Why Are People so Antagonistic Toward TNT?

[idriya]

It's as it says on the tin.

 

I don't know. It might just be me, but it seems like over the past few months, people have been getting more and more nasty toward TNT. They hate all the new site content and act like TNT doesn't care about anything but money and is incapable of producing quality content. The boards are all doom and gloom, and nobody has anything positive to say about the site.

 

But I don't know. I just don't feel the same frustration that everyone else does. I understand there hasn't been any amazing content lately, but really. Why does everything have to be big and epic to be fun anyway? It shouldn't have to be that way. I also understand the need for constructive criticism, but most of what I see isn't constructive criticism. It's whining and emotional abuse. I almost feel sorry for TNT sometimes.

 

Sorry this post has felt a bit like a rant, but I'm just curious. Am I the only one that's not ready to start an angry mob, because TNT isn't doing everything I want?

[Bubbleline]

Totally agree, but I think the site has kinda always been like that. People whining and complaining about not getting exactly what they want, when they want, and how they want it is always around. It just seems a little more prevalent now-a-days. I've even stopped trying to argue with them because a mob of nay-sayers will pounce on anyone who doesn't agree with them and their useless complaints. I just try to ignore them now. TNT could never please everyone and it seems that the haters are more vocal.

[cupoffruit]

I find that there have always been people like that on the boards. Even during the faerie plot a few years ago I remember a number of people like that.

TNT can't please everyone, yet a number of people take to whining if they don't get what they want. However there are also a number of people that don't, and you just need to find those people :)

[D305]

I haven't been playing that long, so I don't know exactly how bad the situation is. But I can say that TNT doesn't seem like a very strong company at all. I've had plenty of issues in just the few months I've played and I can understand why so many people especially the ones who have played for years would be so upset. There are always those people who want everything their way when it's impossible as the game isn't just about them, but I think a good amount of the people complaining have the right to considering how TNT operates..

Just my 2 cents.

[idriya]

I'm not saying TNT doesn't deserve criticism at all. It's just, what I'm seeing isn't just criticism. It's straight-up flaming them. People have basically called them stupid, greedy, lazy, incompetent, incapable of producing any quality content, out-of-touch with the userbase (I'll admit, this one is debatable, though I personally disagree), and overall just terrible site owners. Indirectly, of course.

 

But I also think people need to put themselves in TNT's shoes. They're obviously understaffed (fewer than 100 employees) and probably overwhelmed. Under those circumstances, it's understandable why there hasn't been anything amazing lately. TNT are only human, after all. They're not wizards or robots, and they shouldn't be expected to be like that. I think people just either don't forget about that or don't care, which is just... really callous. I

[siniri]

I think the thanks they've started posting in the editorials is a great idea, so that TNT has a place where they can see the positive feedback that often gets buried behind all the negativity. After all, customers often only give feedback when they're unhappy.

 

There have been a few things that TNT has handled very poorly (e.g., the 2008 Daily Dare MegaSuperb prize that was never given out... and after a few months, they sent mere participant medals and only responded with "we're working on it" in tickets, never answering editorial questions about it, and finally -- after nearly two years of sending new tickets and editorial questions every few months -- finally replying to my latest ticket as "sorry, it's been too long, we're not going to fix that"). There have been other glitches as well.

 

Some people complain about how long it can take TNT to fix things (or sometimes even respond). However, the site is under constant attack. When a new vulnerability or glitch is discovered, it ends up increasing the workload pretty substantially, and I'd rather TNT take their time to make sure they return accounts to the correct owners/fix things well instead of messing it up worse (see DD 2008 rant above)/etc. I don't mind that TNT uses "cut-and-paste" responses to make responding to tickets faster; I'd rather they do that than waste time writing original responses to 1000+ similar posts and having the system backed up for months like it used to be; when the canned response didn't answer my question, I clarify and usually get a better response. I don't feel too sorry for people who try to work around the rules and then get mad when they're caught.

 

Was I a bit disappointed with aspects of the Obelisk War? Sure. But that was because I hyped it up in my own head because of the awesome videos. It's really not TNT's fault I got carried away. And what they did give us was pretty amazing and enjoyable, even if it seemed "small" to me.

[idriya]

And people blame TNT for the Obelisk War, too. They say they shouldn't have bothered hyping it up at all and "wasting people's time." No videos or anything.

[andaraen]

And people blame TNT for the Obelisk War, too. They say they shouldn't have bothered hyping it up at all and "wasting people's time." No videos or anything.

That just sounds...dumb. People ask for special events and get angry when one happens. /facepalm

Seems like people can't be happy if something doesn't happen exactly how they personally wanted it to.

Like the whole customized vs unconverted pets thing. People asked for a way to make clothing and makeup useful. So TNT gave us customization. And plenty of people seem to believe that hoping, wishing and complaining will make it go away.

[Anime]

Now, I haven't been paying much mind to the boards, but my guess is the people who're complaining are those who are very old users who remember a time when every event WAS big and amazing. People have a noted tendency to hold a site to the highest standard it has produced that they can remember- so people who remember things like the Meridell vs Darigan wars and the Lost Desert plot hold the events to a VERY high standard. And, while this war wasn't that bad, it was no where NEAR the epicness of those wars.

 

As for other things like tickets, that's just internet impatience and people not realizing what goes into it. There could be improvements, yes, but considering that they probably get at least several hundred tickets a day, they actually get through the bulk of them fairly quickly. This is one of those things you can't fully understand till you've worked with a ticket system- an given ticket could take 5 minutes to deal with ("No we will not unsilence you." "*merges posts*" "....this just needs to be deleted it's blank.") or it could involve calling in another mod/staffer ("Should we allow this thread, it's kind of pushing it but we've allowed similar things." "This person says they were unfairly frozen we'll have to add them to the GIANT LIST of people to be investigated.").

 

tl;dr: People complain because they except TNT to function exactly the same as it did 7-10 years ago and don't understand how the systems work and why some things take an age to deal with.

[idriya]

Well, I guess I just disagree with the idea of something being a failure if it's not up to par with "the best." I know a lot of people hated Pixar's Brave for a similar reason. But people can find no other good reason for hating Brave besides "it's not as good as Toy Story."

 

I don't think it's entirely nostalgia, though. I think it's partially because they expect TNT to be like other game sites that probably have more staff and more resources, like Blizzard.

 

Also: Yes, the War wasn't on par with Meridell-Darigan, but I'd personally put it above CoM and its horribly unfair system. And people are acting like it was TToM and AotA level bad. While it wasn't the greatest war ever, I don't think it was that bad either.

[siniri]

Regarding site events, TNT has introduced a number of annual events over the years. I remember (during the Neopies, maybe?) a few years ago when they did a survey to gauge the popularity of the various events and tried to scale them accordingly. But the calendar is rather cluttered, so it's going to be hard for them to have a special event that doesn't bump into one of the other events (I can't remember now, but maybe TFR overlapped with NGC a bit? but that's a short event, and I suspect TNT could have easily left a longer step open for a while, and with it corresponding with a holiday, people would have been more understanding -- and the Advent Calendar is really just a daily, so overlapping with that isn't so much of an issue). Daily Dare and the Altador Cup are popular and time-consuming, and I don't think you could overlap an event with them -- just in terms of server load, etc. I suspect TNT might use the obelisk war as a chance to space DD farther from the AC, or maybe combine it with NGC.

 

While it'd be nice to think something like the Negg Festival could overlap with a plot, both take a fair amount of manpower, and I'm not sure TNT has the resources to do both. And because of all the annual events, there's just less time to spend planning special events, so they're going to be more rare. As much as I'd prefer the puzzly plotty things, I have to accept the fact that I seem to be in a minority, and TNT would lose more members if they canceled the AC than they lose from the infrequency of plots. The site has changed over the years, as has its user base. They've taken surveys, and this is what the majority wants, no matter how vocal the minority is. They don't completely ignore us, though. They do give us plots when they can. Hopefully we'll get a puzzly one soon.

[Xepha]

People love the attention they get when they complain, whether is on the Internet or in real life. Very few people take time to think about all the resources needed to run a popular website. When you give it a try on a smaller scale, whether it's a guild, a blog, a short animation film... you appreciate a lot more the work of other people.

 

The year I learned how to model and animate in Autodesk Maya, I was a lot more sensitive about the amount of work that was required to do a 10 seconds sequence in a Pixar movie. It's a bit of the same thing with Neopets. I have my own experiences with web design and community management, but also as game designer and with scripting/programming. Sometimes, things look EPIC in your head, and they turn out to be pretty boring or bad. So what I have learned from that is to never have high expectations for TNT. That way, I'm not too much disappointed with what they do.

 

In general, people should tune down with their complains... but they won't because they are drama queen and love the attention they get for ranting and flaming.

[gingerew]

I've noticed that there are a lot of people that are very anti-TNT, some legitimate complainers, many not so much. But this is a game, it's not real life, and ultimately you choose to play it. TNT must be doing something right because so many people keep coming back for more - even those complainers :p

[Lamppost]

I think a lot of it might also have to do with today's culture. People, especially those in TNT's demographic, tend to be very entitled. So of course when they don't get what they want and think they deserve, they are going to whine and complain.

 

I also think that it comes from an unwillingness to accept culpability. A lot of people complain about TNT censoring them or unfairly freezing them. Some of them are legitimately unfair, but I would not be surprised if the rest of them were just people who think they haven't done anything wrong when they actually have. Extreme hypothetical example: "What? Using an autobuyer is against the rules?" I'm sure there are people who play Neopets who see nothing wrong with collecting bank interest on a side account, for example. And those people will get frozen for doing nothing they believed was wrong, and they will complain about it.

 

Interestingly, I think TNT has done too good of a job cracking down on those people. I'm glad they are cracking down on cheaters because then cheating is harder to get away with, and a lot of people are less likely to cheat in that environment. However, they've done such a good job that even legitimate, honest players worry about getting frozen. Just take a look at some of the topics on these forums, like accidentally doing a daily on your side and worrying that you're going to be frozen. It's too bad that honest players have to be so worried.

[lilshadowdweller]

As a Neopet player who has played the site for many years now; I can tell that this is nothing new, not in the slightest. It has nothing to do with culture or "entitlement" (why is it that every single generation tends to think that all other generations are worse?)

 

Why, had you been around when TNT first altered all of the Neopets to fit the customization theme, you would be crying right now. Many users left the site. Complaints were all over. The NeoMall board was full of people whining. To this day, as TNT keeps up with the times and seems to make even more and more of their website geared towards paying users, you're going to hear plenty of complaints.

 

I personally have never had any issues with TNT. They have always been fair with me but I've heard from friends that this isn't always the case.

 

But I feel that there's no real increase in complaints. Just the normal complainers.

Also keep in mind that in any manner online, you're going to hear more negatively, users who are content seldom say anything bad.

 

I wouldn't feel bad for TNT. They get paid, they seem to enjoy what they do. No matter how good a site is, there's always someone unhappy somewhere.

[Nimphal]

I will make an analogy here that is a bit far fetched, but still applicable in my mind. In the world of Neopets, TNT is the government. A not corrupt, simple government, but still the closest thing Neopets has to one. Now, just like any government, pleasing all is impossible and some people are more tolerant towards not so successful ideas than others. What happens on Neopets is simply a reflection of what happens in the world. Times change, people have to keep up, some find it harder than others, complaining is one of their defence mechanisms.

 

Disclaimer: In no way am I trying to start a political discussion here, simply a comparison :)

[dummydumpty]

Regardless of what they do, there's always going to be someone who is unhappy, and some are really vocal about it. I just roll my eyes, even if I can understand some of their frustrations.

 

As long as they don't actually responds to the whiners, then I think they'll be fine. I remember reading somewhere on the boards that they wanted TNT to be more active (interacting with other players a lot more), but I've seen that happen in a game's boards (the BioWare one), and it simply makes the boards more toxic. It's awesome when they reply, but then sometimes it makes everything worse.

[idriya]

Regardless of what they do, there's always going to be someone who is unhappy, and some are really vocal about it. I just roll my eyes, even if I can understand some of their frustrations.

 

As long as they don't actually responds to the whiners, then I think they'll be fine. I remember reading somewhere on the boards that they wanted TNT to be more active (interacting with other players a lot more), but I've seen that happen in a game's boards (the BioWare one), and it simply makes the boards more toxic. It's awesome when they reply, but then sometimes it makes everything worse.

I think a lot of the people who want that are older users that have fond memories of Adam and Donna chatting on the boards and think "Hey, it worked then. Why not now?" As Anime said, people thinking you can run a business in 2013 the same way you could run one in 2003.

 

Besides, I have a feeling that if TNT did start chatting with the users more, they'd use it as a way to hurl more slanderous drivel at TNT, which would be counterproductive.

 

While I do think TNT could listen and interact more, it doesn't need to be like the old days. There's more than one way to skin a cat.

[passiflora]

I agree with most people here - TNT isn't really so bad and lots of people just like to be complainers. I enjoy the site, the events, and the content and I think they work hard to provide the services they do. However, I do think their customer service can be a little standoffish (if that's the right word?) from time to time.

 

I don't mind that TNT uses "cut-and-paste" responses to make responding to tickets faster

 

This is actually the only real complaint I have. I get that they're probably very overwhelmed, but there are glitches (e.g. with customization) that I've given up on due to the cut-and-paste answers. Even if you clearly outline the problem and the steps you've taken to resolve it, they'll just send a copy/paste with suggestions you've already tried, and sometimes responding to the ticket with further questions/information doesn't help. Faster is nice, but only if issues are still being resolved at the same time.

[dummydumpty]

Those are fair criticisms—the customer service could be better from what I hear (I haven't had to send too many tickets yet, and any that I did got answered in a timely manner without being a cut-and-paste answer).

[KaylaTheHedgehog]

Those are fair criticisms—the customer service could be better from what I hear (I haven't had to send too many tickets yet, and any that I did got answered in a timely manner without being a cut-and-paste answer).

 

That's if you can even get to Customer Service in the first place. Every time I've tried to submit a ticket or check on updates for one, I can never get to the My Support tab. I always get kicked back to the main page. I eventually manage to get there, but it's happened far more times than it should have.

 

The filters are also ridiculous. I mean, I understand that Neopets is primarily for kids, but there is no reason why people should be forced to spend over two minutes pouring over a Neomail or Neoboard post just to weed out anything that might be offensive. When you can't even say innocent words like grape, circumstance, or what have you, something is very wrong.

 

I also take issue with how broad freezing can be. I've heard horror stories of people who have unknowingly gotten on the bad side of a random user, the user submitting a complaint about them, and suddenly end up frozen. There is no excuse for that. I've heard so many similar stories, that I don't even go on the boards.

[D305]

That's if you can even get to Customer Service in the first place. Every time I've tried to submit a ticket or check on updates for one, I can never get to the My Support tab. I always get kicked back to the main page. I eventually manage to get there, but it's happened far more times than it should have.

 

The filters are also ridiculous. I mean, I understand that Neopets is primarily for kids, but there is no reason why people should be forced to spend over two minutes pouring over a Neomail or Neoboard post just to weed out anything that might be offensive. When you can't even say innocent words like grape, circumstance, or what have you, something is very wrong.

 

I also take issue with how broad freezing can be. I've heard horror stories of people who have unknowingly gotten on the bad side of a random user, the user submitting a complaint about them, and suddenly end up frozen. There is no excuse for that. I've heard so many similar stories, that I don't even go on the boards.

I swear I read that TNT said neopets was aimed for college students. Not sure why there are so many filters if that's true.

I've also had difficulties with that My Support tab. Either the Help page doesn't load or I get returned to the Help page when I click on My Support.

I do play other MMO's that are large and obviously have a bigger company supporting the games and perhaps I assume every company should be able to do the same things, but even with that I still think as a company TNT should be able to give support a whole lot better.

I remember going to the neopet boards asking about how long support tickets take to be answered and people actually thought it was ridiculous to expect a company to reply within days.. :weird: As a paying customer I expect them to be way more efficient..

[dummydumpty]

Oh, they definitely used to be aimed at college students! In fact, if you go on their Twitter (@Neopets), you can see an image meme about it. There's also some content that wouldn't pass nowadays like the Ski Lodge Murder.

 

I wasn't there when they started to make the website more family-friendly, but I suppose it has to do with Viacom acquiring Neopets. The website may have been changed to aim children, but the core paying customers aimed seem to be young adults (or adults with their children). I don't buy any NC, so this is an assumption!

 

I remember reading that their support system was a little wonky... and that tickets may get lost.

[KaylaTheHedgehog]

Oh, they definitely used to be aimed at college students! In fact, if you go on their Twitter (@Neopets), you can see an image meme about it. There's also some content that wouldn't pass nowadays like the Ski Lodge Murder.

 

I wasn't there when they started to make the website more family-friendly, but I suppose it has to do with Viacom acquiring Neopets. The website may have been changed to aim children, but the core paying customers aimed seem to be young adults (or adults with their children). I don't buy any NC, so this is an assumption!

 

I remember reading that their support system was a little wonky... and that tickets may get lost.

 

You sure can't tell that it used to be for college students. Were there even filters back then? I can't remember anyone complaining about them in the earlier days.

 

It's ridiculous how many issues there are with their customer support. TNT has to know just how glitchy the site can be, so there's no excuse for them to not have a decent support system. The support's often more glitchy then the site itself!

 

They couldn't even tell me why I was unable to transfer pets from my side account. I had to find out from SunnyNeo.

[TotallyPommy]

Personally I don't think it has anything to do with what TNT has or has not done. People always complain about something or other, even if there is nothing wrong, they will find something to complain about. So I say, don't worry about it. Although I do agree that the customer service ( like actually getting a response from someone) could definitely be better. But that's just me. Have a nice day!