Avalon Valley - A real life role playing site.

[Former Member]

Name:  Avalon Valley - A real life role playing site.

URL:  avalonvalley.boards.net

Description:  From our advert:

Avalon Valley is a (fictional) modern large sized town located in the beautiful state of Colorado. We are a real life role play site. A big town with a small town feel. A great place to live, meet that special someone and raise a family. With our top notch schools you won't get a better education for the kids. We welcome any ethnicity, but humans only. Come in and take a look around, and see what you would like to do in Avalon Valley. 

I made the theme, based off default, and the images were a blast to make.

Just hoping it's as easy on the eyes of others as it is to me, as I know we all have different tastes and sight.

Many thanks do go to my good friend aRMY83 for his input on image work.

Feedback and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. 

[Wesley2005]

Mar 6, 2022 18:46:47 GMT -8 @burkeknight said:

Name:  Avalon Valley - A real life role playing site.

URL:  avalonvalley.boards.net

Description:  From our advert:

Avalon Valley is a (fictional) modern large sized town located in the beautiful state of Colorado. We are a real life role play site. A big town with a small town feel. A great place to live, meet that special someone and raise a family. With our top notch schools you won't get a better education for the kids. We welcome any ethnicity, but humans only. Come in and take a look around, and see what you would like to do in Avalon Valley. 

I made the theme, based off default, and the images were a blast to make.

Just hoping it's as easy on the eyes of others as it is to me, as I know we all have different tastes and sight.

Many thanks do go to my good friend aRMY83 for his input on image work.

Feedback and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. 

Hi there!

I rate forums based on several categories with an overall rating to finish. My first impression on the home page is quite positive! The blue aesthetic along with the lightness of the colors are very appealing to the eyes and make it a bit more comfortable to navigate. Let us get started:

Banner/Images (Throughout Forum)
Let me first say that the images are appealing. It speaks to the forum itself and the category that it is in. They are simple, and easy on the eyes. The biggest thing about what I am seeing is on the homepage. The new/old posts icons are very easy to understand. This is a big thing for users that are new and shy. It is a big deal. Whether most would admit it. One of the most important parts of the forum. Otherwise how would you know where to go?

The banner itself is simple and plays to the actual theme of the forum. It is appealing to the eyes and not flashy at all. To newer members a bright flashy banner may scare them away from it. But this one is inviting and simplistic, but also has complexity. It blends very well with the background as well. Overall very nice!

Color Scheme
The blue/white theme makes the forum easy on the eyes. Especially since it isn't flashy like some forums can be. The soft sky background is a good contrast to the white on the boards themselves and makes it easier to read with the black font. The link color is differentiated which overall is a good thing. This is important as well to make links look more noticeable. The color of the text for staff is also easy to navigate as I look through here I can tell who is Admin and other ranks. I would suggest one thing here and that is adding a small table as part of the info center to make a spot for "Admin" "Mod" "Global Mod" so that new members can contact the right people with problems they may have. 

Forum Structure
I absolutely LOVE the menu and how it changes over. The first page is the "informational" page for new members which is inviting as you can see directly how to get started with membership. A HUGE thing, when it comes to online forums. There are not many boards located on the front pages, as we crept into the scheme I noticed they are completely organized and NOT overwhelming. I could tell where I was at all times and wasn't confused about the overall layout of the forum itself. I LOVE the table to the left with the depiction of what the site is and inviting members to join. I would make a small suggestion and put maybe a "click here to get started" hyper link, just something small and subtle to invite folks into the forum itself and make it that much easier to gain members. The weather on the top (for the theme of the forum) is nice. As it appeals to the role play dynamic which is a good thing.

Overall
I believe you have a winner here! I really do like the layout. The biggest things that folks look for in the modern world is ease of registration (how quick can I get started) or moreover HOW do I get started so the big things there you have hit. With the smaller adjustments it will be that much better for them to get started! I can tell YOU are very active as well as your members and Admin engagement in a new forum is PARAMOUNT to the success of it. If you aren't there no one else will be. 
I can tell you have put in a BUNCH of effort into this forum and I believe you have a winner with some minor adjustments!
I rate my forums out of 5. For yours
Rating: 3.5/5
WITH Those adjustments and easy 4

I hope you succeed !

Happy Posting!