> EmoHotPocket wrote:

> yeah we're getting older and the game is getting less fun but... it's our fault for not putting this game on facebook and introducing it to a bunch of 13 yo olds.

I don't think we as players can take too much blame.  Really, the net has evolved so much, it's mostly on Stef and/or MM for not having kept up with technology.  Yes, as you put it, he's grown too and has probably moved on to more important things (family? career?), but again as you said he is cashing the VIP checks.  Even if there were no VIPs though, in my opinion the game is still his and with that the responsibility to keep it fresh.  Although, to be completely honest I'm thankful that he hasn't just pulled the plug.  I don't even play, and haven't for years, but I would feel a significant loss if the forum and irc community were gone, even if they're nowhere near as active as they used to be.

Mace is right about a FB app, but that's just the start of it.  It's weird, but in a way it's like IC as it stands is a time capsule of the internet 10 years ago.  It's oddly refreshing in some ways, as I'm not bombarded by tweet this and facebook that, but on the other hand we're dealing with an uphill battle against new technologies and the audiences that come with it.  I wish I could say this could be as simple as an iPhone/fb/droid app, but that requires developers, access to the codebase, ability to set up testing environments, maintenance, etc etc.

I don't think that it's text based has anything to do with it; there will always be an audience for this kind of thing.  I think the problem is presentation, and staying relevant in today's internet.  Really, if you had no experience with IC, would you be interested in a game where most players and moderators would readily admit that the admins are hardly active?  Kudos to the mods for keeping things as lively and engaging as they have. It must be tough.

I don't know what the solution is for IC but it's a damned shame that we, as a community, aren't more embraced by our admin(s).  I've had so many good moments with this game, as I'm sure many of us have.  Sometimes I forget that even though this is "just a game", it's fairly significant to a lot of us.  I'd love to relive some of the epic battles of my IC glory days, but honestly it's just hard to be motivated to play.  You bet your ass I'd jump on an iPhone app if one existed, but alas...

At this point, I'm here for the people, not the game.  I suspect I am not alone.