Information "User online count is everything" and GTOP flaws.

For those that know me at least a year, they know that I like to rant about things from time to time. Today's topic is user online count. The count that everyone inside and outside decides how alive a server is, the count that if you hide it, everyone thinks your server is dead.

Basically, the count that you are forced in MapleStory servers to show with no exceptions. If you do not show it, people think you are hiding something (ex: its dead). However, every server's count also always means same thing to people. Nothing is ever taken in mind, which makes it even more flawed.

The user count itself

The user count was used in MapleStory servers since 2008. LocalMS's first version for sure had it, and thus it followed along with every other server, similar as what happened with GTOP's popularity. Usually official games hide it, with the exception of browser games for some reason (ex: Runescape)

Why its extremely flawed

The user count can be flawed for many reasons. The simple illegal explanation is that you can easily manipulate the counter for it to show something different than it actually is. Usually low-end servers do this. You know why? Because everyone keeps look at a server based on the online count! Can you blame them? I am not sure if you even can. If people see a server with 10 online or whatever they won't join it. If they see a fake online count, while sometimes obvious its fake, people will at least try the server... However, if people find out its faked, they usually do not respond very well to it, by potentially quitting the server.

Why each server's user online count doesn't mean same thing

Besides 'illegal' ways you can also boost your user count in different ways. Example, AFK rewards. Do you know why so many v0.83 servers lately have fishing and afk rewards? I highly doubt owners of such servers are interested in people being in-game and doing nothing. Its to boost the user count and to make it look a server is alive. Once again, I am not saying servers using such rewards are dead otherwise. I am saying that it indeed boost the user count and that it is never taken in mind. Player shops (those merchants where you need to AFK) are an other example.

Multiclienting is an other thing. I remember in 2015 before we allowed multiclienting by default people still kept compare user counts anyway. This wasn't the reason I ended up allow multiclienting by the way. The reason was that it could be bypassed by VMware or having a second PC. Having benefits for having multiple machines (pay2win?) together with people not even taking in mind we had barely multiclienting back than was just not worth it.

Its very demotivating if you hear someone that did setup a VMware machine have more benefits over you, especially when you know less well about computers than someone else, which was the big issue back then

GTOP and why its pretty f*cking awful

Together with user count, people also always compare the GTOP rankings. The lower you are, the more dead you are. There are many flaws in even having that mindset, which make servers that allow you to vote multiple times a day exist. Why did this site got so popular? Its the worst mechanic of the Maplestory Private Server Scene. Seriously.

The flaws...

- Its punishing if you ban vote abusers (since it lowers your votes)
- Its encouraged to allow users to vote multiple times a day with smaller rewards (to boost the voting)
- GTOP actually permits multivoting, as long its not using a proxy
- If you are #1 you have a banner without buying premium

Its punishing to vote ban abusers:
Since pingback voting forces you to vote on GTOP to get Vote Cash, even though a vote abuser is illegally gaining Vote Cash, he still contributes by voting for the server. The more cleaning you do against vote abusing, the less votes you'll get. Its actually bad PR wise to ban vote abusers. Of course nowdays anyone that plays our server see the amount of vote abuse bans these days. We take care of them, since we long given up even caring about GTOP, as well as more powerful tools to battle them.

Its encouraged to allow users to vote multiple times a day with smaller rewards (over 24 hours, full reward):
I've actually e-mailed GTOP not long ago if this is officially allowed: It is. Yes, they allow you and encourage you to let users vote multiple times AS LONG its not by proxy. Mobile phones, school network, etc is all allowed. This means that 1 person could as well vote 10 times and it being all legal (for GTOP). Once again, this gains you more votes, so its once again good for the server too. Do you get already how extremely flawed this 'ranking' is?

If you are #1 you have a banner without buying premium

I don't even understand this one.

So what to do about this?

Absolutely nothing. GTOP is so popular that its nr 1 on google if you use generic searches for MapleStory Private Servers. Also, if you have no GTOP website people immediately jump the gun that the server will die, etc.

So what is my message with this?

Please base the server's activity by actually playing/trying the server, not just an online count that doesn't mean much. I would suggest doing that if there's actually no flaws in them, but unfortunately there's many.

Alright, that's my rant for today. See you in a half year or so.