Sonic Zone Forum- who here was a member?

[HotFudge]

Hi there. I was a member of the Sonic Zone Forum back in 2004. It's been a long while ago but I can't forget about the strong community there. I remember going on that site everyday. I remember the mods and several members. I remember many long lasting topics like Word Association, Caption the Avatar above you, Ask Knuckles The Echidna (and other characters) and many many more. My username was Popcicle7 at first, then I managed to save up 500 rings (remember those?) to change it to the way cooler Blitz. 

 

I'm a very nostalgic person, and although it's been so long since I've been part of a Sonic forum, I value things from my past so much, and it gives me so much joy to reminisce with people who were a part of the same things. I remember SSMB being mentioned on there a lot, and I'm glad to know that at least this website is still around. I hope I can find a few people to reminisce with.

[Vertekins]

I remember that place. It was a ginormous forum run by a guy called "Sonikku". I was a member but it's lack of organization and fixation on roleplay turned me off it despite the quirks of the Ring system. It wasn't one of those forums that had much focus on serious discussion and whilst there was a lot of contempt for that forum around here, I found that it was largely an attitude of elitism (Like the attitude towards the SEGA forum around here these days) apart from the contempt for the lack of authoritive administration above anything else.

[Nepenthe]

I was on there was BlizShadow from roughly around 2003 to its eventual death around 2007 or so, and I can tell you that the ire that forum got was wholly deserved. Most of the staff were pretty awful, a mean bunch who I imagine only got to their position of power expressly through connections with other staff members. The owner was never involved and got so distanced from the forum's running that he just sold it off to some guy in Italy who gave even less of a fuck to the point that he vanished completely, and with him so did access to the ACP hence the site's death. I think our very own Chris was called in to try to fix the situation but couldn't.

 

Also, the threshold for conversation and forum management was just as bad. If there were any grammar rules, they weren't enforced. Same with flaming. I also remember way back in the site's early days that they had a forum expressly devoted to each of the game characters. While I admit it was interesting in hindsight to see how these forums had such different atmospheres due to the congregation of different demographics that enjoyed these characters (the Cream forum was exactly like you'd expect a Cream forum to look like in terms of conversation, and it was subsequently the complete opposite from the Shadow forum), it also bred a lot of competition and resentment between regulars of specific forums and eventually got to the point where they just nixed it completely.

Even as much as I look back on the site and some of the people there with contempt, I nonetheless recognize that it was my first Internet home and it's where I went through the majority of my growing pains with regards to the Internet. I was undoubtedly an argumentative ass that couldn't really let go of anything without getting the last word in. It's a personal thing I have to shake off every now and again, although doing all of that arguing made me a better debater and conversationalist in the long run anyway. I also met a few good friends on there or at least during that period. Our own D'Metal is one; he was one of the good staffers on there. There was also Archer- an excellent writer and RPer- and an Axel Fire was another, who was joined at my hip as my debating buddy until the forum died. I've been trying to find him since; I'd love to talk to him again, or even wonder if he's still apart of the fandom.

[Death the Kid]

I too was a member. It was an okay place but there was usually a lot of frustration between members, and the moderating team wasn't exactly the nicest thing either. they took away my posting privileges for a month or more unless I apologized directly to Sonikku; and that was because I had advertised a webpage not knowing that I wasn't supposed to do that. afterwards, things were okay for a while, then I started up a Star Fox RP thing that split off from a topic there, and basically that site went through 3 different incarnations since 2005 before finally shutting down on the first this year.

 

So now SSMB here is my main hangout, alongside Twitter. 

Edited January 24, 2013 by Shinigami

[MizukiMoon]

Oh man, I remember that forum! Was a member way back in my early forum days of 2006. 

 

I was never a huge fan. At the time I preferred SonicAnime.net as I just didn't seem to click with all the other members there, and I wasn't really that keen on the topic choices people made, etc. It wasn't really for me. I actually checked back there not so long ago and was shocked to see it's still going! 

[billyhatcher312]

i used to like the site but the admin john gillis was fucked up and he didnt give a shit about the damn spambots coning on every day and above all that all of the mods really sucked shit.  But there was one mod who was doing the damn work but the admin wasnt doing anything at all.  When i went back on my computer all of a sudden the site was shut down but im actually glad that the site is gone because i never really liked the admin he really sucked at his job and he was also on the damn ustream alot too so he decided to shut down his site ;D

[Clouder]

i used to like the site but the admin john gillis was fucked up and he didnt give a shit about the damn spambots coning on every day and above all that all of the mods really sucked shit.  But there was one mod who was doing the damn work but the admin wasnt doing anything at all.  When i went back on my computer all of a sudden the site was shut down but im actually glad that the site is gone because i never really liked the admin he really sucked at his job and he was also on the damn ustream alot too so he decided to shut down his site ;D

Dude. Not even the mods swear that much. And please check your grammar.

 

If you feel a post is out of line, feel free to report it, thanks~ ^^

Edited March 31, 2013 by Diz

[Frank Sinatra]

I'm trying for the life of me to remember a forum I was apart of, I think it had something like True Blue in the title.  Or something to do with the colour blue of which I was a member back in 2007. I know I have a terrible memory, does anyone else remember a forum like this?

[Kamakai]

After joining, I immediately realised it wasn't even worth bothering with. It had an air of negativity flowing through it that I'm glad isn't here.

[Your Vest Friend]

I don't even recognise the name. Then again, my forum life didn't really begin until 2007, I suppose it had been eclipsed by then.

[billyhatcher312]

well when i was on the site there was a few nice people one was a guy known as jkid and another was known as thegameninja my username was billyhatcher643 but john banned me alot of times because he hated me for some stupid reason but now that i think of it im still glad the site is gone

[Mauro Fonseca]

Wait, Sonic Zone as in sonikku.com or something similar in terms of URL? I was there, I remember it!

Vaguely!

[billyhatcher312]

hey guys the site is back online but the fourm isnt online

[Diz]

Hey guys! The site is back online, but the fourm isnt online.

 

Hi there!

 

I sent you a PM earlier regarding a basic grammar rule we have, which requires basic grammar like punctuation and capital letters where needed. Please implement this as it's a requirement on the SSMB. For that tiny bit extra effort, we feel the experience on the SSMB becomes much smoother. If you need help with it, feel free to come to us and we will gladly show you!

[batson]

Oh yes, the Sonic Zone Forum. That was practically where I lived my internet-life between maybe 2004 and 2007. I was called rattis and when I think back to it, it seems I spent most of my time there complaining about people who thought Sonic X was canon to the games.

[billyhatcher312]

Oh yes, the Sonic Zone Forum. That was practically where I lived my internet-life between maybe 2004 and 2007. I was called rattis and when I think back to it, it seems I spent most of my time there complaining about people who thought Sonic X was canon to the games.

Well Sonic X was based off of the games

[Vec]

No, but I remember that my first Sonic-related forum was The Chaotix Board that is also closed now.

[Gabz Girl]

I remember Sonic Zone Forum...not fondly, but I remember it. XD I was just gabz girl and it was the very first Sonic message board I joined back in early 2004, before SA.net and SSMB. I don't remember the horrible atmosphere, but what I do remember is this...

 

- You could ask Knuckles, Shadow and Rouge questions in their own topic. Yes, there was actually a topic where users acting like these three characters would answer questions asked by other people on the forum. Back then I thought it was awesome, but now...err.

 

- There was this one guy whose name I sadly can't remember and he used to post the most AMAZING fanfics in the fanfiction board. But they were grimdark, very grimdark. I used to love them though, because I had a fascination with ghoulishness back then and it was the first time I saw Sonic and his friends in mortal danger. For example, Tails getting his tails stuck in a garbage disposal creating a bloody mess and eventually killing him. >_>

 

- Finally, after spending a few months there I was suddenly kicked off and put on some special forum with other users who were banned from using the main forums. To this day, I still don't understand why! I got bored of it all because of this and finally joined SA.net.

[billyhatcher312]

I remember Sonic Zone Forum...not fondly, but I remember it. XD I was just gabz girl and it was the very first Sonic message board I joined back in early 2004, before SA.net and SSMB. I don't remember the horrible atmosphere, but what I do remember is this...

 

- You could ask Knuckles, Shadow and Rouge questions in their own topic. Yes, there was actually a topic where users acting like these three characters would answer questions asked by other people on the forum. Back then I thought it was awesome, but now...err.

 

- There was this one guy whose name I sadly can't remember and he used to post the most AMAZING fanfics in the fanfiction board. But they were grimdark, very grimdark. I used to love them though, because I had a fascination with ghoulishness back then and it was the first time I saw Sonic and his friends in mortal danger. For example, Tails getting his tails stuck in a garbage disposal creating a bloody mess and eventually killing him. >_>

 

- Finally, after spending a few months there I was suddenly kicked off and put on some special forum with other users who were banned from using the main forums. To this day, I still don't understand why! I got bored of it all because of this and finally joined SA.net.

 

I feel your pain i was banned a few times my self & the admin john gillis was the worst admin i've ever met

[billyhatcher312]

hey guys i deleted my account on the stupid site and now i realise that they're a bunch of pricks and immature little kids so im gald im on this site

[Harley Quinn]

I heard of it, but the forum I began on was one called Prower Resort. I was a stupid eight/nine year old then and probably annoyed everyone there! I even had a Mary Sue OC... But still. I remember this forum for its infamy.

[Cyalume]

Refer to my signature. Its been that way since I joined the SSMB. (The image there was SZF's logo for a while)

I remember SZF pretty vividly, and it was a love-hate relationship for me, really. Some of the people I met on that place would end up being either close friends or close aquaintences of mine for nearly a half-decade (and a select few still contact me once in a blue moon). The staff was laughably horrible. I enjoyed the fact that they had different sections for each character and different corresponding themes as well. the rings system was equally great.

But the way the place went out was terrible. First, Sonikku abandoned the place by selling it to some random. Shortly after, the mods felt like this entitled them to take the helm completely during the interim, which resulted in utter chaos, severe immaturity, and inane levels of elitism on their part. They literally did whatever they wanted and ran the place it was their own little club, for the mods and by the mods. I believe the board was wiped during this time too, but I cant remember.

If my memory serves correctly, I believe the same Sonikku that once ran SZF eventually ended up starting a new forum named "Sonic HD". But that one never really got off the ground.

Edited April 28, 2013 by Cyalume

[richardandjudy]

Not me

[-blank-]

I was never a member, but I have indeed heard of the place.

[Terry Alpha]

I was there since 2005, I was a moderator in case someone still recalls my username (I was also known as Terracotta, Ivan or Yoshi-kun). Yeah, is not that I'm very proud of it, but back then it was an amazing experience because it was my first contact with other Sonic the Hedgehog fans.

 

I actually remember a lot of members, many of them (including myself) started moving to other forums including this one because to be honest, nobody liked the administrator, even the moderators disliked him.

 

Sadly I don't know too much about some of the members after I quit as a moderator because I hated the abusive new staff members we got when the older administratot sold the forum to a nobody. To make it harder, the forum broke up in 2007 so everyone went to different places. I think there are still some of them here and in deviantArt, or maybe FurAffinity.

 

So yeah, it was my first forum experience and I enjoyed it while it lasted. But I was, like, 15 back then, I didn't think too much about it. When I grew up I realized that forum was a complete mess and it had a lot of silly and unnecesary sections and other stuff, but at least I got nice memories from it =)