Site Idea: User Emblems

[Alolan_Apples]

I thought of this for years, but I’m hoping we have something like this.

Just like we have collectibles in our sidebar, your profile will have emblems, which appears either in the same page as your profile posts or the page about your details.

Examples of what emblems will be visible:

• Every user will have a month-themed emblem that reflect the month they joined the site. For example, I joined TBT in September, so I would have an autumn leaf emblem as the first emblem. Those who joined in October will have a Jack-o-Lantern emblem. Those who joined in November would have a cornucopia emblem. And so on.
• You’ll also have a tree emblem that reflects how long you’ve been a member on this site. It’ll be a sapling if you’re not even a member for a full year, but it’s a fully-grown tree if you’re a member for at least 10 years. It also changes colors based on how long since you’ve been last active, as those who were active within the last week will have a dark green tree.
• Speaking of tree emblem, there is a cedar tree emblem for all users who joined TBT back when it was on Zetaboards. Those who joined TBT during the vBulletin era or Xenforo era won’t have this emblem.
• As part of your profile preferences, you can have up to three emblems based on your top interests, which are based on what Nintendo franchises you like most or other activities like anime, shows, movies, or music. For instance, a red pinwheel emblem means that TBT collectibles are one of your top interests you selected.
• If you have a trophy collectible of any kind (including team champion collectibles or TBT Fair animated collectibles), you’ll get an emblem for each category you received a collectible for. There are five of these, so you can have up to five emblems here.
• There are also emblems that reflect off of other things, like how many posts you made, how many followers or following users you have, your island fruit, your birthday month, and what staff position you’re at.
• There will NOT be emblems that reflect off of your current TBT balance, wi-fi rating, warnings/suspensions, current number of collectibles, types of tradable collectibles you currently own, or how many username changes you went through.

What do you think of this idea? Do you like it?

 

[Xara]

this is a cool idea! i especially like the idea of an emblem themed around the month that you joined the forums (wonder what the april emblem would look like… maybe something april fools or tbt egg hunt-related?

), and the tree emblem that reflects how long you’ve been a member + when you were last active. reminds me of the plaza tree from new leaf!

i’m not sure if staff would ever implement something like this, but if they do, it’d be cool if users could choose which emblems are visible on their profile, like we can with collectibles. i imagine there’d be users who wouldn’t want a whole bunch of emblems on their profile or even any at all, and some users who’d want them all proudly displayed!

 

[Alolan_Apples]

this is a cool idea! i especially like the idea of an emblem themed around the month that you joined the forums (wonder what the april emblem would look like… maybe something april fools or tbt egg hunt-related? View attachment 512596), and the tree emblem that reflects how long you’ve been a member + when you were last active. reminds me of the plaza tree from new leaf!

Let’s see. I already said that the autumn leaf is September’s, Jack-o-Lantern is October’s, and cornucopia is November's. For the other months, here’s what I proposed:

• December - Christmas Tree
• January - Snowflake
• February - Chocolate Heart
• March - Shamrock
• April - Spring Blossom
• May - White Lily
• June - Rainbow
• July - Sun
• August - Umbrella

I didn’t do egg because I think the egg emblems are to indicate that you participated in an Egg Hunt.

i’m not sure if staff would ever implement something like this, but if they do, it’d be cool if users could choose which emblems are visible on their profile, like we can with collectibles. i imagine there’d be users who wouldn’t want a whole bunch of emblems on their profile or even any at all, and some users who’d want them all proudly displayed!

Emblems may have an active feature like collectibles, but they can’t be deleted. Also not like collectibles, you can have as many active as you want.

 

[Zerous]

Parts of this sound cool, but others seem like they could potentially lead to some members becoming discouraged for not being active enough, around for long enough, or not being "good" enough to win events. It would have to be a careful balance as not to put certain users on a pedestal for being "better" in certain arbitrary aspects.

But the idea of having little tags somewhere for top interests, or a symbol for month joined could be cool! But I also think it would be good to be able to make it inactive, for people who don't want them shown.

 

[LambdaDelta]

the more I think about this, the more problems I have with it

if nothing else, I'd rather not have everyone's profiles become comparable to a geocities webpage pulled out of a late 90s internet time capsule

 

[MiniPocketWorld]

I could see badges being a nice feature for being a member for so many years. 1 yr 5yr 10yr ect

The badges for when you joined, I could see being a problem. Someone may whine they wish they had x instead because it's better for their aesthetic. Some may go as far as trying to make another account. Something Staff wouldn't like.

 

[Alolan_Apples]

The badges for when you joined, I could see being a problem. Someone may whine they wish they had x instead because it's better for their aesthetic. Some may go as far as trying to make another account. Something Staff wouldn't like.

Although I try to think more optimally when composing ideas, there’s always going to be some parts that some people don’t like. Aesthetics may matter in collectible sidebars since that’s going to be with you at all times as you post. But profile emblems are a completely different thing. They visually tell the profile details in just a few icons. Some arguments against this idea aren’t really strong enough. They may not yield great aesthetics, but it’s only going to be visible on your profile.

I already ruled out the collectible count, TBT balance, wi-fi ratings, and the private details since they will cause major controversy. For instance, if there was an emblem indicating that you had a perfect wi-fi rating, some users would abuse the wi-fi rating to delete others’ wi-fi rating emblem. And some users would resort to bullying, intimidating, and harassment towards those that issued a negative rating because they lost that emblem. It would be better to not have the wi-fi rating emblem at all if all of this was going to happen. TBT already had a couple features abused. Even emblems indicating how many positive ratings you got could be a problem despite showing good merit.

 

[xSuperMario64x]

Those who joined in October will have a Jack-o-Lantern emblem.

honestly Halloween is a whole vibe for me year round so I would be perfectly fine with this hehe

As part of your profile preferences, you can have up to three emblems based on your top interests, which are based on what Nintendo franchises you like most or other activities like anime, shows, movies, or music. For instance, a red pinwheel emblem means that TBT collectibles are one of your top interests you selected.

out of all your suggestions I really like this one the most. I think it would be cool to have a little Super Mario emblem on my profile sidebar


edit: just as a suggestion, if this even became a thing, maybe you could choose to active/deactivate certain emblems! that way if they don't match your aesthetic, or if you just don't want them on your profile sidebar, you can simply remove them from your visible profile.
(I think this may have already been suggested but I think it's a good idea)

 

[Alolan_Apples]

honestly Halloween is a whole vibe for me year round so I would be perfectly fine with this hehe


out of all your suggestions I really like this one the most. I think it would be cool to have a little Super Mario emblem on my profile sidebar

If I had three interest emblems on my profile, it would be displaying the pinwheel, star glow wand, and Pokéball, which indicate I’m a fan of collectibles, site events, and Pokémon, respectively. A lot of us would have the Pokéball, furniture leaf, super star, Inkling squid, or triforce emblems given that this is a Nintendo fansite.

 

[Croconaw]

I wouldn’t mind this as long as there is a way to disable them. I imagine some users wouldn’t want these on their profile or sidebar. I like a less crowded sidebar.

 

[Foreverfox]

While this idea seems fun in theory, it also seems like one more thing to learn the intricacies of, and also seems like it could be repetitive. Our join dates are already there, so an emblem for this could be repetitive or confusing, and if people want their interests known, they can already be found on their About tab. So, having emblems for these could be repetitive as well. I personally wouldn’t like to have to memorize what all of the emblems are to get the full effect of them, not to mention, I’m sure there is enough for new members to navigate as it is. It is a cool idea, I just don’t know that it’s practical or that it serves a purpose that isn’t already being served.

 

[Snek]

We already have collectibles. I would rather just have monthly collectibles like the birthstones. We already have a join date displayed like Foreverfox said so an emblem or badge for that would be redundant.

 

[Alolan_Apples]

Wanna know what are all the emblems I planned so far? Here’s my first draft:

Spoiler: Emblem List Proposal

Account Registration:

• Snowflake - “This user joined in January.”
• Chocolate Heart - “This user joined in February.”
• Shamrock - “This user joined in March.”
• Spring Blossom - “This user joined in April.”
• White Lily - “This user joined in May.”
• Rainbow - “This user joined in June.”
• Sun - “This user joined in July.”
• Beach Umbrella - “This user joined in August.”
• Autumn Leaf - “This user joined in September.”
• Jack-o-Lantern - “This user joined in October.”
• Cornucopia - “This user joined in November.”
• Christmas Tree - “This user joined in December.”
• Sapling - “This user has just joined.”
• Young Tree - “This user has been a member for at least one year.”
• Medium Tree - “This user has been a member for at least five years.”
• Fully-grown Tree - “This user has been a member for at least ten years.”
• Cedar Tree - “This user has been a member since TBT 1.0.”

Posts:

• Pen and Paper - “This user made at least 100 posts.”
• Journal - “This user made at least 1,000 posts.”
• Computer - “This user made at least 10,000 posts.”
• Newspaper - “This user enjoys the Bulletin Board.”
• Brochure - “This user enjoys the Bell Tree HQ.”
• New Horizons - “This user enjoys the Animal Crossing: New Horizons board.”
• New Leaf - “This user enjoys the Animal Crossing: New Leaf board.”
• Old Tree - “This user enjoys the General Animal Crossing Discussion board.”
• ? block - “This user enjoys the Nintendo Treehouse board.”
• Arcade Controller - “This user enjoys the General Gaming board.”
• Coffee - “This user enjoys Brewster’s Café board.”
• Painting - “This user enjoys Museum board.”

Interests:

• Pinwheel - “This user is a fan of collectibles.”
• Star Glow Wand - “This user is a fan of site events.”
• Furniture Leaf - “This user is a fan of Animal Crossing.”
• Super Star - “This user is a fan of Mario.”
• Triforce - “This user is a fan of Zelda.”
• Pokéball - “This user is a fan of Pokémon.”
• Smash Logo - “This user is a fan of Super Smash Bros.”
• Squid - “This user is a fan of Splatoon.”
• Game Controller - “This user is a fan of other video games.”
• Retro TV - “This user is a fan of TV shows.”
• Anime Student - “This user is a fan of anime.”
• Clapperboard - “This user is a fan of movies.”
• Tape Deck - “This user is a fan of music.”
• Book - “This user is a fan of reading.”
• Paintbrush - “This user is a fan of art.”
• Basketball - “This user is a fan of sports.”

Special:

• Royal Crown - “This user is an administrator.”
• Knight’s Helmet - “This user is a moderator.”
• Artist’s Cap - “This user is a project staff member.”
• Massage Chair - “This user is a retired staff member.”
• Gold Trophy - “This user won a contest.”
• Animated Snowglobe - “This user won a TBT Fair animated collectible.”
• Golden Egg - “This user won a golden egg.”
• Special Snowflake - “This user won a special award collectible from other events.”
• Ocean Pearl - “This user was part of a champion team.”

Other:

• Apple - “This user’s island fruit are apples.”
• Orange - “This user’s island fruit are oranges.”
• Pear - “This user’s island fruit are pears.”
• Peach - “This user’s island fruit are peaches.”
• Cherry - “This user’s island fruit are cherries.”
• January Birthstone - “This user was born in January.”
• February Birthstone - “This user was born in February.”
• March Birthstone - “This user was born in March.”
• April Birthstone - “This user was born in April.”
• May Birthstone - “This user was born in May.”
• June Birthstone - “This user was born in June.”
• July Birthstone - “This user was born in July.”
• August Birthstone - “This user was born in August.”
• September Birthstone - “This user was born in September.”
• October Birthstone - “This user was born in October.
• November Birthstone - “This user was born in November.”
• December Birthstone - “This user was born in December.”
• Common Butterfly - “This user is following at least 100 members.”
• Horse Mackerel - “This user has at least 100 followers.”

Notes:

• You can only have one fruit emblem, one birthstone emblem, one join month emblem, one age emblem, and one posting rank emblem.
• The first three posting emblems and the hardwood tree emblems are ranked. But you can have both a hardwood tree emblem and a cedar tree emblem.
• You can only have up to three special interest emblems, which are based on your top three interests.
• You’ll get a new posting emblem for every forum you made at least 100 posts. The trading boards, introduction board, and basement are completely exempt.
• You’ll get a new award emblem for every award category you won.

If you have any more ideas, please let me know. But remember, emblems based on wi-fi ratings, TBT balance, collectible count or collectible ownership, warnings, or ignore list are not acceptable emblems.

And yes, you can enable or disable certain emblems from being visible on your profile. If you don’t like some emblem, or if you think they are unnecessary, you can turn them off. They also appear on your profile only. They don’t appear in your sidebar.

 

[CylieDanny]

I do like the emblem idea, it sounds kinda cool, it reminds me of Neopets Emblems on the User Look ups.

But I think I would be more on board if we could customize them how we want? Like personalize them so they didn't look similar to other people's emblems?

Like if we could edit the image, or like change the color, something like that. I feel like something like an emblem should defintly have those options.

Otherwise, sounds interesting

 

[Alolan_Apples]

I do like the emblem idea, it sounds kinda cool, it reminds me of Neopets Emblems on the User Look ups.

But I think I would be more on board if we could customize them how we want? Like personalize them so they didn't look similar to other people's emblems?

Like if we could edit the image, or like change the color, something like that. I feel like something like an emblem should defintly have those options.

Otherwise, sounds interesting

I didn’t know that Neopets had them. I knew TV.com did, though. Like for how many contributions you made, your current level, any past achievements you made etc.

 

[Paperboy012305]

This is an interesting idea, yet I don’t think it should be in your sidebar as too much will be cluttered with emblems.

My idea that can still make this a reality without the cluttering of your sidebar is a new tab in your profile about the emblems you collected, each one is blank until you’ve earned them.

There are other forums that do the same thing called badges and I think incorporating them into here would be a great addition.

 

[Kitsuragi]

gaia online has emblems you can put in front of your username, they're basically like cute little emojis or whatnot. i assume this is similar.
i believe also neoseeker has/had something similar with "shield" icons depending on either activity or age. i think it could be cute, but i could see it being annoying if there's like more than one. maybe they could be special things you could buy during events, similar to collectibles.

 

[Alolan_Apples]

I thought of some new emblems.

Animal Crossing Specific Interests:

• Shovel - “This user enjoys landscaping.”
• Net - “This user enjoys hunting insects and fish.”
• Bed - “This user enjoys interior decorating.”
• Streetlamp - “This user enjoys exterior decorating.”
• Bag - “This user enjoys shopping.”
• Bob - “This user enjoys chatting with animals.”
• Fireworks - “This user enjoys the holidays.”
• Plane - “This user enjoys visiting or hosting visitors.”

 

[Midoriya]

I've seen this done on past sites I've been on and it's either usually executed very well or very poorly... with that said, I'm kind of vehemently against this for the same reason that I don't want the site to start offering things for real life money: it would divide the site into social classes.

I suppose if something like this were to be put into place, it would be fine as long as it's temporary. I don't want to log on during non-events and see everyone's profile have a bunch of unnecessary fluff. That's what collectibles are for.

 

[liliyoa]

i love this idea and now i really want it to happen