What attracts you to a forum?

Activity, a laid back community and usually some kind of immediate plot hook to dive in with. If I can see where my character can fit into the overall posting/story, that makes it easier to hop into the forum

 

I help admin a browser game and looking for new ideas for player engagement and attracting new players and retention.

 

I like to see recent activity and have the ability to crawl among the threads to see if my crew fit....no flashy gifs on forum pages sorry...eyes

 

Having a theme that doesn't hurt to read helps a lot (super low contrast or tiny text is an immediate no). Usually I look at the rules and setting after that, the more restrictive the less I'm likely to consider it. Then whether it's active, if there's a community that talks to each other (on discord or elsewhere), etc.

 

An easy to navigate site, active community of posters, and a general positive and inclusive vibe!! :D

 

As others have said, welcoming atmosphere and laid back community. I also really like OOC discussions, so if the community is focused around that I find myself drawn more to it.

What I mean by that is, messing around in general chat talking about our characters, posting ideas or GIFs, that kind of thing. It inspires me a lot to have such discussions with my fellow roleplayers.

 

For me, and basically in this order:

- Premise/Genre- I'm obviously not going to want to spend my time in a place if I'm not interested in the subject matter.

- Organization/Layout - easy to navigate and see what's what, user friendly. Bonus points for aesthetic and fun novelty features.

- Activity - People are actually there and writing, talking about characters, etc and it is evident that they are welcoming to new faces not just putting on appearances like they want new people but actually receptive and welcoming to them w/ no obvious cliqueiness.

- Optional on Faceclaims - I personally don't use faceclaims unless they are mandatory, so sites that are optional with them are a huge bonus. I prefer describing my character or using art I have of them, which I know isn't everyone's cup of tea. This isn't a dealbreaker but it does make a site even better on the rare occasion it's like that.