EPTBut this post is not meant to be a continuation of those thoughts. When I first began posting at TL, people inquired as to whether I even played starcraft. I didn't really play much by that point, but took a marginal interest in the progaming scene. As typical for me, I was not a passionate fan and merely looked at results and some recommended highlights where available. Factors such as repetitive scenes, the lack of surprise if either player won that particular game in most cases (ie. usually no clear favourites), and what would be known as "build order wins", hurt the game's appeal for me.
In fact, the strongest attraction to me towards TL is undoubtedly the community. I had found a unique niche full of smart, respectful, educated, and insightful peers of similar age and background. For me, the community was the main draw and interest in starcraft was just something I followed along with out of convenience and as the common backbone of the community. Even though I am, for the most part, just a lurker myself, I fed on the insights offered by others. It wasn't until I began posting myself that I realized the compliments of a stranger on the internet could unexpectedly be so empowering, meaningful and welcoming.
But sadly, all good times must come to an end. I noticed the presence of some of my favourite posters fade away. TL has begun to lose a lot of its former lustre, for me personally. One reason I attribute to the massive influx of new members as a result of SC2. Perhaps I did not realize the importance and value of quality moderation, a truly great job done by our moderators. It seems, in some sense, that the overall post quality had decreased. A slew of new subforums popped up at the same time, ones which I had no intention of visiting (SC2). I cannot say the newcomers are fouling the community but one must admit the culture has been changing.
These changes were not the entire problem for me, however. Over the past year or two, I had unexpectedly lost my appetite for games. I no longer derived much enjoyment from this hobby, which had been such an integral component of my time spent as a youth. I would not go so far as to suggest that I've "outgrown" video games; in the future, I may return to this medium, but for the moment I can keep myself quite occupied and satisfied with just browsing and absorbing internet content, reading, and brainstorming on a novel I'd like to write.
While I am not altogether leaving this wonderful community , I get the feeling of alienation and becoming an outsider looking in, a position I often place myself in. As interest grows in SC2 (in reality, I believe this statement to be untrue, as those with the greatest interest in it have already experienced it past the infatuatic novelty stage; because of the widespread beta availability, the game's popularity has already peaked even before its release, one of the many follies that hurt SC2), I feel more like a stranger in this place. I trust that some others can understand or share this feeling, even if only in limited aspects.
Since I find myself with some free time on my hands for now (co-op term at job with ample amounts of idle time), I have been approaching my novel as a short term goal. Doing something like that has long been a dream of mine. I was encouraged by the positive responses I received here, because that was pretty much the only writing I had been doing at all. If I ever get around to starting on it, I hope to share my drafts of each chapter as I go.
But what I was really planning on asking is: what other web sites do you know of that features a comparably witty, connected, smart and diverse community? I have been taking note for a while, but have so far been unable to come across a better substitute.
