Shortly after I started at Gameloft, someone had sent me a link to this YouTube video called "90% ANGER-SPONGE! - Gaming Community Managers Speak." I'll include it below this section, but being a new Community Manager I wanted to check it out to see what other people in my field had to say. Needless to say, as I would soon find out, there's a lot of good that comes along with the job, but there is also a fair share of bad.

I have also had a lot of people ask why I chose to get out of gaming/leave Gameloft after a little over two years. Along with my above points, I hope this blog serves as some insight into why I chose to leave for another opportunity. Just like with most other big decisions in life, it's not just one reason that can fit into 140 characters.

Now, growing up as a gamer, I had always known about and interacted with Community Managers and I thought they were always larger than life. These were the people who listened to me, advocated for me as a player, and loved to play the same games I did. What's not to love, right? To a certain extent, this is what I experienced during my stint at Gameloft. Most players were interested in just talking about games, what could be passed on to Devs to improve their favorite games, or just to shoot the shit. These are the players I thought I was like growing up - Engaged, passionate, and respectful.

Then, on the flip side you have the players who tell you that they hope you get cancer, AIDs, or even just flat out give you a classy death threat. I'll be the first to admit, while these extreme instances didn't happen day in and day out, they did happen. The other 80% of these negative players ranged anywhere from you're stupid, you don't do anything, or the classic ignorant response of, you're gay. Sigh. I hope that I never acted this way towards a gaming company employee as a young gamer.

Along with the good and the bad, came a really good life lesson for me: Learning to take criticism (warranted or unwarranted) in stride. I also got a little look into the problems of the gaming space - anger, immaturity, and hate speech. I don't know how it can change, but those are some glaring issues that we all should work together on not taking part in.

I originally wanted to highlight some of the other internal issues that drove me to leave, but after reading over what I had, I think it's best to leave that alone. As I said when I left Gameloft, I wasn't the best Community Manager, but I did think I contributed in a big way. I also learned a lot on the job and have continued that learning since leaving. Given another opportunity as a Community Manager in the video game space, I would look to do even bigger and better things. I also know a lot more about what I look for in a company, a company's culture, and to definitely pay attention to any red flags that come up before accepting a job.

So to close things off, if you ever find yourself interacting with a Community Manager, put down the memes, the insults, and just have a conversation with them. Trust me, at the end of the day, they are on your side more often than not.