Intro
When we build a community together, it should be based on mutual respect and a shared passion. Why is it that gaming and gamer communities seem so hostile? Why do they exclude potential game enthusiasts? Personally, I always feel extra wary about joining a gamer forum space more than other interests. It's strange to me because any other interest of mine: art, horses, religion etc I could find an online community and feel totally open to joining. Sure you have that "new guy" smell about you for awhile as you find your place, but eventually you settle.
Let's take a look first at the very nature of online communities.
Anonymity and Freedom
As much as my hipster soul despises their ungodly popularity...Penny Arcade makes a very valid point about Anonymity.
http://penny-arcade.com/comic/2004/03/19
The anonymity of the internet allows you as a user to invent a representation. You are FREE to do what ever you want. You can pound on piano keys and make noise, it will make some other person laugh and applaud or call you a genius. It takes away social repercussions. When not faced with an actual human face it feels less like interacting with another person. You are really interacting with a machine and a wall of text.
However this illusion of freedom is a TRAP. (Insert 'its a trap' joke here.)
It seems at least to me that part of the reason for this animalistic behavior is because social pressures do take a lot out of us. A person may feel a lot of stress performing like a social person and behaving as expected. However, put on a mask and suddenly you are whatever you want to be. In a sense we can hide our own humanity by going online. We would type things that we would never say to anyone's face unless we were bold enough to ignore certain social expectations.
On the positive end, it allows a person to explore possibilities in a "safe" environment. For a personal example, I use to think that a person just needed to tell someone about Jesus and the Church and they would magically convert. Online, I used to speak my mind about this without regard to the other person's feelings or faith. If they did not fit into the cookie cutter shape I thought a good Catholic was then they needed preaching to. Yeah I lost a lot of friends online after that. However, I came to a profound realization that 14 year old me NEEDED to know. And I grew from it. As an anonymous user, I could say all these preachy things however, I was too shy in reality to talk to most people about religion.
The "Real Me":
I was reading someone's personal story on a forum about how online gaming helped him discover his 'real self' or who he really was...a girl. (I'll leave my gender identity rant for another day.) And I know that road because I've walked it myself, thinking that the "real me" is the one I show online because I can be more opinionated and honest without repercussions. In a way, this can be a method of affirmation for a person. To set a goal or a plan or a role model to aspire to is a good thing to do...that is if the role model is a good person.
However, as a mature person, I know that the "online me" or any avatars I put out is not the 'real me'. Only God knows my True Nature. I am not certain of this inconsistent person called "me".
Instead of saying that my online persona is the "real me", I can say that sometimes it's a way to put for my honest thoughts. For example, what I'm typing here would probably never really come up in conversation and if it did would be drastically more convoluted and unclear as I attempted to gather my thoughts in mere seconds instead of the several hours it will take to actually finish writing this whole post.
The desire to find your true self is a lifelong mystery. But you won't find it by exploring an online persona.
Geek Culture: Introspective
There are many things I admire about geek culture as it begins to dominate our culture. But I also recognize its darker side. Perhaps it comes from the "bullied" pasts or the "rejection" from others but geeks tend to be all about revenge. On one hand, being a black sheep gives a sense of being original and unique. However, it is easy to reject others because they don't fit in with the other black sheep.
Sometimes I tend to find geek culture very exclusive as it struggles to hold down its identity. This leads to hostility towards "outsiders".
Niche: Cultures within Culture
As gamers age and start raising families they find that their interaction with games has changed. That the people they used to play with are not really the kind of people they like to associate with anymore. So what happens? The community splinters a bit into categories of young and old.
However, on the surface (this refers to site design) the communities look the same. Older gamers do not want to lose their identity as a gamer just because they have aged.
The gamer club is very exclusive. While members may not be outright hostile, there can be a strong sense of "I don't belong" from a new member. If efforts aren't made by a community to make a new member find their place among them then new blood will be poured in less frequently.
For larger communities, it is important to have areas that provide niches for people to settle into.
Conclusion
Time to wrap up these thoughts. They are not very profound and are mostly observation based. There is very little I can offer to change the nature of a gamer community or forum. There are some visual design choices that would help make a community seem more "open". Black and Yellow, metal colors or web colors do not provide good atmosphere or branding. (Black and Yellow are warning colors that tell you to "stay away".) Having the community moderated by mature individuals helps as well.
Overall, the close-minded mentality should open up. There are some niche hobbies that are far more open minded and welcoming to new comers than gaming. A year ago I was very interested in Asian Ball Jointed Dolls. (I have a few.) The community was very supportive of new comers to the hobby and those who were curious. They know the hobby isn't for everyone but they won't hate you if you're not interested. They also don't mock you for not knowing something about the hobby. There is a sense of patience that I think the gaming community would do well to adopt.
Video Games should be for people of all ages and walks of life. Communities should reflect this openness.
