> > > I do agree. There has been a direct corelation between the drop-off of conversation on here and participation in Monster Arena (of which I am guilty as well)
> >
> > Heh. I don't even remember when I first ended up here. A very, very long time ago. A decade or so later, I'm twenty-four, graduated from college, and moving three hundred miles from home. And I find myself back here, after years away. Hi :)
>
> Indeed. It's been almost a decade for me as well (although I had to remake my account?). Hi!

Welcome back to both of you!

Although the conversation here in the forum has dropped precipitously, RinkChat is still getting approximately the same level of participation that it has for the last several years. You're both absolutely welcome to hang out in there if you like.

As for Monster Arena, I really don't see that being correlated except coincidentally. The fact is that the game only has replay value up to a point. Once you've figured out the optimal strategy -- and the most enthusiastic players all have, at this point -- there isn't much left to it. If I had unlimited time, I'd probably want to spice the game up with some new stats/abilities/moves, but my own interest in the game pales in comparison with other projects I'd like to pursue (Sinbad Comic, for instance).

My original purpose for Monster Arena was to create an activity that people could engage in indefinitely without requiring any of my time to sustain. I think the experiment worked, if only for smaller values of "indefinitely" than I had hoped for.