Forum Suggestion: Forum Currency (chips/rep points/etc.)

[72o]

Concise description:

• A form of forum "money" that can be used to compete for/play with in a myriad of different ways.

Specifics:

• There's a mod for phpBB that will allow you to create a forum currency that can be used for all kinds of stuff. I'm a member of another forum that's big on poker, so there this currency is called "chips".
• It can be used as a prize for forum contests and games, it can be given and received, etc. On the forum I'm using as my example, they have a bookie system where you can place bets on anything the bookie puts up using this fake currency.
• If you want to check it out, the url is http://www.perfectmancave.com. It's actually a pretty cool forum for guy stuff, building stuff, food, women, etc. Anyhow, I digress.

This will improve the following aspects of the site:

• This would create all sorts of new options and possibilities for the forum, and likely create a lot more forum activity.
• We could play forum games, or even CC games, for fake money.
• Other people could bet money on the outcome of certain games, tournaments, or series.
• We could reward good posts with a monetary reward.
• Some of the usergroups, like the poker usergroup, could use this currency for their games.
• People that do worthy things, like answer questions or help noobs, might get money as a reward.

Of course it's all make-believe, but then again so are our ranks and points, and it might bring a whole new level of interesting to our forum. Maybe people wouldn't take it so seriously all the time also, which might be a positive side-effect.

This money would need a name. I think it should be CC-related, like "troops" or "conquests" or something, but I'm sure some other folks will have better suggestions than that.

[lord voldemort]

I think gambling is a bad idea tbh.....
This site is supposed to be 'family friendly' And im sure if lack had wanted the path of the website to head towards gambling he would of done so already

[72o]

I think gambling is a bad idea tbh.....
This site is supposed to be 'family friendly' And im sure if lack had wanted the path of the website to head towards gambling he would of done so already

It's not really gambling because it's not real money...it's no less family friendly than a game of Monopoly or Risk.

[drunkmonkey]

Aren't we already "gambling" points with each game? I don't see that as an issue.

I'm intrigued to hear more about what this currency would be used for. Is it just a prestige thing?

[72o]

Yeah, exactly, just another measuring stick for your popularity/success/longevity here at CC. For instance:

You might get a "chip" for a forum post. So, obviously, the more active you are in the forums, the more chips you have. Therefore, very active forum participants would have more chips than non-active ones.

You might have forum games (like my "Where in the world" series, in case you don't check out the forum games, it seems to be a hit among some) where the prize for winning is a sum of chips. These can be promised and rewarded by the mods, or given out of a user's own chip stack.

You could run a tournament similar to a poker tournament where the entry fee is 100 chips, and whoever wins the tournament not only gets their trophy, but a cut of the prize pool. Tournament organizers could structure it so while the finalists don't all get the medal, they still get a stack of chips, so it wasn't all for nothing.

At least on the other site, the mods would have fun with it, it's all make-believe anyway, so every once in a while there'd be some random thing like a thread where the first 20 responses get 500 chips, all for the purpose of getting more chips in play and thus more people trying to acquire more than the next guy.

As I mentioned before, they have a vBookie application that allows the "bookie" (a mod assigned to the book) to post a bet on anything at all. It could be "How long till the next racism thread" or "Who will win the best of 99 series between colton and King Herpes". People can then lay bets with their personal chip stash, and get paid off or lose it all.

The possibilities are really only limited to your imagination. I promise, on that forum I linked to earlier, it's a hell of a lot of fun. I believe it would be here too.

Right now the only things we can "win" are free premium, and medals (in the forum, at least, I know we can win points and rank in games). Those are great, but this would add a new level of interest to the forum.

[AAFitz]

I think gambling is a bad idea tbh.....
This site is supposed to be 'family friendly' And im sure if lack had wanted the path of the website to head towards gambling he would of done so already

It's not really gambling because it's not real money...it's no less family friendly than a game of Monopoly or Risk.

Actually, psychologically speaking, gambling for fake money and real money is exactly the same thing. Your brain doesnt actually distinguish too much between them. Obviously, you risk more with real money, but strictly speaking, it is the same exact thing.

[drunkmonkey]

I think gambling is a bad idea tbh.....
This site is supposed to be 'family friendly' And im sure if lack had wanted the path of the website to head towards gambling he would of done so already

It's not really gambling because it's not real money...it's no less family friendly than a game of Monopoly or Risk.

Actually, psychologically speaking, gambling for fake money and real money is exactly the same thing. Your brain doesnt actually distinguish too much between them. Obviously, you risk more with real money, but strictly speaking, it is the same exact thing.

Your checkbook, family, and life in general can tell the difference.

[yeti_c]

I think gambling is a bad idea tbh.....
This site is supposed to be 'family friendly' And im sure if lack had wanted the path of the website to head towards gambling he would of done so already

It's not really gambling because it's not real money...it's no less family friendly than a game of Monopoly or Risk.

Actually, psychologically speaking, gambling for fake money and real money is exactly the same thing. Your brain doesnt actually distinguish too much between them. Obviously, you risk more with real money, but strictly speaking, it is the same exact thing.

Actually - I find if it's fake money - I'm much more blase about wasting it - because it doesn't matter...

Whereas I very rarely gamble real money.

C.

[72o]

It was already stated that we in essence "gamble" our points when we join games.

Does anyone have any comments that actually pertain to the suggestion, and particularly the elaboration I provided on some possible uses for a forum currency?

[ender516]

Well, one suggestion that would NOT work would being giving out currency simply for making a post. That would be the biggest spam generator ever invented. I would sooner see a reward for not missing turns in a game.

As far as a name for the currency, how about "CC rations"?

[AAFitz]

It was already stated that we in essence "gamble" our points when we join games.

Does anyone have any comments that actually pertain to the suggestion, and particularly the elaboration I provided on some possible uses for a forum currency?

Pointing out that gambling, even with fake money, is still gambling, and psychologically equivalent in many ways...is relevant.

I also agree with the guy who mentioned the cash for post = spam.

My only real concern, would that it would actually cheapen the site to a degree. People would be hoarding them, even more than medals, and playing just to get them...and combined with the score, rank, the alternative scoreboards, post counts, and medals...throwing currency in there could make it a little childish...or at least more childish.

It essentially would be a cummulation of all the other things combined, but so easily manipulated, as to be worthless. It would also allow a very easy system for actual gambling, that I believe Lack simply is not interested in for any number of reasons.

Im not knocking the idea, mind you. Its a good one. I actually love the idea of going all in on a game...but, I just don't think it would be a good system in the long run.

Damn...now I want to go play poker.....If it does get implemented, I hope posts would be rewarded by the letter, and not the post though.

[ender516]

Reading AAFitz's reply helped solidify in my mind what I failed to make clear in my earlier post. I am opposed to adding gambling to this site. Overall, it would not be in keeping with what I think is Lack's vision for the site. I am sorry that my attempt to come up with a clever name for the currency might be construed as support for the idea.

It was already stated that we in essence "gamble" our points when we join games.

Risking one's points against opponents of various rankings is not the same as gambling. The number of points I risk is calculated based on the points of the participants of the games. If I feel lucky one day and want to win more points, I have to assume a higher risk by playing against higher ranks. I cannot alter the size of my bet on any given game.