Topic: Is anyone else annoyed by the amount of user options on gaming websites?

so i recently signed up for Gametrailers.com. at first i just went around, watching videos and making the occasional comment or two, but most of the time, i never went and really set up my avatar or signature or anything. but earlier today i decided to finally go in and give myself an avatar so that i wouldnt just be another random person anymore, but when i got there i found a crapton of options for setting up a profile. they had dozens menus and sub-menus of different stuff that they wanted me to do. i was encouraged to set up a blog, log my video game collection, track certain games, favorite user movies, update personal info, write reviews, manage tabs, join a faction, refer a friend, monitor my thumbs up/down ratings (i have 106 thumbs down compared to 38 thumbs up ), update games, message users, request friends, gain experience points, the list goes on and on. i didnt even WANT any of this stuff, its like they expected me to devote hours trying to set up a full profile.

i guess i could technically just ignore it all, but it almost seems like youre required to do this stuff in order to be a full user. its like if you go to a party and eat their food, but decide to skip out on all the activities. instead of dancing and meeting others, you decide to sit in a corner with your food. its the same with my thing on gametrailers. you feel obligated to do all the things the host offers, but you really just came for the dinner. this is why i never set up accounts on large gaming sites and i guess ill use this opportunity to make a request to NL. please, PUHLEEEASE, dont over complicate the forums with experience points and levels. just add in private messaging and user reviews and ill be set.

so what do you guys think, do you think that tons of user options are good or bad?

They are.
Because sometimes we want bay a game but they can change sometimes my opinion about the game and sometimes never played it like IGN.COM

Yes. Even checking the recent sister site, Movemodo, proves just how bare-bones this site really is. They say they've gone for simplicity, but honestly, features such as forum search and PMs are staples of every other forum for a reason.

options are always better than no options. because you can choose to do what you want. it sucks when theres something you want thats not offered. Ive enjoyed NL for a long time but it does need to update/add some key features.

But it didn't have an option to submit your soul to Gametrailers.com? That's a shame.

I'm with Objection_Blaster, sort through what's really worth using and ignore the rest. Personally, I browse several sites, so I've got a system of what should go where and what features are repetitious. I'm an old-fashioned avatar and signature full o' links type.

I'm with O_B as well: too many options> not enough/none at all...

I don`t know, I tend to dislike bloated things to the point where I prefer bare-bones...

Totally agreed. Search and private messages are standart, even in the free phpBB forums.

I always preferred simple forums like this one.
On other forums, i can't even tell the difference between a user post and their signature.

yeah, i agree with all of that, but dont you think it would be better just to simplify the whole gametrailers operation? combine user reviews and user blogs, make exp and gtp the same thing, do away with tracking games, users, and movies separately and put it all together in an RSS feed type thing. id rather that they do away with the comment rating system by allowing users to transfer GTP to each other if they like their comments. this way, the website wouldnt be overwhelming to people like me, but it still allows room for customization

Too many options is better than bare-bones, if you ask me.

I agree. With the sig thing too. Many times the sigs are longer and bigger than the actual post, so it's hard to tell.

I really like the simplicity of these forums, and many times I find myself getting lost and confused on other forums. Between BL and here, all the info you need to know about me is set.

I prefer bare-bones. Get a username, get an avatar, job done. If a website wants anything more than my name and e-mail, then they've really gotta have a good reason for wanting the additional information.

_{So I'm all like on Amazon and they're like "Bro, we need your debit card details" and I'm like "No way bro what for?" and they're like "So we can send a bro the stuff you ordered" and I'm like "well don't be lazy and find it out yourself bro" and they're like "well no orders for you bro" and I'm like "well your loss of a brocustomer, bro." I love my life.}

I agree on the bare-bones thing. Options are always nice, but sometimes there's just no need.

The more customizable something is, the more I appreciate it naturally. So... no, not really. I wish this place had some more personality, actually...

I love customization. A lot. It's freaking great, but I just don't think it would be needed much here. I'd definitely be happy if it WAS added, but if it's not, it won't matter to me.

On other forums, you're given the option to turn Signatures off. In fact, on some, you can go bare-bones. Just turn off the things you don't want. Customization is great, and more options are better than none. If you don't want something, just make it go away, but for those who do want it or would appreciate it, now they've go their thing. To me, it just doesn't make sense to offer nothing.

I just skim-read this topic and the overwhelming reaction I came away with is "we want more features for Nintendo Life."

Is this a fair summary?