the vitality of 4X TBS gaming forums

[Buster's Uncle]

There's promotion and then there's promotion - a lot of the best stuff is stealthy, 'cause even where the management is cool, the people can be put off by the open stuff.

I just did promotion at CFC an hour and a bit ago in their Site forum, in a conversation with the owner.  That wasn't my main intent, but some promotion did take place while I honestly shared my excitement.

You also gotta be shameless...

[Buster's Uncle]

I do believe we've found our sucker for Civ7.

Jokemoney, I really appreciate that.

[Metaliturtle]

You've clearly looked in on some of my recent conversation with Green1 on Discords and reddit.  You should if you haven't, but  maybe I should tolerate such talk from you in this context - you'd keep in mind that it's a sore subject to me, of course.

I generally find that you're nuking the topic from orbit so thoroughly that I have no quibbles and little obvious to me to add.

You've probably seen my discussion of Civ7 and the relevant dilemma in Council Room, and this eggs me on to go create that space as soon as I post, intending to do the minor work of creating a 7 theme and defaulting to that there soon...

I saw the conversation with Green, but because I'm not promoting Discord, I figured I'd mention it because I wanted to establish that I think the value of studying these specific examples is because Discord isn't where they attract new recruits, it's just a place for their veterans to chat, kind of like the IRC channels that were used by forum gamers before Discord. That means those forums have some lessons to teach us about growth and retention, I think.

I don't really think at all about promotion, usually because it's explicitly prohibited in other places where I think we might find new blood. Although I've done some promotion in other settings for my own projects here, and for AC2 as a whole, I've never felt that people respond well to it. I can't think of anyone who started reading my fiction because they ran across a link; instead, I think they find it on forums they already enjoy--either this one or the places I moved during AC2's downtime. My skepticism about advertisement is probably a personal hang-up, not reality. It isn't rooted in any science of advertising or anything like that.

One question is whether there's a way for us to push ourselves higher on Google returns when people look for certain things, but I can't recall how I first ran across forums like these. (Obviously, we'd also want to push ourselves up towards the top for SMAC fans seeking out SMAC things.)

SEO has changed a lot since I was trying to drive traffic, I can see what some searching pulls up, I imagine it's probably 10,000 views for one person to get on and actually post something in a niche community vs. a place like Reddit too.

[Buster's Uncle]

I used to have a good grip on the SEO, but that was 13 years ago if anything's changed about how it works...

We really ought to be doing okay, notwithstanding the extended downage - but that was pretty serious...

[Metaliturtle]

Well, here's the AI solution:

🔧 1. Optimize the Forum Itself
Before promotion, ensure the forum is:
Fast, mobile-friendly, and easy to navigate.

Has useful content (strategy guides, lore breakdowns, mods, etc.).

Encourages user-generated content like AARs (After Action Reports), challenges, or modding.

Uses SEO best practices: title tags, meta descriptions, image alt text, and clean URLs.

🚀 2. Targeted Outreach to Existing SMAC Communities
Places where SMAC fans still gather:
Reddit:

/r/4Xgaming

/r/retrogaming

/r/alphacentauri

CivFanatics Forums (https://forums.civfanatics.com/)

Especially the Alpha Centauri section

Strategy Gaming Discords (or create your own)

Abandonware / classic game blogs and YouTube channels

How to engage:
Don’t just drop a link. Start conversations, ask for input, share rare content.

Offer forum exclusives like custom scenarios, modding resources, or developer interviews (if possible).

Ask users what kind of SMAC content they miss and build that into your forum.

🧠 3. Create Nostalgia-Driven Content
Ideas:
"Why SMAC is still the best 4X game ever made"

"The philosophy behind Alpha Centauri factions explained"

"Morgan’s Guide to Economic Domination"

"Replaying Alpha Centauri in 2025: Still Amazing?"

Promote via:
Medium, Substack, or Tumblr (retro aesthetic works)

Cross-post on Reddit, Mastodon, Threads, and niche Facebook groups

📹 4. YouTube & Twitch: Let’s Plays and Analysis
Reach out to strategy game YouTubers to replay SMAC (even just a 1-2 video series).

Create bite-sized video content around faction lore, AI behavior, or funny bugs.

Host a live challenge or competition with commentary and archive it on your forum.

🎁 5. Incentivize Engagement
Run contests: Best custom faction, best fan fiction, best AAR.

Offer custom badges or titles on the forum for early adopters or top contributors.

Create a mod or patch repository that’s only accessible via the forum.

📩 6. Build an Email List
Create a "SMAC Survival Kit" PDF:

Includes strategy tips, faction cheat sheet, mod install instructions

Use it as a freebie for email signups

Send monthly newsletters with forum highlights, new content, and shoutouts

🧭 7. Get Listed and Indexed
Add your forum to:

Tapatalk

TopForumList or ForumPromotion.net

Gaming directories

Use Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools to ensure proper indexing

🤝 8. Form Alliances with Similar Communities
Reach out to Civ VI / Old World / Endless Legend fan communities

Offer cross-promotion: “Link to us, we’ll promote your Civ VI mod”

Find content creators or modders from SMAC-adjacent games and invite them to post

⚙️ 9. Leverage Modding and Tools
Host or link to:

Graphics packs

AI tweaks

Balance mods

Compatibility fixes for modern systems

Promote the forum as a mod hub, not just a discussion board

📆 10. Event-Based Promotion
Create a “SMAC Month” — themed content, daily trivia, community challenges

Celebrate the game’s anniversary (February 1999) with retro content drops and giveaways

Host AMA-style threads with known fans, YouTubers, or old modders

[Buster's Uncle]

I'd deem the biggest deficiency on that list is we've never had someone loyal making regular good SMACX Youtube videos w/ regular linkbacks.

The Official Site Mirror -I finally finished that six years ago- gets us a link in the Wikipedia SMACX article, and there's Facebook presence and an AC2 page I sometimes exploit to good effect --- but nothing worth mentioning on the third leg of the Triple-Crown of Free Webs Promotion, YouTube...


I could be more energetic on promotion for a long time now, but recent years have been what they've been, and it's hard to stay motivated.

[Metaliturtle]

I'd deem the biggest deficiency on that list is we've never had someone loyal making regular good SMACX Youtube videos w/ regular linkbacks.

The Official Site Mirror -I finally finished that six years ago- gets us a link in the Wikipedia SMACX article, and there's Facebook presence and an AC2 page I sometimes exploit to good effect --- but nothing worth mentioning on the third leg of the Triple-Crown of Free Webs Promotion, YouTube...


I could be more energetic on promotion for a long time now, but recent years have been what they've been, and it's hard to stay motivated.

I imagine it feels like being the last holy man for Jupiter when Christianity came to Rome...

[Buster's Uncle]

I was just talking to the only other owner left not completely burned out - and I think he only keeps his hand in on doing mostly tech for the ad revenue.

I want some ad revenue...

[Metaliturtle]

Do you own the site with the flexibility to do that?  Pretty easy to put some banner ads up, and I'd click on 'em.

[Buster's Uncle]

...Actually, there's a plan in the works for ads only lurkers can see, eventually, and some ideas about spreading the love around before I keep any...

[Metaliturtle]

yeah, stick the lurkers with popups! I like it.

[Buster's Uncle]

Well, easy to leverage that for joining incentive, too.

[Geo]

...Actually, there's a plan in the works for ads only lurkers can see, eventually, and some ideas about spreading the love around before I keep any...

A co-sharing plan?
Do tell... 

[Buster's Uncle]

Well, sweetening the deal for tech support comes first, after paying the bills.

Then contributors of any valuable content -including just posts, possibly- certainly if someone completed a mod called Tau Ceti and published it here, I might look to encourage that action.  It would be a good investment for the health of AC2...

It's dubious that we'll ever be talking about some real money, but I would like those bills paid, and want to plow any excess into growing the community, which is good long-term thinking even if I was just being greedy...

[Trenacker]

I really, really want to get the Wiki up and running because I think we can do some really neat things with it.