Is Out Of Cards where it's at?

Submitted 3 years, 6 months ago by

Greetings card fans.

I've been giving HS a bit of a back seat the last 6 months or so. (I got bit tired of climbing ladders and story modes don't interest me in the slightest.) 

So naturally I haven't been following the forums or websites for Hearthstone news.

However, this week i decided I'd log back on to play some strange decks so I came back to OOC looking for some inspiration.

I couldn't help but feel however there seems to be less of a community going on here than when the site first launched? Maybe I've got this all wrong but it feels to me like there aren't tonnes of decks with lots of up votes and comments like back in the hearthpwn days. So I just wandered, is that a thing or am i just looking in the wrong places? 

Did you all move on to bigger and better things? Basically my question is, where are all the OGs at? 

  • JodyV's Avatar
    Pikachu 400 206 Posts Joined 05/31/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Greetings card fans.

    I've been giving HS a bit of a back seat the last 6 months or so. (I got bit tired of climbing ladders and story modes don't interest me in the slightest.) 

    So naturally I haven't been following the forums or websites for Hearthstone news.

    However, this week i decided I'd log back on to play some strange decks so I came back to OOC looking for some inspiration.

    I couldn't help but feel however there seems to be less of a community going on here than when the site first launched? Maybe I've got this all wrong but it feels to me like there aren't tonnes of decks with lots of up votes and comments like back in the hearthpwn days. So I just wandered, is that a thing or am i just looking in the wrong places? 

    Did you all move on to bigger and better things? Basically my question is, where are all the OGs at? 

    I've been here a while; just hanging out in the background. 

    5
  • DoubleSummon's Avatar
    Ancestral Recall 1585 2271 Posts Joined 03/25/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    I am still here, I never actually posted any deck.. but it's been slow time for this site/forums atm..

    1
  • AngryShuckie's Avatar
    1705 1735 Posts Joined 06/03/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    I am mostly active on forums and commenting on news posts. A while back I did do a series of story-driven decks which you might find interesting if looking for strange decks, but once they wrapped up I haven't personally used the deck side of OoC very much.

    But with regards to whether OoC is "where it's at": it is absolutely the best site for HS news and (polite) discussion purposes. How it compares to hearthpwn for deck lists I couldn't say, partly because I don't make/view enough decks, but also because I never visit hearthpwn anymore.

    2
  • Modalko's Avatar
    Darkmoon Rabbit 405 47 Posts Joined 06/24/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Yeah, I agree with you OP. It's definitely quite here, certainly on the forums. I think the reasons are that the community is smaller now than it used to be, and also more split (hearthpwn is still there). Plus OoC is in itself split between several games. Especially the forums that's bad news. When you check the latest threads on the main page - which don't exactly take central stage in the first place, you have to scroll a looong way - you see only a few posts for 'your' game.  Yes, you can use a portal - but then there are only 5 posts visible, and when you click on 'more recent posts' you again get content from all games. So the interface isn't optimal either.

    And forum activity feeds more activity... when nobody posts, others lose the intensive to check/post/reply. It's too bad, I like OoC best of all because it is definitely the most constructive and friendly site. But maybe that is a factor as there are less pointless posts and trolling...

     

     

    8
  • DoubleSummon's Avatar
    Ancestral Recall 1585 2271 Posts Joined 03/25/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago
    Quote From Modalko

    Yeah, I agree with you OP. It's definitely quite here, certainly on the forums. I think the reasons are that the community is smaller now than it used to be, and also more split (hearthpwn is still there). Plus OoC is in itself split between several games. Especially the forums that's bad news. When you check the latest threads on the main page - which don't exactly take central stage in the first place, you have to scroll a looong way - you see only a few posts for 'your' game.  Yes, you can use a portal - but then there are only 5 posts visible, and when you click on 'more recent posts' you again get content from all games. So the interface isn't optimal either.

    And forum activity feeds more activity... when nobody posts, others lose the intensive to check/post/reply. It's too bad, I like OoC best of all because it is definitely the most constructive and friendly site. But maybe that is a factor as there are less pointless posts and trolling...

     

     

    Well yes there are less stupid "OMG this thing is OP" every day.. tbh it's an upside..

    I prefer the smaller community to random people who post salty threads about losing to X or Y...

    I think the diversity of this site is a plus rather than a minus.. sadly both hs and runeterra had so far similar releases of new content so the site was super loaded when both had new content.

     

    3
  • RavenSunHS's Avatar
    Refreshment Vendor 880 1487 Posts Joined 03/27/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Well, I don't know about now, but a lot (if not most) of forum activity in HPwn was about people crying for nerfs for no reasons. I don't think we need that.

    Pretty quiet about decks too, I quite agree and maybe we should come up with something about it.

    What if we simply started posting VS reports on the news and related decks? Maybe popular/effective decks from HSR each week?

    Or spicy open articles generating discussion, ie. Do you like created-by meta? 

    4
  • Live4vrRdieTryn's Avatar
    500 924 Posts Joined 07/14/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Yeah ppl here are lazy as all fuck when it comes to posting or replying. It’s funny because you can come back a day later and pretty much everything is about the same. Well, beats being at hearthpwn with that scumbag xskarma.....

    -5
  • Fluxflashor's Avatar
    CEO 2005 3060 Posts Joined 10/19/2018
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Site traffic is higher now than it was when we launched, though forum activity takes a bit of a dip between set launches for Hearthstone.

    Admittedly, decks have been a bit more of a struggle though. I believe us not featuring them in a widget on the homepage until recently may have hurt that part of growth. It's definitely something I want to see more of but it isn't very easy to incentivize people to write guides, plus, if the meta stops changing, why write or add a new deck to the site?

    The fragmentation definitely sucked when the split happened, but I agree, its better here than it is elsewhere. We have a more positive thing going on overall!

    Founder, Out of Games

    Follow me on Twitch and Twitter.
    If you are planning on playing WoW on US realms, consider using my recruit link =)

    10
  • Este's Avatar
    Bloodfeather 650 162 Posts Joined 04/02/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    I agree there is less forum discussion, but when something stirs a debate, it's quite productive. I also love the news content and lore articles, OotC is number one in this. I always check the deck highlights, even though I find most of my decks in other places (I find it hard to navigate the filtering and what's wild, standard, meme, etc.). But to give an example, I loved the Odd Aggro Druid that was here a few weeks before. 

    This is where quality is to be found. I come here daily.

    2
  • Marega's Avatar
    620 872 Posts Joined 05/28/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Main reason is the HS player base have gonne down. Even in heartpwn the upvotes for decks is way down as well as deck creators.

    The game has reached  its peak so the hype is lower

    0
  • FieselFitz's Avatar
    Prince Charming 1105 1355 Posts Joined 05/29/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Well i check the site almost everyday (browse through forums or look up some decks) - only exception is if im on vacation :) 

    Checked it a lot lateley because of the Design Competition and more frequently around a expansion but i still check the news or new Posts but only regarding Hearthstone.

     

    Challenge me ... when you're ready to duel a god!

    0
  • JodyV's Avatar
    Pikachu 400 206 Posts Joined 05/31/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Lots of valid and well made replies here, highlighting to me why this community at OOC is the best in the business for mature players. 

    Cheers

    I've been here a while; just hanging out in the background. 

    2
  • allthehype's Avatar
    Crossroads Historian 630 739 Posts Joined 07/26/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Yep, I'm here because of the nice atmosphere. People are friendly and helpful, the saltiness is at a reasonable level and the original content is miles above the other site. Some more activity on the forums would be fun, but since I never post anything myself I won't point any finger at anyone.

    7
  • JoeyJojo48's Avatar
    Peon 630 230 Posts Joined 06/11/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    I tend not to post a lot in forums, but I do lurk them almost every day. Imo OOC is generally my fav over Hearthpwn. OOC's original content (news, articles, etc.) tends to be dramatically better than Hearthpwn's. And while OOC tends to have less people talking in threads, the discussions are more positive and a lot less salty most of the time. When it comes to decks, both sites are mostly the same since a lot of people cross-post decklists on both sites, though Hearthpwn has slightly more decks overall. I will say personally having used both deckbuilders, I like OOC's A LOT more.

    2
  • drfelip's Avatar
    Dragon Scholar 365 289 Posts Joined 05/29/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    I agree that I'd like to see more activity in the forums, I visit the site daily but in 24 h there are usually very few new posts (I play only Hearthstone so I don't bother about posts related to other games). In the past I created a new thread each season to discuss about our ladder climb and the threads were quite active, so we all can contribute with new interesting topics to discuss... but nowadays I don't have a lot of free time and I just check the news and the forums (quickly).

    About decks, I wonder how well positioned are OoC's decks in Google. I'm no SEO expert but maybe the algorithm to generate the title of deck pages could be optimized and matched to what people are searching; the more people finding the decks, the more people commenting them and maybe contributing. I guess Flux & Co are looking into it, but well, if decks are not faring well, then maybe it's time to optimize deck-relevant pages (also layout-wise, not only SEO-wise), or getting more decks posted (for example, inviting pros or popular streamers to post their decks, or running a deck-creation contest).

    Anyway OoC's is the only HS-related site I visit, and I still enjoy the site and the community. But of course there is some room for improvement, even if the number of HS players is shrinking.

    The pleasure is mine.

    My last standard decks: nothing special right now.

    0
  • Fluxflashor's Avatar
    CEO 2005 3060 Posts Joined 10/19/2018
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago
    Quote From drfelip

    About decks, I wonder how well positioned are OoC's decks in Google.

    It's really tough to compete on that end when you have sites dominating the listing due to being around for at least 6 years, unfortunately. Hearthstone is an oversaturated market with a declining playerbase =(

    Founder, Out of Games

    Follow me on Twitch and Twitter.
    If you are planning on playing WoW on US realms, consider using my recruit link =)

    2
  • griffior's Avatar
    925 330 Posts Joined 05/31/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    OoC is definitely where it’s at if you want level headed discussions about the various card games the site is dedicated to.

    I only actively play Hearthstone, so comparing this forum to others like Reddit and Hearthpwn is night and day. On OoC we don’t have hundreds of posts complaining about the new Mage hero, but in contrast we also don’t have posts that really (if ever) break 100 plus comments. The Reddit (and the site as a whole) feels more like a place where people go to just complain about a children’s card game because they’ve let it affect their lives so much.

    Looking at Hearthpwn, it still looks the same as it did when I first ever visited it. No updates to the site layout, nothing innovative, and it honestly feels like those random abandoned forums that litter the internet. It might have something to do with their best web programmer leaving or something, I don’t know ;)

    There’s also more original content on the site, ranging from the Card Design Competitions, class reworks, and mode/format creations. People here put effort into what they create, you can tell if you compare it to r/customhearthstone.

    Lastly, as of now the site feels more like a community, like I’m familiar with the usernames of the people on this site to kind of assume their mannerisms, attitudes, and what they like to talk about. DoubleSummon can sometimes come off as an abrasive cynic, but he means well. Anytime I see RavenSunHS’s name on anything I automatically think it’s something Wild related because some of the decks he’s made. Whereas anywhere else they’d be just “another face in the crowd”

    3
  • Helios's Avatar
    The Cake Is A Lie 625 319 Posts Joined 06/03/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    I personally am slowly giving up on playing HS and that's the reason why I don't post as much as before. I'm still here lurking everyday though. I think the page is great and does a very good job integrating other games communities. The speed of admins posts is something to be admired. So maybe I don't like hs that much anymore, but i'd still post the earliest theorycraft decks whenever expansion hits almost everytime.

    Helios#22419

    2
  • Paragon's Avatar
    Divine Rager 530 184 Posts Joined 06/07/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    If you don't have it already, definitely check out the discord server too, I believe that has made a difference since launch.
    It's a treasure trove of HS content covered on the site, sometimes more accessible due to its the condensed format and I find it's easier for the community to send quick messages and images, whereas the forums are great for larger more detailed "old school" messages between members. :) 

    Let me light the way.

    0
  • KANSAS's Avatar
    Old God Fanatic 1745 2912 Posts Joined 03/25/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Sometimes I visit Hearthpwn just to see whats happening. Every time I go there I appreciate this site more and more. People here are nicer and friendlier. Even if discussions happen less often, it is worth it because they are so much better.

    Carrion, my wayward grub.

    6
  • Meteorite12's Avatar
    670 696 Posts Joined 05/29/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Yeah I don’t really comment all too much on this site, even though I check it most days. Mainly here for the news tbh, even back on Hearthpwn I never really bothered too much with the forums.

    I know I should probably join in on the card creation competitions, but a lot of my free time ends up getting taken up by other stuff so I never get around to it (excuses, I know)

    Who needs consistency when you could have fun?

    1
  • Alleria's Avatar
    Eevee 1275 863 Posts Joined 05/29/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Well, I´m one of the everyday lurkers, quickly check the news, forums and go, even though sometimes I stop by to leave a comment when something catches my eye and I feel like posting, just like now. I´m really not good at competetive deckbuilding, I just take a meta deck I find interesting at the moment and change a card or two, until I´m comfortable with it on ladder. Other thing is Brawl or single player - if I find a good combination of cards that work for me for the specific Brawl or boss encounter, I have no problem to share it here, and I´m always glad if it helps even just one person.

    I remeber one time Flux did a Bundle giveaway where you could post your favourite Wild deck and there were lots of people sharing interesting builds. Maybe do a similar competitions again, maybe just for a site title? I´m sure many people would particapate, even just for fun.

    I also like the positiveness of this site and most of the people here. Thanks to Flux, I´ve never missed a single Twitch drop :D Although I agree with Modalko, I´d love to have some option to select HS only posts in the "more recent threads", it would be much more easier not to miss these kind of posts in all of the Runettera sea :)

    ♡ u 4ever 2008 - 2022

    1
  • Riffraff's Avatar
    755 370 Posts Joined 04/30/2020
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    A lot of the sentiments I have on this question have already been mentioned by other eloquent posters - but to summarize:

    1) This community seems a lot less toxic and more helpful than other alternative sites. The forums experience here is just so much more pleasant on many levels.

    2) I am a daily lurker/user of this site for the Hearthstone content only. This is the the only place I come for HS game news and updates.

    3) This is not the only place I come for deck lists and deck guides. I like the aesthetic here a ton, but other sites like Hearthpwn give me the impression of being more dynamic and decks seem to get a lot more interest/discussion there. I don't visit those other sites daily, but when I want to try out a new (non-original) idea, I will check there for discussion.

    2
  • OldManSanns's Avatar
    Azir 1040 924 Posts Joined 08/05/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Quote From JodyV
    Is Out Of Cards where it's at?

    You know it, baby!

    3
  • OmarComing's Avatar
    790 530 Posts Joined 05/28/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    I visit Out of Cards for the celebrity sightings. How many have I seen, you may ask? None! But that doesn’t mean they won’t happen.

    Also, the original content and news articles are always top notch. I appreciate the work that Flux and all the content creators do on a daily basis. 

    Even if the forums aren’t always active, I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. Just remember the ancient proverb:

    ”Even though one may be speaking, do not mistake that for actually saying something. Buy one order of orange chicken and get a medium drink free.” 

    6
  • dapperdog's Avatar
    Dragon Scholar 1890 5542 Posts Joined 07/29/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    OoC for the mature discussions. Hearthpwn for the comedy.

    Last expansion in hearthpwn was especially good. Didn't help that dhunters were so flagrantly overpowered when introduced. I think there's like 1 or 2 posters every week threatening to quit the game.

    1
  • Live4vrRdieTryn's Avatar
    500 924 Posts Joined 07/14/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

     

    Out of Cards a.k.a.

    [Game] Card Treasure Hunt (The Resurrection Attempt)

    I tried to fix size but my phone is be an <awesome piece of technology that I love dearly and would never trade it for anything in the whole word>.

     

    mod edit: removed profanity

    0
  • Live4vrRdieTryn's Avatar
    500 924 Posts Joined 07/14/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    LOL!!! Ok I’ll watch it with those R bombs...

    1
  • Demonxz95's Avatar
    Senior Writer 2245 2626 Posts Joined 03/19/2019
    Posted 3 years, 6 months ago

    Yes.

    Out of Cards is absolutely where it's at.

    3
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