GameBanshee Forums

Hello everyone,

I'm creating this thread so that each of you can voice your opinion about my decision to join the Flashlink network. If you haven't already heard, you can view my announcement here. Feel free to post any comments (including flames) in this thread.

I for one agree with the decision. The prices seem to me to be fair as well. I take it you will be still accepting donations as well.

14 Day Trial Subscription : FREE!
One Month Subscription : $ 3.45
Four Month Subscription : $ 9.95
Twelve Month Subscription : $ 24.95

Buck, I have no problem whatsoever with your decision, although I of course wish Gamebanshee was a totally free site - I know you wish that too, but we must realize this is impossible.

I have a question though, what is more advantageous for you, that we subscribe to Flashlink one year for $25 or that we donate $25 to you directly?

i have an suggestion......
i had some problems with subscribtion sites, because i do not own a credit card.
So maby you could make other payment arrengments too?!.

Other than that, i understand your decission!

Originally posted by C Elegans
I have a question though, what is more advantageous for you, that we subscribe to Flashlink one year for $25 or that we donate $25 to you directly?

I would presume that a problem might stem from the percentage taken off the top, when using world pay and systems like that they remove a percentage of about 10 i think to pay for their system.

@Buck

I am jumping in briefly - I will respond soon, I promise...but can we make this a sticky by any chance?

It's a bit of shame, but I think the sensible decision you made, Buck.

I could only hope people who don't have the way to pay (like students) won't be left out/put off from GB by this.

Ugh. Oh well, I completely understand were you are coming from Buck, and I knew this was probably an eventuality. I will see if I can get my parents to subscribe me (I'm only 15; no credit card). I'll probably try to sign up just to support this site, but also for that NWN Walkthrough (if I ever get that game ).

Good news the forums are still free, though!

Originally posted by Weasel
I for one agree with the decision. The prices seem to me to be fair as well. I take it you will be still accepting donations as well.

Actually, I've taken down the link to our donations page. I anticipate that we will be a part of Flashlink for a good long time, and I'd rather see people receiving something for their money. Remember, I'm only looking to bring in enough revenue to pay the bills, I don't feel it would be right to accept donations above and beyond.

Originally posted by C Elegans
Buck, I have no problem whatsoever with your decision, although I of course wish Gamebanshee was a totally free site - I know you wish that too, but we must realize this is impossible.

I have a question though, what is more advantageous for you, that we subscribe to Flashlink one year for $25 or that we donate $25 to you directly?

I would see more revenue from a $25 donation than a $25 subscription, but unfortunately a donation won't get you access to the subscription-only areas. Since the service is run by a third party, it's totally out of my hands.

Originally posted by Azmodan
i have an suggestion......
i had some problems with subscribtion sites, because i do not own a credit card.
So maby you could make other payment arrengments too?!.

Other than that, i understand your decission!

You can also pay via a personal check or even Paypal. Click here for the details.

It's regrettable, and there are many who won't be able to afford to sign up, being unemployed students like me, but I concur with the general consensus of it was bound to happen sooner or later, and I'd like to add that I'm glad you won't have to be out of pocket anymore, @Buck. It's not fair that you make a great website and then have to shell out significant amounts from your own pocket to keep it going.
That said, thank you for not including the forums in the areas that are subscription only and allowing penniless students like myself the chance to maintain a lot of the friendships we've built up over our time here at GB.

Originally posted by Ode to a Grasshopper

That said, thank you for not including the forums in the areas that are subscription only and allowing penniless students like myself the chance to maintain a lot of the friendships we've built up over our time here at GB.

@Buck, it is generous of you to exclude the forums for the reasons stated by Ode. You have helped create a wonderful community, and I have made some very good friends here for which I am grateful.

I have no problem with the subscription...when will this come into play?

@Buck It must have been really tough to make such desicion, but if this will help you and GB then is fine by me.
I agree with your choice.

Buck Sir, I'm glad you finally can rest easy on site maintaing cost.

I don't want to sound negative, but here goes.
When gamespot went money orientated, many of me and my friends stopped visiting the site.
I was wondering how many of the posters on the forums would join and pay for the site.
I will be honest here, why would they pay for the services GB provides, when one of us could answer their questions on the forums.
I don't want the forums to come under the subscription, i wouldn't be able to post then, but it just seems a little weird for me.
Also does Flashlink pay for your site expenses regardless of how many people join?
Also if every poster say paid 10 bucks would it be possible for you to cover your expenses.
I know i have been lazy, but you should be getting a donation in the mail soon.

Originally posted by CM
I don't want to sound negative, but here goes.
When gamespot went money orientated, many of me and my friends stopped visiting the site.

After spending two years watching advertising rates dwindle, I can honestly tell you that virtually any gaming site that gets a significant amount of traffic will become subscription-based eventually - it's inevitable. The only ones that will be able to afford keeping things free are the lower traffic sites that require very little bandwidth, or the sites that run their own server and have free access to a very fast internet connection (T1+). I felt that Flashlink was the best solution, since it will allow you to access various sites with one subscription. I doubt many people can afford to pay $3-4 for each and every site they visit.

Originally posted by CM
I will be honest here, why would they pay for the services GB provides, when one of us could answer their questions on the forums.

I'm not sure you realize just how much content is available on GameBanshee, much of which cannot really be answered in a forum. For example, the area of GameBanshee most frequented is our Dark Age of Camelot equipment databases. They allow for DAoC fans to do a fully customizable search through over 5000 weapons and pieces of armor available in the game. The amount of time I've spent on key-entering equipment into them is ridiculous, but they are by far the largest databases available on the internet. This type of information is pretty tough to get through a forum, or anywhere else for that matter.

Originally posted by CM
Also does Flashlink pay for your site expenses regardless of how many people join?

Nope, our revenue is totally dependent on the number of subscribers.

Originally posted by CM
Also if every poster say paid 10 bucks would it be possible for you to cover your expenses.

I've been accepting donations for over a year now, and many people have been very generous. However, after Amazon or Paypal has taken their percentage, the total dollar amount of donations I've received since the beginning has (at most) paid for one month of hosting. Running a site like GameBanshee is a very expensive endeavor, and donations are a difficult source of income to rely on. With the Flashlink service, subscribers pay the exact same amount and get something for their money. And with certain areas of GameBanshee being inaccessible without a subscription, there is a lot more incentive to sign up for Flashlink than to send a donation.

TANSTAAFL: There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch

While I appreciate that some people cannot (or will not) afford to pay subscription fees to visit webpages, the fact of the matter is that operating a website costs money. There are domain name registration fees, server costs, hosting, bandwidth and all sorts of other associated costs, which up until this announcement, came out of Buck's pocket.

Frankly, I'm surprised he could afford to maintain the site at no cost to its users this long. I don't like paying subscription fees myself for "premium" content, but I also accept that GameBanshee could not raise enough money through advertising and donations to break even. If it were me, GameBanshee would have gone belly up many, many months ago because I cannot afford to pour thousands of dollars per year into a website that is essentially a labour of love.

This is a fantastic site with high-quality content and a tremendous community behind it. While some casual users will no doubt leave once the premium areas are cordoned off, I think that many of us hardcore GameBanshee members will remain. Plus since the forums are still in the free area, the people who enjoy GameBanshee's community can still hang out without having to pay.

I do not think the money is as much an issue for many folks as is the methods of payment and the notion of paying a premium for visiting what has been, up until now, free of charge. I think someone has said that if you buy a strategy guide for one game, you'll pay about $20 (USD); so for $25 per year you get what are essetially several strategy guides (plus some extra stuff) through GameBanshee. It works out to be a shade over $2 per month, which is less than a pack of cigarettes and about the cost of a Big Mac (sandwich only; no fries or drink).

As some of our friends have said, many of GameBanshee's frequent visitors are students or minors who do not have their own credit cards, but I think in many instances they could probably cut a deal with their folks or a friend to pay the cost and then give them the cash. Buck has also pointed out that Flashlink accepts personal checks.

This is one of the greatest sites out there that I've found. If there's any site I'm willing to pay for, it's this one. Buck, I'm in.