Post by Ph04nix on Aug 28, 2015 15:56:07 GMT
We are now an XBOX & PC crew only!
It was always my intent, after our feature, to have an entirely multi-platform crew with members from XBOX, PC & PlayStation all coming together as one team; I was genuinely certain that it could work, that people would be happy to be one society over five different platforms and would work together to ensure the best experience possible for everyone. Unfortunately in the past week it's become clear to the staff that there was an issue that could not be resolved and this, much to my genuine disappointment, has led to us severing ties with the PlayStation for the foreseeable future.
After a demand for there to be a hierarchical structure to the PS3 side of the All-Stars, I decided to promote one member to Commissioner status and four to Lieutenant. I had hoped that by doing this they would rise to the responsibility and do their best to ensure order and do this with all of the patience, compassion and determination as staff on both XBOX and PC; unfortunately there were many issues and dramas that unfolded and always seemed to end with one or more players coming to me to complain of being mistreated in a lobby, either by staff members or otherwise. There were reports of crew killings in order to gain control, insults thrown about here and there, generally a picture of disarray. After getting both sides of every story each time that this happened I would come to the conclusion that both staff and Reps/Muscle held responsibility for how things disintegrated and would encourage them all to accept their hand in it and move on, better prepared for the next event. They seemed agreeable enough and promised to do better.
Over the months we saw no improvement. We came to the conclusion that perhaps it would be better for the PS3 staff to earn respect as we had done when we first created the All-Stars; when we first started there was no real hierarchy, we were all equals and earned the respect of our friends and members by our actions, all of us on the same level. It's easy to rely on a title in order to command respect, but this can spiral into becoming dependent on a title in order to control a lobby rather than relying on good sense and - that all-important word - patience in order to deal with issues that arise. We brought them together and explained that they were to be demoted back down to Representative for a while, to see if that would help develop the way that they handled difficult situations rather than relying on their title alone. We were very specific, ensured them that this was not at all personal and that we all started out in the same way, that it benefited us and made all the difference to both the members we played/worked with; as a crew we'd never had to resort to crew killings etc as a way of bringing a lobby back under control and we believed that giving them some more time as equals to the rest of the members would help.
This did not go down well. Though initially we had three members who seemed content with this decision and two that were clearly angry, it eventually spiralled so that the majority were grouping together in their anger and seemed to purposefully make situations in meets worse as a result, then blaming it on their lack of title; this included spawn-killing a member in revenge of something that they had done. The fact that members who wished to be considered staff had dealt with it in this way was enough to show me that my decision had been right, that they weren't ready for the responsibility. We don't resolve issues with violence and anger, we resolve them with patience and communication; that's something I have always made clear and - from experience - know that it can be done.
At this point, one of our XBOX One Commissioners, Steve, then decided to purchase a PS3 and join them, intending to bring to them his ideas, his meets and his experience, hoping that it would be a positive experience. Their reaction to this was extreme; they accused me of sending in a spy, someone to take control from them, despite it not being my idea or desire. They thought that he was coming in as a Commissioner; in actual fact Steve had stepped down from his Commissioner role on the XBOX One in order to enter the PS3 as an equal, as they were. Eventually I simply told them that I supported him going onto their console and believed that they would enjoy his presence if they gave it a chance but that, if they were really so dead set against it, they should speak to him and hear it from his side.
I soon found out and was provided evidence to the fact that they had been making up things behind my back to present to me in order to shake my resolve, to illicit a reaction from me. In this evidence a huge lack of respect was shown, not just for myself but for the crew in general, the way in which we do things and the ideals we uphold.
This was the final straw for both myself and the rest of the staff. The level of immaturity, unwillingness to change and pure duplicity [as I had shown genuine concern for their worries, put in countless hours of time trying to help them resolve things when they were unable to and yet they thought it acceptable to use that concern against me and worked together to ensure that I was placed in a difficult situation] that were on display as well as the months of drama, issues and the incredibly sporadic, aggressive way of dealing with chaotic meets made us aware that we were fighting a losing battle. They seemed unable to accept that things needed to be handled differently and that their behaviour was as far from the way we promote as it could get; they were unwilling to work as a team, unwilling to accept help and unwilling to accept their own responsibility in any of this. We agreed to sever ties with the PlayStation consoles [as the PS4 side of things had also been incredibly inactive and members unresponsive to our communication] and move on from there as an XBOX and PC crew. The PC side of things was - and is - going very well, with mature staff members and a great community mixed in amidst the rest of us.
We removed the PlayStation members from the All-Stars group on Facebook & forum and I left the PS3 crew; Steve then contacted them to let them know of our decision. I went on to block the members who had been the conspirators, the ones who had been grouping together to try to increase the difficulty of the situation and force me to react; the many hours I had put in over the months and the patience and empathy I had exerted had clearly meant nothing to them and I wasn't willing to offer them the chance to illicit a reaction out of me. I was mindful of my own state of mind by this point and didn't want to do anything that would exacerbate the situation. I then received a message on an IM service from the previous Commissioner calling me a coward, telling me that I wasn't suited to be a Leader, that I had no idea how to run a crew; I simply explained that I was exhausted and trying to keep my sanity intact, that I was more than capable of running a happy, laid-back, fun crew and that it had been so before all of this. I was, of course, polite - even friendly - but the response was simply to reiterate that I was a bad Leader. He then blocked me.
Now here we are, with them taking over the All-Stars PS crew [no longer associated with us in any way, shape or form] and with the Off-Road All-Stars becoming an XBOX & PC crew. I genuinely wish them all the best regardless of how it all escalated and I'm sure that they'll enjoy having the freedom to do things the way that works for them.
I do extend my genuine apologies to those members who weren't causing issues and were simply caught in the crossfire; I regret what this decision will mean for you. Please know that this was a very difficult decision to make and that I mean you no ill will whatsoever.
To those still with us, we hope that you'll continue to enjoy your time with the All-Stars; know that we're happy to have you here and will do whatever we can to create the best possible experience for you, both in-game and in the community.
After a demand for there to be a hierarchical structure to the PS3 side of the All-Stars, I decided to promote one member to Commissioner status and four to Lieutenant. I had hoped that by doing this they would rise to the responsibility and do their best to ensure order and do this with all of the patience, compassion and determination as staff on both XBOX and PC; unfortunately there were many issues and dramas that unfolded and always seemed to end with one or more players coming to me to complain of being mistreated in a lobby, either by staff members or otherwise. There were reports of crew killings in order to gain control, insults thrown about here and there, generally a picture of disarray. After getting both sides of every story each time that this happened I would come to the conclusion that both staff and Reps/Muscle held responsibility for how things disintegrated and would encourage them all to accept their hand in it and move on, better prepared for the next event. They seemed agreeable enough and promised to do better.
Over the months we saw no improvement. We came to the conclusion that perhaps it would be better for the PS3 staff to earn respect as we had done when we first created the All-Stars; when we first started there was no real hierarchy, we were all equals and earned the respect of our friends and members by our actions, all of us on the same level. It's easy to rely on a title in order to command respect, but this can spiral into becoming dependent on a title in order to control a lobby rather than relying on good sense and - that all-important word - patience in order to deal with issues that arise. We brought them together and explained that they were to be demoted back down to Representative for a while, to see if that would help develop the way that they handled difficult situations rather than relying on their title alone. We were very specific, ensured them that this was not at all personal and that we all started out in the same way, that it benefited us and made all the difference to both the members we played/worked with; as a crew we'd never had to resort to crew killings etc as a way of bringing a lobby back under control and we believed that giving them some more time as equals to the rest of the members would help.
This did not go down well. Though initially we had three members who seemed content with this decision and two that were clearly angry, it eventually spiralled so that the majority were grouping together in their anger and seemed to purposefully make situations in meets worse as a result, then blaming it on their lack of title; this included spawn-killing a member in revenge of something that they had done. The fact that members who wished to be considered staff had dealt with it in this way was enough to show me that my decision had been right, that they weren't ready for the responsibility. We don't resolve issues with violence and anger, we resolve them with patience and communication; that's something I have always made clear and - from experience - know that it can be done.
At this point, one of our XBOX One Commissioners, Steve, then decided to purchase a PS3 and join them, intending to bring to them his ideas, his meets and his experience, hoping that it would be a positive experience. Their reaction to this was extreme; they accused me of sending in a spy, someone to take control from them, despite it not being my idea or desire. They thought that he was coming in as a Commissioner; in actual fact Steve had stepped down from his Commissioner role on the XBOX One in order to enter the PS3 as an equal, as they were. Eventually I simply told them that I supported him going onto their console and believed that they would enjoy his presence if they gave it a chance but that, if they were really so dead set against it, they should speak to him and hear it from his side.
I soon found out and was provided evidence to the fact that they had been making up things behind my back to present to me in order to shake my resolve, to illicit a reaction from me. In this evidence a huge lack of respect was shown, not just for myself but for the crew in general, the way in which we do things and the ideals we uphold.
This was the final straw for both myself and the rest of the staff. The level of immaturity, unwillingness to change and pure duplicity [as I had shown genuine concern for their worries, put in countless hours of time trying to help them resolve things when they were unable to and yet they thought it acceptable to use that concern against me and worked together to ensure that I was placed in a difficult situation] that were on display as well as the months of drama, issues and the incredibly sporadic, aggressive way of dealing with chaotic meets made us aware that we were fighting a losing battle. They seemed unable to accept that things needed to be handled differently and that their behaviour was as far from the way we promote as it could get; they were unwilling to work as a team, unwilling to accept help and unwilling to accept their own responsibility in any of this. We agreed to sever ties with the PlayStation consoles [as the PS4 side of things had also been incredibly inactive and members unresponsive to our communication] and move on from there as an XBOX and PC crew. The PC side of things was - and is - going very well, with mature staff members and a great community mixed in amidst the rest of us.
We removed the PlayStation members from the All-Stars group on Facebook & forum and I left the PS3 crew; Steve then contacted them to let them know of our decision. I went on to block the members who had been the conspirators, the ones who had been grouping together to try to increase the difficulty of the situation and force me to react; the many hours I had put in over the months and the patience and empathy I had exerted had clearly meant nothing to them and I wasn't willing to offer them the chance to illicit a reaction out of me. I was mindful of my own state of mind by this point and didn't want to do anything that would exacerbate the situation. I then received a message on an IM service from the previous Commissioner calling me a coward, telling me that I wasn't suited to be a Leader, that I had no idea how to run a crew; I simply explained that I was exhausted and trying to keep my sanity intact, that I was more than capable of running a happy, laid-back, fun crew and that it had been so before all of this. I was, of course, polite - even friendly - but the response was simply to reiterate that I was a bad Leader. He then blocked me.
Now here we are, with them taking over the All-Stars PS crew [no longer associated with us in any way, shape or form] and with the Off-Road All-Stars becoming an XBOX & PC crew. I genuinely wish them all the best regardless of how it all escalated and I'm sure that they'll enjoy having the freedom to do things the way that works for them.
I do extend my genuine apologies to those members who weren't causing issues and were simply caught in the crossfire; I regret what this decision will mean for you. Please know that this was a very difficult decision to make and that I mean you no ill will whatsoever.
To those still with us, we hope that you'll continue to enjoy your time with the All-Stars; know that we're happy to have you here and will do whatever we can to create the best possible experience for you, both in-game and in the community.