I hold no ill will or personal grievance with any Eidos staff of any kind (though stories about some of their past moderators and CMs intrigue and disappoint me), but with all respect, sir, you and your company are not liable to punish users for their opinions expressed outside of the Eidos forum community.
As others have said, also hope that this might be a bit of a wake-up call to you and other Eidos staff that there are indeed a
lot of people out there who question the team's competence, goals and direction, not simply because "lol it sux" but for very clear and legitimate reasons. I also hope you will understand, as a moderator, that the complaints people have are for the most part not personal in nature, but reflect very strong concern for a gaming franchise they love, and that they feel only more and more concerned about it the more Eidos reveal of it in every interview, trailer and demo.
Easy example:
http://forums.eidosgames.com/showpo...3c33a1a4a397abb8ac9f&p=1957521&postcount=2853
Master Taffer said:
I press a button, Garrett does the action. Not complicated.
This kind of response shows a fundamental lack of understanding about the issue reported (lack of free control in favour of context-sensitive actions). Specifically, this complaint recognizes that reducing input to context-sensitive situations reduces immersion and the overall breadth and scope of available mechanical possibilities by locking players into a more pre-determined set of actions, rules, and ultimately, options for completing scenarios.
As a self-proclaimed game design student, I would expect you to not just understand but be thoroughly fascinated by systemic and mechanical distinctions of structuring and managing player input and possibility within the game world. Yet, the complaint
has little or nothing to do with what you responded to, and your bluntness can easily be perceived as rude in a community which is
already on thin ice.
Being a CM is part of my job, and I have to deal with this shit every day as well, but I hope you can respect the opinions of others and the reasons they exist in the first place. Part of the job is
earning fans' trust through understanding, identifying their concerns and doing your best to alleviate them (and take action by reporting the important ones to the devs) in a manner that is respectful to their wishes and, perhaps more importantly, intelligence. That does
not include wielding your power to silence critique, and it
certainly does
not include petty, thuggish intimidation.
While you are certainly welcome to have a personal life and your own opinions outside the Eidos forum, going to
other communities in a deliberate semi-official capacity to insult and threaten members reflects
exceptionally badly on your character and, in turn, the company that you represent.
