderators of the site have moved on as well. Though I want to stress the importance of individual members. I am of the opinion that many old members have been more reliable as posters and as knowledgeable people on the site as opposed to some new members who rarely post. We can have new members but if they are not taking part in discussions or starting new threads consistently then the problem is barely solved.

Maybe I missed something but is Total War releasing a new game? Other than Warhammer I don't know of anything that has come out, or that will come out, recently.

[lolIsuck]

They are looking to add new content to Rome2/Attila to bridge the gap between historical titles.

[Niles Crane]

Most people stop playing computer games, at least often, as they age. Eg i haven't played any computer game - apart from some small indie adventure games - for... 5 years iirc. Don't have any time, even if i felt the urge to - and i don't. :/

It may be similar -to some extent- to how you stop playing lego or other such stuff, despite spending hours on them as a younger child.

Whereas in the last six months my life has revolved around playing computer games in a way which I hadn't for about two or three years. That's what happens when you finish uni and don't have a proper job to fill in time anymore. I'll have to enjoy it while it lasts, I guess. It's like I'm a kid again.

[fkizz]

Most people stop playing computer games, at least often, as they age. Eg i haven't played any computer game - apart from some small indie adventure games - for... 5 years iirc. Don't have any time, even if i felt the urge to - and i don't. :/

It may be similar -to some extent- to how you stop playing lego or other such stuff, despite spending hours on them as a younger child.

Bizarre part is that I actually miss when I played more videogames. And more lego aswell. On lego case, despite missing playing with them, even if I pick up the lego toys, nothing clicks.
On videogames it's the same. Only TW games still click, and some indie games. Napoleon TW and Shogun 2 TW still have some ember left.

These things have always been true, but what matters is that there aren't enough new members hanging around to replenish the losses.

Replineshes were suposed to come from Roman II, that was very hyped. Many people tried just Roman II and judged the entire franchise for that, thus maybe less replishments?

[lolIsuck]

Building better barracks means improved replentishment rate guys , TW 101.
Played a lot of TW when I joined, still do. Admittedly this is mostly M2TW which is the one that still pulls me the most. I own every one after it but none of them come close to the greatness of M2TW mods.

[Niles Crane]

It's 'replenishment', guys. Not 'replentishment' or 'replishments'. No wonder we can't replenish our ranks.

[Iskar]

So, we should build more supply depots or make one of us the Supply Councillor to increase the replenishment rate?

[Hobbes]

Personally, I don't visit anymore because I no longer feel like part of the community, and considering I joined in my teenage years, I think it's natural: people change, there's new priorities, responsibilities, and the like. I joined in 2008, that was 8 ago, and I was 16 then. I think that many other active users also joined during that time, which was a crucial one for the TW franchise, mind you: this was around the same time that "Empire" came out, after all. Assuming most of that new blood were teenagers, I think many are currently in the same boat as me: 20 somethings in the process of building their own lives. I also think that while the website has always had a propensity for attracting nationalists and right wingers, the recent alt-right trend has only made things worse for people like me, who are opposed to this sort of thing and would rather fight it irl as opposed to on a forum.

[Ferdiad]

One thing I think is significant is that CA started supporting their own forums a lot more. I remember when the official forums used to be a wasteland where random power mad mods went around banning any criticism of TW, this was probably around the ETW/NTW days when the fanbase was ign rabid. Lots of people came here to slag off CA as they couldn't on the official forums. Since them I don't think they've had a bad game so there's far less heavy handed modding, also I see their community rep constantly posting on their forums and reddit, never here. Seems like this place has slipped their minds.

[Kyriakos]

Forums belonging to the game companies are a bad idea. Just look at how nazi (up to literally so, which is why i left those years ago) the paradox games forums are