: Alas, that's the sort of stuff that now goes on Reddit, or Tumblr, or
: Facebook, or to the rapid-reaction realms of Twitter and Instagram. Most
: of the newer folks who make or do stuff seem to get exponentially greater
: visibility on those sites than on forums, which seems to be the main
: reason why the forum format is dying.

: Man, it's weird to think that it's been 20 years since Halo was released, and
: even weirder to think that it's been 16 years since I first posted here.
: However, the very fact that HBO exists in all its nostalgic glory is
: wonderful. This site is like an old friend from very long ago, and active
: or not, it's always a delight to come back here.

That's true, Reddit and etc. have taken over as a hub, where it used to be disconnected forums. The disconnected forums seemed to be a better way, as the recent shutting down of r/halo seems to attest to. I'm not so sure that these types of places are dead, although I am an old-timer like you: the "toxicity" that centralized hubs create is becoming far too much of a burden for people these days. The internet has always been pretty chaotic, but now put thousands of people in a room with nothing in common (like Reddit), and you'll see not only misunderstanding, but real hurt.

That's not really the case here on HBO. Not to say there isn't any hurt, but disconnected forums are more insulated from that type of chaos. The main problem I'd say is the younger generation doesn't really think there is another way: you have to seek places like this out, where places like Reddit are placed in front of you by others.

A relic from a simpler age, and I'm glad to have been a part of it, and to BE a part of it, hopefully. Thanks, all, for your work!