Former Destiny 2 Community Manager Dylan “dmg04” Gafner recently left the company after seven years of helping build the game’s internal FPS community team. Gafner’s influence, leadership and penchant for bread memes have helped make this team one of the most respected in the industry, earning the respect of teammates and players alike.
In a recent interview with Forbes writer Paul Tassi, known for his extensive coverage of Destiny 2, Gafner shared some thoughts on his time at Bungie. As part of the Q&A, Gafner details how community team members at companies with a public stance on equality issues can face harassment while in office. He advises game studios to invest in protecting their employees by allowing people to opt out when necessary.
Gafner also offers some tips on how players can provide really useful feedback to developers, differentiating it from useless feedback. He points out that the least valuable comments are personal ones, such as insults or calls for dismissal from team members.
“It takes the focus off the game and on the person giving the feedback,” he says.
In regards to helpful feedback, he recommends that any hint submitted or player-suggested fix for an in-game issue also include information about why the change is needed in the first place.
He cites a scenario where the player suggested Destiny 2 should reduce the turn time, but he didn’t explain why that was the correct decision. Gafner says that the timer may be one of the problems, but points out that the main problem may be the mechanics, which are not fun.
It also highlights the difficulty of implementing many development changes, as sometimes even simple changes can have a cascading effect on other aspects of the game. A solution that seems simple can be much more difficult due to the underlying architecture. As an example, Gafner recently explained why Destiny 2’s sparrow speed won’t be increasing anytime soon.
All of these are great lessons for gamers of all backgrounds, whether you’re dealing with technical issues as single players or conflicts in multiplayer games that can lead to toxic behavior.
Ultimately, even without Gafner, Bungie seems determined to maintain the high-level community and community management program. Gafner was part of the team that won The Game Awards for Best Community Support in 2019, and Bungie is still regarded by game industry professionals as the epitome of excellence in community management.
Gafner doesn’t say where he plans to go next. However, his influence will continue to shine through at Bungie until the release date of Destiny 2 Lightfall, which also introduces the Destiny 2 Strand subclass, a few months from now.
Source : PC Gamesn
