THE WORD LAST

Michael Stockin of The Wargames Website

When I was asked to write about something in gaming that means a lot to me, I ran through a number of possible topics including diversity, inclusivity and many more but in the end I settled on the one that is close to my heart because it also closely links to the health of my bank balance: online gaming communities. In the spirit of openness and transparency it is only fair that I declare my interest up front: I run The Wargames Website, a specially designed wargaming community site that I set up in 2014 to fill what I saw as a gap in online communities.

There were already some online platforms used by gamers to share content but none that I felt really met the needs of the community. At the time I visited a specialist miniature site and was a regular contributor, but too often the conversation would stray away from gaming, I would witness bullying and political posturing, plus the basic functionality of the site was outdated. I wanted to provide a space where both gamers and wargames businesses would get the best experience and value for money. A site with the latest wargames news, plus a database of companies, advertising space, and a forum to engage and discuss our hobby.

I could see many people turning to Facebook to chat about wargaming, so you may well ask, ‘why was I offering a forum?’ a medium considered by some to be outdated. However, I think that the benefits of forums outweigh the concerns of being old fashioned. Also, I like forums.

Facebook does offer a free solution to set up a wargaming group but it is fractured and spread. A quick search brings up many groups with same or similar themes, and you could end up being in many to cover your interest base. If you are in more than one you often see repeated content. I was in about ten 15mm fantasy groups and when I posted in those ten groups the same people would see the posts in each group, if you happen to be in lots of groups, it is easy to see the same content from the same person over and over and over.

A forum, such as that on The Wargames Website, enables you to share your content once and know that anyone in that community can find it if they want to. Content in Facebook groups is mostly hidden from the wider web, so what you post in those groups stays in those groups. People using Google to look for things won’t see what you post in a private Facebook group, so you are limiting who sees your content. Social media is all about high turnover: post something, get some likes, post something new and hope for more likes. Click, like, forget, Click, like, forget and so on.

This desire for ‘likes’ has surpassed the conversational desires of many users – plus the

“Facebook does offer a free solution to set up a wargaming group but it is fractured and spread... Social media is all about high turnover: post something, get some likes, post something new and hope for more likes. Click, like, forget, Click, like, forget and so on.”

trolls – are often the only people who really engage, and they cause damage. Report a troll if you like but you are likely to be ignored, or if sanctions are taken the perpetrator will pop back up shortly with a new account.

I spend a lot of time monitoring the areas on my forum to ensure everyone is following the rules, the main one being ‘Wheaton’s Law’. When I feel that the rules have been broken I act on this to keep the community the nice and inclusive place I aim for it to be. Although moderators on Facebook and the like try to offer this, they are not always as clued up on the topic as they need to be. I was nearly banned from Facebook the other week for sharing a quote from Sharpe in reference to a model of a character... from Sharpe!

Social Media is great for info bursts, quick answers to problems, and those ever important likes, but I really do feel that if you want to build an online wargames community you need a bespoke site run by people with a vested interest in the hobby at large. I think that – sometimes – the old ways are still the best ways, like for example excellent print magazines being great sources of info and pretty pictures, and online sometimes you need to be in a place where people understand your hobby and care about growing a community.

Anyway I must go: damn kids are on my lawn... ■