Forum Point Changes & Social Scene Revival

Forum Point Changes & Social Scene Revival New Feature

🔍 Improvement: Forum points now reward starting conversations.
We retired the old random-chance forum-point system (where you'd occasionally get a point for any reply, including one-word forum-game posts). Now: the first new topic you start each day in a Social Scene forum earns you 1 forum point. If five different people reply to your topic, you get a +3 bonus. Staff and recognized users still award +1/+3/+5 on great posts anywhere. This was always meant to reward activity and building community on the forums, and this is more in line with using it as a carrot to drive activity.

👑 New Feature: Five new forums for movies, music, books, games, and life!
We've revived the Social Scene category with five new homes for the stuff you actually want to talk about: 🎬 Screen & Stage (TV/movies/streaming), 🎵 Sound Booth (music/concerts/podcasts), 📖 Library (books/comics/manga), 🎮 Game Night (video & board games), and 🌿 Life Outside Subeta (photos, hobbies, what you're up to). Start a fresh topic in any of them and tell us what you've been into.

🎨 Visual Update: Prompt cards in Social Scene forums.
Each Social Scene forum now opens with a "this week, try writing about…" card with three rotating ideas, a prominent "Start a topic" button, and a list of the freshest recent threads — to help break the mega-thread reflex and make it easy to start something new.

📖 Improvement: New "How Forum Points Work" guide page. There's a full explanation of how to earn and spend forum points, including what changed and how staff recognition works, at /help/forum-points.php.

Rat 06/9/26 12:54 pm

nvm disregard i havent been putting in enough text

Rat 06/9/26 12:53 pm

is this feature actually live? i havent gotten any when i've been trying to reply to social scene stuff. or have i just not been posting enough

Keith STAFF 05/29/26 8:34 pm

I've read every comment here, the blunt ones included, and I want to answer the big stuff honestly, then move the conversation somewhere it can actually breathe.

Replies are going to earn points too, and that part's already done. This is what most of you said, and you're right: rewarding only the person who starts a thread leaves out everyone who shows up to talk in it, and that's most of you. So your first real reply of the day now earns a point, the same way starting a topic does. I held it back at first because I wanted to watch one piece at a time before opening the next, not because replies don't matter.

On "recognized users." I hear that this is the part that stung, and I get why. Nobody wants a hand-picked in-crowd deciding whose posts are good. So here's the change: each night, a random group of people who posted the day before get the ability to hand out points for a day. Post something real and you might wake up able to recognize the posts you loved. It rotates, anyone taking part can land it, and it gets pulled from anyone who games it. It's the opposite of a clique. ⚠️ This is something I'm excited about seeing how it works out, but something that could very easily have the plug pulled very quickly if it doesn't work. Let me know what you think (in the thread not here please)

On why I changed the random version at all. The old roll wasn't dependable and it wasn't recognition. It was a coin flip that paid a guide which helped half the site exactly the same as a one-word "post the number above you" reply. I want a forum point to mean one of two things: you took part, or someone saw what you did and valued it. Random meant neither.

@Queer you said this isn't my site, it's yours, and that I'm beholden to you. You're right, and I mean it. That's exactly why this is a beta in one forum I can switch off tomorrow, not a decree, and why I'm sitting here reading every word. But being beholden to you doesn't mean never changing something that isn't working. Leaving the random roll alone, or flipping it back, would have been the easy choice. You asked where I've seen this work: this exact system has been running on Kumos for two years, so I'm not guessing. I'm bringing over something I've already watched play out. So here's the deal: it's a test, I'm watching the threads, and if in a couple weeks the forums are quieter or spammier than before, I'll say so out loud and change course. I'd rather be proven wrong by what actually happens than win an argument.

Going forward, forum-points talk has a feedback thread built for it so that it doesn't get broken apart by future updates (and has a much larger input box)

Magic 05/29/26 10:24 am

I dont mind getting a forum point for starting a new topic. i get it. I DO think you should still get forum points randomly for replying, though, since it really does encourage participation.

But what I don't like about this is the "recognized users" thing. So basically some users are better than others? yikes.

raul 05/29/26 1:53 am

At first glance, Forum Points now have become actual rewards towards active participation, which I find interesting, but when you read into it...
Overall this proposed system doesn't seem to have been discussed at all with the community. And it is surprising to me it is still being pushed after backlash and poor community feedback in a radical "I like it the way it is and it will be done period" way. That is, considering the change is supposedly centered towards community. I'd like to add that I expect the reduced supply of Forum Poins to likely push the fp to sp ratio upward, which is not in itself a bad thing, although it may impact the economy downstream.
Besides, Lyonid said it all. Have a good evening!

Queer 05/28/26 8:37 pm

@Flame who is being rude? I haven't seen anyone replying rudely. This isn't about not liking change, there are plethora valid critiques & concerns going ignored here. Responding critically and/or with open disappointment or simply being direct is not rude. This is all constructive feedback, which is supposedly encouraged here.

Evy 05/28/26 6:35 pm

Small sidestep: but the "most recent unread bubbles" in the forums, is it a bug that they are now always showing (and not like before when they would only show up with unread posts) or is it a decision that they are now always there (even though they link to the first post when no new posts)? Bug report was made 2 months ago. I still find it quite difficult now to see which topics have new posts and which don't.

Ewok 05/28/26 5:04 pm

I started a topic, so let's see what this brings.
But I'm honestly sceptical? Because there is no reward for replying.

Balloon 05/28/26 2:37 pm

I'll acknowledge Keith's reasons for liking this system, but I'm still curious as to why only new threads in Social Scene get rewarded, and not the areas of the forum focused on Subeta itself. Since his comment refers to this as a "test" (although I'm not seeing it called a test anywhere else, so I'm not really sure what that means), is the intention to eventually make forum points available for new threads in other areas of the forum? If not all of them, since things like the forum games and holiday claiming threads seem to be frowned upon by staff, at least the areas like pets, general, and creativity where I would think discussion would be welcome and encouraged?

Sorry I'm not expressing myself well, basically just saying that I'll like this change a bit better if we can at least get points for posting new Subeta-related topics. (Although it still really rubs me the wrong way that a few hand-picked users get to reward points, because understandably they'll be more inclined to give points to their friends, and it just feels like getting points will be a cliquish popularity contest. Hopefully I'm wrong!)

allnightforever 05/28/26 10:27 am

So replying to topics gets us... nothing o_0 Keith, im sorry but not everyone has the confidence or social skills to start a topic and just hope a few people reply to it when there will probably be TONS of topics, or the comfodence to know what to write starting a topic. I think most people would be fine with having an established system for forum points, the problem is then what's actually even in it for people to be motivated to REPLY so the OP can get additional points? It needs to be more balanced because only rewarding people who start topics is ridiculous and unfair especially to users who are a little more socially awkward.

Flame 05/28/26 10:18 am

I know a lot of us are old and hate change now, but seriously, sometimes just roll with it instead of getting so rude. If it doesn't work out it'll inevitably change again, for now why be mad that you have a guaranteed way to earn at least one forum point a day? Something that used to take post after post after post (I would usually only get them on the holiday threads like "kiss the user above" etc) we now have a foolproof way to um, exploit. Enjoy it while it lasts is what I say. Off to make my daily post...

Queer 05/28/26 9:50 am

I think perhaps you misunderstand something pretty vital about running a community website, Keith.

This isn't your site. This is your users' site. You are beholden to us, not the other way around.

Why spend so much energy working on fixing up the code just to drive the site into the ground because you like the idea of a feature? You haven't explained why you like it, either. Clearly, you must have experienced this feature somewhere already to be so certain that you like it. So where have you seen this, in action, actually work?

BoaConstrictor 05/28/26 9:48 am

So I actually just answered to a topic as the 2nd user. Would answering again, as the forth or even 5th make the count go up/trigger? Or will a returning user not be recognized in the row.

I wrote in a "listing" topic, but actually there can be real discussions going on with therefore returning chatters.

Limeleaf 05/28/26 9:21 am

It's good to reward users for starting topics, however... It's also good to reward users for bothering to repeatedly engage with those topics.

ErrorCoffin 05/28/26 6:49 am

so... what does replying do now? nothing? then why would people replying topics anyway...

Hypnos 05/28/26 4:50 am

i just dont get how there are so many people saying "hey, we are your users and this idea sucks" and the response is "well I like it"

where have you seen this system work to the user bases benefit/be well received? what about this situation is what you like? is it the mass amount of disgruntled users saying "cool, now my forum use gets nothing or earns prizes for someone else"?

this system could work if the entire other parts of the forum point system wasnt thrown out with the bathwater.

brokensafety 05/28/26 1:16 am

This doesn't seem very inclusive. I don't like people being excluded, which is what made random nice.

Azriel 05/28/26 12:12 am

Was the problem that there weren't enough posts? Why are the only options to either give forum points randomly or to reward them only for making new posts? I'm not worried about spam at all. I don't care how interesting the majority of posts are, either. Since it's now my (our) responsibility to earn forum points for other people by responding to their posts (or to, what, impress the More Important People enough with our silly little posts), interaction in Social Scene sounds like a chore and a half. Here's hoping the people who are enjoying it start racking up the points and sharing the contents of that shop with the rest of the economy.

Queer 05/27/26 11:56 pm

"Revival" is a kind of a weird word for death.

Hypnos 05/27/26 11:45 pm

actually i think the biggest issue is this does not give any incentive for anyone to reply to threads. just make them. if you want to reply, the slight chance of a reward to get items locked into a special forum based currency is gone. all you replying does is reward OP for your contribution. that feels bad

BoaConstrictor 05/27/26 10:27 pm

This just means no way to earn points for a lot of users in the future.

Keith STAFF 05/27/26 8:40 pm

Something like this is always going to be subjective. I'm trying to reward something that can only be subjective (is a post "good") - thats' what the forum points are for. The feature to spread out teh ability to hand them out is an attempt to spread out the functionality, and I'll be watching how it looks for the points to go out.

I'm a much bigger fan of this than the random, and so I'm going to go forward with this test. I'll be watching the threads - but so far - no spam! Just things I've really enjoyed engaging with and I encourage you to go as well, and if that isn't your thing that is fine and I hope that folks who earn points for what this is meant to encourage (and I will be watching for spam!) get points and sell them. This is a currency specifically meant to create activity in the forums, I dont' like how it's been implemented in the past (random posts just doesn't feel right) and this is my swing at improving that system. As always, I'll be reading the feedback and making improvements!

Balloon 05/27/26 7:18 pm

I second everything Lyonid said, much more eloquently than I could have! Especially this: "I feel like I don't have to point out the social challenges you open up by gamifying creating threads and writing things staff members will like."

Lyonid 05/27/26 4:30 pm

Hey there, I want to give feedback on the Forum Points overhaul and the recent trajectory of the site. I appreciate the efforts to revive the forums as they have always been the heart of the site. I think the overhaul is misguided and, quite frankly, awkward. I feel like I don't have to point out the social challenges you open up by gamifying creating threads and writing things staff members will like. I have seen far smaller spaces with healthier and organic activity by simply giving out one of their "forum points" once per day for posting once. I don't think that discourse needs to be gamified.

Forum culture is dear to my heart, and an active forum is NOT one that has many posts. I think it's deeply misguided as a healthy forum culture lives from people responding to each other with adequately high-quality responses. I personally also dislike prompting conversation with generated impulses. This barely fuels any discussion but leads to a shallow, unappealing forum culture. I urge you to rethink what you want these forums to look like, what you want people to talk about and design around the focal mechanics of the website. You have plenty of volunteers and caring community members – do one focus group at least.

I also am concerned about a lot of the recent features. I know AI-assisted coding enables one to create a bunch of surface-level features that seem cool, but there has been a surge of random features without further notice. I would like to request a proper roadmap or at least a list of features that are planned to be refined in the future. I know Subeta will always be a growing organism, but a community deserves to know how exactly their favourite space will change.

hannahharmin 05/27/26 4:19 pm

I have no idea what to post about once a day to get this forum point. I don't really post in the social scene section of the forums, as everyone's opinions are valid when it comes to entertainment of any kind.

I don't even post on the forums much unless there is an event/contest/giveaway. I even had a heck of a time earning forum points from the forum games section.

I see the social scene becoming a dumping grounds for dead threads overloading the cache on the forums.

I do like the idea of giving points to other users for their contributions to the threads, but again, considerations for giving points is all subjective and personal for the user that is giving the points. Maybe forum points could go back to the way they were but the forum games sections and events sections could be excluded from earning points. That way, those sections won't be overrun by users posting their for the forum points alone. Those threads are a great way to accumulate forum posts for the achieement though. :)

Damon 05/27/26 3:47 pm

Id rather just have the random chance for points. maybe just change it so you have to post slightly longer posts to get a point. i dont know.

Evy 05/27/26 2:45 pm

Adding: I do hope that the random forum points for other categories return! I didn't get that many forum points before anyway, so even a small chance for random ones would be appreciated.

Evy 05/27/26 2:35 pm

Wait so, if we can see the +1/+3/+5 on posts, we can give people forum points for good posts? I didn't even know that's what they meant, let me shower the good folks of Subeta with forum points!
I'm not so much a social butterfly, so the chance of me making topics in the Social Scene will be quite slim, even if they would earn points. I'll stick to my habitat in the Help and General ones. ^-^ But if it would help to draw in more people and increase activity to the rest of the forums as well, all good to me!

Hypnos 05/27/26 2:26 pm

adding to the whole "this feels like a miss" in that why not give the bonus to a thread starter when their thread gets lots of traction, and keep the random chance for regular posts.

and also not limit it to a forum that is not about subeta. those are. weird choices to make, even if i can see the vision. if this is a "temporary system monitoring to see the the functionality/check for bugs/how effective it is" then that would be fine if that were just expressed? (which, would be fine! smart idea, even, before shoving it into the whole forum to see if it breaks anything/if it does in fact lead to either exclusively spam or people boycotting the forums)

Mieke 05/27/26 2:09 pm

This.. really doesn't seem fair. Why only social scene? Why only thread starters?

(Also, I thought to be eligible for forum points, a reply needed to be a certain length. But I may be misremembering that!).

My friends and I have been chatting on the CCA threads since before the forum revamp.. and before the forum revamp before that. We have long, thoughtful conversations daily (well.. give or take. We're all adults, now!). Just because we didn't start the thread, or it's not in the right category (because, let's be honest.. we really are just chit-chatting) they don't count?

This seems like a way to get a lot of spam, instead of actual conversations.

BoaConstrictor 05/27/26 12:41 pm

I wondered, where awarding extra points to people had gone - I noticed it and did for a very short time, even though it had caught me by surprise and I had no idea, why it was there all of a sudden, rofl. But that's a nice thing.

BoaConstrictor 05/27/26 12:19 pm

So you want me to go out and start a ton of stupid threads every day in order to get the forum points?
I swear I have never posted only closely as much as I have since our input on Kumos was asked for - just to help build it - and continuing now, with the rewrite and the community again being asked for input.

I guess I received most of my points from kissing, dancing etc. during events.
I haven't participated in the "try to get forum points" threads very ofte, either.

No, I don't usually talk a lot, not in real life either. And I don't want to start here :-(
Opposed to this idea!

See? Things like this can't make me keep my mouth shut :-)

Delphi 05/27/26 11:52 am

Wow I just got HUGE neopets vibes there.
Gonna need to just leave for a bit, that's just ick

Delphi 05/27/26 11:51 am

s i m p l e
I can't post the word S I M P L E????

Delphi 05/27/26 11:50 am

*took something that was

Delphi 05/27/26 11:49 am

Also, the fact that you took something that was si and turned it into something that needs a full page of explanation... should tell you something.

Delphi 05/27/26 11:43 am

No, I don't like this.
I can only get points if I START threads?
No thank you.
You're leaving out people who are more on the shy side and don't do that type of stuff.

I liked randomly getting forum points and a lot of the time those "one word game posts" were the only way I got them.

Lame.

omg_carrie 05/27/26 10:16 am

So this is encouraging people to make random spammy threads just to get points...? I don't see the point, especially since unless I'm misreading it, it sounds like this only rewards the thread creator and not anyone posting on it? I very rarely make new topics... hell I don't even post on the forums much anyway, but at least before it was nice having a chance of getting a point whenever I DID post. This just sounds like a popularity contest and also encouraging spam? So now we'll have to wade through 300 duplicate topics to find anything? Yeah, not a fan of this one.

I also agree with @Balloon that it seems strange to be encouraging people to talk about anything BUT the site we're actually on ^^; "the stuff you actually want to talk about" c'mon, we love Subeta, we want to talk about it! like yeah it's nice to be able to talk about other stuff too but you can do that anywhere else on the net, why not reward us for talking about Subeta too?

Ianthia 05/27/26 9:03 am

I do see the idea behind this, as the forums are a bit stagnant. A refresh is a great idea. However, I don't think the balance is quite right. It will kill threads that are going strong. The the one word games, or saying thank you, is still valid interaction. I don't start anything new unless there's a real point to it, because I don't want to just spam. I also think the 200 characters requirement is a bit steep. What if someone wanted to just post a question? That would count the whole thread out. And, if I understand it correctly, there's no incentive for anyone to participate in a thread you started anyway.

Balloon 05/27/26 6:58 am

Oh n/m the question about "recognized users"; the help page explains it. The staff chooses who gets to be a recognized user "when they notice you consistently picking out posts that make the forums better." Now my question is, what does "picking out posts" mean? How do we pick out a good post to get recognized, other than awarding points to it... which we can't do if we haven't been recognized? ^^;

Balloon 05/27/26 6:54 am

Do we only get the forum points if we start a new thread in Social Scene, not any other part of the forums? That seems a little strange that we get rewarded for talking about non-Subeta-related topics, but not anything actually related to the site. (I also disagree with removing randomly rewarded forum points as well, which seemed to be very rare to begin with, but others have already addressed that.)

And what are "recognized users"? I never even knew that that +1/3/5 thing was to reward forum points to other users, but how do we get to be "recognized" so we can do this?

everdear 05/27/26 4:49 am

I see the idea behind this, but I don't really like the concept of everyone opening new topics for points, while the random conversations die out. I wouldn't open a new topic if the chances are high that nobody would interact with me, even if I'd get forum points, just because it's so disheartening.

Norn 05/27/26 4:40 am

I can see what you mean. But it will also disrupt conversations and chatty threads and lead to a lot more "dead" only opener post threads. Maybe not remove the random chance entirely?
It will also prevent people from looking first if their topic has been covered before instead of immediadetly posting. I don't remember when I last created a topic - usually I found others had already adressed it so I posted on their threads.

BaronOfBirchmen 05/27/26 2:51 am

Popularity contest?

Flame 05/27/26 1:28 am

Awesome, that sounds like JACK CARDALE will be getting a lot more visitors, since he is the forum shopkeeper! Maybe he could get a more personable greeting, or some little explanation of why he is the forum shopkeeper, lol? I've just always wondered. And always welcome more Jack Cardale lore. Maybe some new items at some point too, although I think many of us have a lot of catching up to do with the items already there still.

Azriel 05/27/26 12:28 am

Starting an entirely new conversation is the only way to earn forum points? Not interacting with existing ones?