This idea of DTG "getting rid of the forum" (presumably to push more people to Discord) keeps popping up. I think it'd be a terrible idea personally as a business decision, but maybe it's just me. I put the greater question to the forum. This will of course be a bit biased in that it's posted on the forum, but I think that many of the "big players" that are heavily invested in TSW and DTG DLC in general are represented here and again, personally I know I buy more TSW content because I see it discussed here, announced here, and there's a sense of community here that encourages more involvement. Without that extra "push" I don't think I'd be as involved or have bought quite so much content (for good or bad ;-) What do you think? Would it have an impact a significant on your TSW experience, and in particular how eager you were to continue to support the game?
Whille the forums and other social media are nice to have areas to discuss - they realy have little to no bearing on my time in TSW or TSC for that matter. Infact, I see them more as entertainment outlets for the most part as many of the discussions deteriorate rather quickly. I have no problem with Discord either since i am using it for MSFS and many of the DLC developers for that title.
I think the forums should be kept, but it wouldn't affect how much I play TSW or TSC for that matter. The forums really helped me in the early days when I was trying to learn PZB with a few clarifications. Also my many questions about TSC and mods. On Discord unless there happened to be an expert on there at the time, it's likely my question would have just scrolled past unanswered. Hopefully since those times I've been able to help others. I also enjoy reading the discussions and seeing how people react to things. You can almost guess the reactions of certain people and whether I agree then or not, they are an important part of the forum's character. Removing the forum would be a loss in my opinion.
I cannot get used to using Discord. Perhaps it's my age, I grew up with forums, and they are so neatly organized in clear discussions about certain topics. Discord seems like a chat, it's a chaos of subjects and non-related discussion all mixed together in a blender. Wouldn't know how to find information about a certain topic using Discord, wouldn't be my choice of platform to ask a question either. I think the poll is pretty useless though. TSW is still my hobby and I would keep on buying TSW products. But if the forums would dissapear, so would I. I would no longer participate in the community, as I simply cannot get the hang of Discord. I consider the forums to be a valuable part of the community and would certainly hope it stays.
I have not heard any mention of the forum closing? Is there any evidence or a link to the suggestion of such a move? Or is this just hypothetical? Surely discord is just another outlet for DTG? To be honest, I only use the forum and would not use discord. I'm still reasonably young (ish), but have no time for these apps, and am happy just being a contributor on the forum. Much like TikTok I wouldn't bother with it. TikTok is another thing I'll never understand, it is a site that I find very cringe worthy when adults post on there...
Whilst I personally have no interest in using Discord, so hope it isn't a replacement, but more of an alternative for those who do wish to use it. I don't think closing the forums would affect how I enjoy playing the game though tbh
I’ve never been a huge fan of Discord, I only ever use it if I’m playing a game with a friend on another platform, the good ole Discord call comes in handy then. It would be better to keep both avenues open as a means of connecting new and existing players.
The forum is vitally important to me. I may not post as much these days but I’m here every day reading many threads, keeping up with everything that’s going on and reading all manner of interesting thoughts and useful information about the routes and trains depicted in the game from players who are more knowledgeable about the railways than I am, as well as people’s opinions of the game and content, and info on issues that arise and how to deal with them. It’s not perfect but it’s quite well organised. It’s easy to navigate, search or catch up with threads from where I left off last time I came on. It’s also fairly civilised and may be skewed more to the older players like myself. I really can’t imagine what it would be like without it. I’d be out of the loop with what’s going on and not have an easy place to look up if I have an issue. Discord is not a replacement for this type of resource. I wouldn’t use it. Would it affect how I use the game not having the forum? It would make it harder for me to find out potential issues and may lead me to think twice about buying a DLC but I can’t say for sure. I’d be less happy with TSW overall as the forum is all part of my experience with it. I think DTG would be mad to close the forum but they might not think so. It’s not like there is just one TSW community who all congregate in one place, this is a certain part of the community and it shouldn’t be lost. There’s a separate community (with a bit of crossover) that can be seen in the chat on live streams and those are I guess the players who are more likely to like a chat environment like Discord. Not me.
I'm just here for the poops and giggles, as much as I respect everyones opinions and are glad they have them, I really don't care about any of them. The forum for me is a little snapshot into the human condition and how crazy humanity actually is.......
It's somewhat ironic, as due to mine, I grew up with IRC, the thing Discord most reminds me of, only transitioning to forum use in the late 90s/early 2000s, but I see very different purposes for both. You cannot have long form posts on a chat service.
I can’t see them switching off the forums atleast not on the foreseeable future whilst the number of active users remains high. Maybe that’s the long term goal who knows, and perhaps the mantra “Use it or lose it rings true” for us. I like many find discord extremely hard to navigate and quite track of and I absolutely hate that there’s a paywall for much of the features, why should I pay to interact fully with a game I already pay enough for? It makes no sense to me to do that And whilst I’ve used it previously it’s been out of necessity rather than desire, and currently I’m in one sole group for a YouTube channel I’m a Patreon of and I’ve no intention of adding DTGs to that list at the current time.
I've got a brief experience with IRC, but I experienced it like a chatroom, fun to chill with friends, but for any meaningful on-topic discussion, I've always preferred to use a forum.
Things like Route Suggestions, there's no possible way to handle those on Discord in a meaningful, useful manner.
Wouldn't stop me playing the game but IMHO it would be a huge mistake to try and replace or downgrade the forum by switching focus to Discord instead. This is something N3V have apparently done with Trainz and their admittedly much smaller team apparently don't even look at the forum anymore though they have kept it going for now. Apart from the odd ruckus these forums serve the game and DTG quite well. They are often a source of valuable information and the search function, while not perfect, will usually find your answer.
This forum is full of life and looks like it’s going to stay that way for a very long time. I can sort of see the concern though with other forums on the internet… as many of them are dead. Some people would say forums are old fashioned now and are a thing of the past especially since social media became a thing. I love this forum. I hope it stays active for years and years to come and i reckon it will. I have never ever used discord neither. Not got a clue how it works lol.
I'm a bit of a lurker on here, read it all the time, but hardly ever post. For me this is kind of what the UKTS forum was back in the heyday of Railworks/TSC and indeed you find some of the names from there on here, although mostly in the TSC section. I find it useful to pick up details of when things are coming out and any random useful (or sometimes useless ) information about the upcoming or previous DLC releases.I would prefer to keep it rather than have to use some other system.
The forums disappearing is pure speculation. I love how 2+2=5 here…..so DTG start their own Discord server and the world & his wife think/say the forums are being wound down! Personally, I prefer Discord over the forums anyday. Much more dynamic and instant. Another benefit is that the server Mods & Admin can ping everyone with important messages, updates or when a stream has gone live. As for people saying they don’t understand it etc its simply a server and multiple chat rooms. Some of you ‘oldies’ must have used chat rooms previously surely?
^Little Frank! I rely on this place for identifying bugs where I think it's my fault the damn train won't move, and pointing out any discrepancies between real life and sim. Thanks to the knowledgable folk on here the game is far more rewarding.
Oh I wouldn't want to lose this forum. It's my man source of information about the game and I read it every day. Yes it can get a little argumentative and even a little scuzzy sometimes, but, for the most part, it's good humored and well moderated.
Not interested in wading through Discord I’m afraid. If they bin the forums I guess I’ll be missing out on the goss, but it wouldn’t affect my experience of the game. I’d probably be more cautious in buying DLC though, I find the forums useful on the whole for deciding on a purchase - probably wouldn’t buy anything on day 1 and just wait for a sale, just in case
