The story so far

big sigh

I deleted¹ my Discord account some years ago –long enough that I lost track of exactly when. I have been happy without it and, while I have definitely been missing out on communities because of it, nothing has caused me to feel bad about not being part of a discussion.

Now, here’s my problem: I’m hosting a gaming tournament and have a number of questions that are becoming harder to answer without being in the Discord rooms for this small niche gaming community. Because the community is small and niche, answers are simultaneously difficult or impossible to find anywhere else besides the Discord room but I could get answers almost immediately if I asked in Discord. Almost everyone who is involved in this scene who attends or organizes tournaments, works on third party software and hardware, or is just genuinely more interested than the average player is in the Discord room². So, as someone who generally dislikes and chooses not to use Discord, I’m in a tough position.

I’m in a tough position because this isn’t just about me now. I am helping organize and run an event and have a responsibility to do my part. I owe it to my co-organizers and tourney participants to do the best job that I can in my given role. Thus, even for me, the excuse that ‘I couldn’t perform my role properly because I refused to join the Discord room and get the answers I need’ is kind of lame. It’s not that simple, though.

The Slippery Slope

Let’s assume I (re)create a Discord account for the sole purpose of getting the answers I need. Great, that’s over and I can close the account and tuck back in to my shell. But, first I can check out this video clip from the last tournament; it’s just a quick clip before I go. Oh, and someone wrote a helpful guide I can grab that. Oh, wow, interesting thread here; let’s see what they have to say.

I don’t want to be reminded of what I’m not a part of anymore, and if I’ve crossed into that territory then why wouldn’t I take a look around? But how long should I stay? If I can join Discord for this community, then why not this other one? These are some questions that come up when considering this decision.

Discord is Successful

There’s no denying what Discord has become and the immense amount of popularity and growth it has seen. It has features that a large number of people enjoy, such that it is the place where everyone is. While I may be able to get small groups of friends to join me on self-hosted free platforms, any more than that is an exhausting and disappointing effort.

Therefore, I am presented with the decision of whether to join Discord again –for the most honest and understandable reason I’ve had yet –or do I continue to rage against the machine? This constant fight for my software freedom is a personal one, and one I will continue it at my own expense within my operating system environment. However, the struggle I’ve experienced maintaining this software veganism for social platforms has worn me out to a great extient, at this point in my journey. People who are kind and patient enough to meet me where I am are still having extended interactions, that I could be a part of, on other platforms.

Everybody likes an underdog but nobody wants to be a loser.