Membership That's a deal breaker...

[iReadYerMind 2]

Long, loooooong reply wait times. 

 

I've joined forums where I've started threads, joined threads, been invited to threads, etc.  I usually try to reply at least a couple of times a week.  At least.  And while I understand that people have lives outside of RPs, what really grinds my gears is when people take several months to post a reply, and they get super touchy or pissed off when I ask when I can expect a reply.  Especially if that person is constantly in the CBox, replying to other threads, etc. 

 

A forum I recently quit was like that. I could see those members replying to other threads all around me, but ignoring mine.  And bumping the thread, or contacting the member via PM, or even so much as saying, "Hey guys! Who's up for some RP plotting?" in the CBox got me chewed out by admin.  The one Admin said, "We are a laid back site, and if you don't like waiting for replies then you shouldn't RP here."

 

I'm sorry -- what?  I am pushy and rude if I feel impatient after waiting three months for a reply to my thread?  Perish the thought! lol 

 

 

 

Oye.  Anyway.  The rest of the stuff that irks me has already been said: tiny fonts, no app, eye-blinding skin colors or colors which are too dark.   

 

Oh, and one other: When you view a members list for a site which only has, say, 10 members, and 7 of those 10 are "staff". A site with only 10 members doesn't need 7 staff members!  That makes me think the site's going to be super cliquey, leaving me and the other 3 non-staff to fend for ourselves while the staff clique does what it wants.

[Yume 99]

My biggest deal breaker lies in the rules. If they are intensely restrictive or extremely nitpicky, I'm probably not going to stick around long enough to find out how... bad you really are. I'll jump through some weird hoops - finding passwords in the rules (does anyone ELSE remember when that was common?) etc - if the site is good enough. But if I read the rules and I come out with this distinct feeling that you're on a power trip (or, frankly, the rules are too abrasive) I'm going to back away.

 

Oh. And mandatory posting templates. I did it once. Um. I actually hate having to remember to pop in a posting template. If some how it could be coded that it automatically dropped itself into the posting field, then I'd be fine but uh... having to remember to drop in a template every time I post is very annoying. Tiny fonts are a nope, as is incredibly poor contrast - if I have to zoom in or highlight text to read important stuff I'm sorry, but I won't stay. Extremely bright skins with no alternative are a nope (this is because they give me migraines, not some I-hate-light-skins ... I do. But only because i can't enjoy the site well).  Any site where the main graphics employ RGB split is probably a no for the same reason.

 

 

[Dusty 55]

Newbies that join a game, look like that have the goods and you find they are only there to self promote their graphics/coding ability and to "show you" how indispensable they are to you (or that you should see them that way) and within the first month/s offer them a mod/admin position, even if you don't need any. Then they get offended or bored when this doesn't happen and they flake on the multitude of threads they started and poof.

[Rune 1,099]

3 hours ago, Dusty said:

Newbies that join a game, look like that have the goods and you find they are only there to self promote their graphics/coding ability and to "show you" how indispensable they are to you (or that you should see them that way) and within the first month/s offer them a mod/admin position, even if you don't need any. Then they get offended or bored when this doesn't happen and they flake on the multitude of threads they started and poof.

To piggyback on this...

 

Newbies that join because a rank is open then throw a fit when you don't just give it to them. CW requires 3+ weeks of activity before you can even be considered for ranks. And we've had so many people throw temper tantrums about this rule. 'Cause that makes us want to give it to you.

[Guest Ember]

Shipper apps and tiny fonts. So much nope on both accounts.

[Icewolf 258]

Fandom sites where all the canons you are interested in rping are taken. (This is one of the reasons why more than one version of a canon is acceptable on my board.)

 

Tiny fonts. Light skins, especially where you can't read the text because the font colour is too light.) The colour scheme appears to be catered to attract a specific gender. I prefer ones which are neutral because it will attract different kinds of writers.

 

Admins who say they are interested in your fandom, but really aren't. They just seem to say it to get you to post on the site.

 

Time limits on posting from when you first created your account, complicated rules and lore, required number of posts per week, day, etc.

 

Rules which restrict what female characters can do.

 

Sites where ocs aren't accepted as well as canon characters. Sites which treat female characters (both OCs and canon) differently from male characters. I've seen this happen too many times on twitter. I love writing female characters for non-rp writing, but I don't get that same enjoyment in rp because they are judged, ignored, etc.

 

Boards where shipping appears to more more important than other kinds of story-lines, especially when it focuses on 'mature' story-lines. I like boards to have variety.

[Crea 5]

I love humor in rules....but if you're constantly sarcastic...that kinda implies you're going to be unfriendly and aggressive.  No deal.

 

Also, if I pop in your cbox and say hi and...nobody says anything back because you're engulfed in your conversation...Sorry...gotta go.  That's just plain rude. I have also been on sites where I was greeted, then I joined...and after that I was completely ignored for not knowing anyone...I will leave once that happens.  Which is sad since I say so very little.

 

If I can't read it, then I'm not joining.  I don't expect perfect grammar or writing...but holy heck if you're eating grandma for breakfast instead of inviting her to breakfast we can't be friends.

 

High word count.  I'm lucky to get past 120 at times.  You want me to write 300 or more?  Nope, sorry bruh.

 

High activity requirements.  You realize I have a life, right?  

 

Mandatory templates.  I shouldn't have to learn HTML coding just to write out an RP.  

 

Allowing highly adult content with very much non adult characters and muns.  Not sure, but I think that might be illegal.  

 

Drop downs that are a mile long.  How many boards you have?

 

Eye bleeding themes.  You have a dark blue theme...then attack me with screaming red font....or something.  I once saw a skin that was bright pink with what I can only describe as acid green font. OUch.

 

[Ferret 1]

Site ratings lower than 3-3-3. Because it makes me think the site is targeted at a younger audience.

 

Tables or post scripts in IC forums. Too many of these are hard to read, use huge images, or scrolling boxes, or otherwise make the site less readable and require more scrolling for otherwise small posts.

 

High word count requirements.

[Dusty 55]

2 hours ago, Ferret said:

Site ratings lower than 3-3-3. Because it makes me think the site is targeted at a younger audience.

 

Interesting you say this since I admin on a site that is 2/2/2 simply because we aren't yet Premium and it would be against the ToS of the host site.

I would encourage you to look further than the rating and see if that (targeting a young audience) is really the case  

[Death Kitten 200]

4 hours ago, Ferret said:

Site ratings lower than 3-3-3. Because it makes me think the site is targeted at a younger audience.

My site has a 3-2-3 rating. We are specifically targeted at adult writers, but the setting and plot we aim for isn't going to benefit from writing detailed smut, so we put the sex rating at 2 to attract like minded writers. That's okay if that's not you, but you might benefit from checking out the reason a site isn't 3-3-3 if it has other things you're looking for.

[Crea 5]

On 1/13/2017 at 2:35 PM, Dusty said:

 

Interesting you say this since I admin on a site that is 2/2/2 simply because we aren't yet Premium and it would be against the ToS of the host site.

I would encourage you to look further than the rating and see if that (targeting a young audience) is really the case  

212 for us, due to rules regarding host site.  Like what others have said, we want more writing than just smutting, but also we are forced to work within the TOS guildelines of the host site.  Sometimes, you gotta work with what you're given and you just don't have the funds to pay for 18+ premium boards

 

When I had started, proboards had premium content, then they took that out...and most of us are kinda...unwilling to pick up and move, as it were.  Oddly though, no one's really going to report language so...we're pretty loose with our rating.

[CovertSphinx 710]

Call me petty, but a big one for me is "face claims". Along with other image restrictions (no sketches, certain animation styles prohibited but others not, must be image, etc). If I have a certain look in my head  for a character, I do not want to have to search through what celebrities/models/etc everyone else has already used and then go hunting for somebody who doesn't fit the vision in my head.

[Icewolf 258]

I would have to agree with what Dusty and Death Kitten have said about content ratings. I am in my 30s and I find smut and sexual content to be a huge put off for me on a forum. I don't want to write it with others and in most cases, I don't want to see other people writing it. Content rating is not always about a person's age, it's about people writing what they are comfortable with. Sites may also not allow smut and sexual content to protect their members (and admin) from getting into legal trouble if underage users get on the board, and not allowing it also protects underage users from harm.

[KARA BELLA 18]

I have realized that rules that look like they are pages and pages long if they were in a word document or something would also be a deal breaker.  My attention span is not that big and I get distracted very easy so I would get bored fast trying to read those.

 

Also yes a lower than 333 rating probably has reasons other than being geared towards younger members, from host tos to whatever.

[Dusty 55]

Posts/ threads that are like text messages or Twitter feed. If I wanted to text someone etc. I would go on social media. Also, I find them stressful because I don't have the time to respond every five mins.