SCP Foundation - Creepypasta with roid rage - now ITT: SCP fans

[Capsaicin Addict]

This reminds me a LOT of how MUDs and MUSHes suffered internal drama for various reasons (mostly personalities who were unsuited for any kind of authority being in staff positions).

It's fascinating, really.

 

[Furret]

This reminds me a LOT of how MUDs and MUSHes suffered internal drama for various reasons (mostly personalities who were unsuited for any kind of authority being in staff positions).

It's fascinating, really.

The ability of any kind of fake Internet power to corrupt and breed drama is well-documented.

 

[BurnerPhone]

The ability of any kind of fake Internet power to corrupt and breed drama is well-documented.

Especially when the people who actively participate in these kinds of communities tend to have socialization issues already

 

[ToS]

These are some of my highlights in a very very old staff chatlog that Harmony dug up. I'll put it here without comment, just screenshots, to contrast how the site's old leaders thought, compared to how the current ones do on some themes:

Spoiler: Old Old Guard vs Now

<Paradox> I honestly think the only reason we kind of gave up and started lowering our standards is that there's waaaay too much stuff coming in compared to the number of people who we trust to have a good eye for what is good and what isn't


<Paradox> I'm tired of others always whining about originality, as if that was the most important thing, like something isn't creepy or interesting if you didn't think of it first. Anyway, it seems that no matter what you come up with, someone, somewhere, probably in Japan… has come up with it first or beaten it do death. For every one of my favorites, I can give you at least one example where its already been done, (on probably either Star Trek or the Twilight Zone).That doesn't mean that they aren't good. For me, someone who puts their time into researching it, structuring it, making it believable but still pulling me into it. That's work you can take pride in, that's the work that I enjoy.


<Paradox> To be honest, I've never particularly been thrilled with how far we've taken it

<Dr-Kondraki> That, and the second we started courting new membership, things started going downhill.

<Paradox> I actually don't like knowing about the "characters" involved in the Foundation. I dunno, it kinda cheapens the effect somehow...

<Dr-Kondraki> Why do you think I became so bitter about the wiki? I couldn't deal with the fact that the kind of change we needed would never happen because no one would step up with me and say "Alright people, shit is happening. Deal with it. We'll come out better because of it."

<Paradox> At one point I wasn't sure that we'd surive such a thing, Kon
<Dr-Kondraki> Because we'd lose people? So what?
<Dr-Kondraki> Since when did popularity or website hits become the point?

<Paradox> I mean, we're doing badly, but I think we're a frog in slowly boiling water
<Paradox> it might not be apparent how far we've sunk if you're caught up in the day-to-day of the site, but stepping back I think it's certainly noticeable

----- Gallery -----​

<Paradox> that while nicely designed websites are nice and designed
<Paradox> it doesn't really immerse people into the 'looking through something that perhaps I shouldn't be' feeling
<Paradox> and it's all about immersion, you know?
<Paradox> I loved first coming here and seeing the totally serious fashion in which everything was arranged
<Paradox> The first articles I saw did a good job of establishing the SCP Foundation as a potential actual organization.

vs

-----

"We kinda had to choose to be mean. It really sucks, but. We kinda looked at other forums and writing projects that were very open, and non-judgmental, and touchy-feely, and they didn't go so well. So we said, 'Ok fine, we'll be jerks."' - Dr. Gears

vs

-----

"You look at the old author pages... the author pages and author personas never really were intended to be a part of that. They were just crap that we stuck up to have quick links to our articles; we were horsing around." - Dr. Gears

vs

------

""[When kids come into #site19 asking if SCP is real]... That's always been a thing since forever, the whole idea. The second that stops, we're done, close up shop,." - Dr. Gears

vs

Spoiler: Unrelated

Since I have already talked too much and said too little about the law, let’s have something fun. Dr. Bright used to be in charge of the applications, back when the apps asked your age and gender. Here’s a few samples from the “bad apps” page. Commentary in italics was written by Bright.

I will parry this with commentary on the application process itself, from 2010:

creating an account on the SCP wiki is like pissing glass | the bblog

bbot.org

 

[Punished “Venom” pH]

These are some of my highlights in a very very old staff chatlog that @Harmony dug up. I'll put it here without comment, just screenshots, to contrast how the site's old leaders thought, compared to how the current ones do on some themes:

Spoiler: Old Old Guard vs Now

<Paradox> I honestly think the only reason we kind of gave up and started lowering our standards is that there's waaaay too much stuff coming in compared to the number of people who we trust to have a good eye for what is good and what isn't


<Paradox> I'm tired of others always whining about originality, as if that was the most important thing, like something isn't creepy or interesting if you didn't think of it first. Anyway, it seems that no matter what you come up with, someone, somewhere, probably in Japan… has come up with it first or beaten it do death. For every one of my favorites, I can give you at least one example where its already been done, (on probably either Star Trek or the Twilight Zone).That doesn't mean that they aren't good. For me, someone who puts their time into researching it, structuring it, making it believable but still pulling me into it. That's work you can take pride in, that's the work that I enjoy.


<Paradox> To be honest, I've never particularly been thrilled with how far we've taken it

<Dr-Kondraki> That, and the second we started courting new membership, things started going downhill.

<Paradox> I actually don't like knowing about the "characters" involved in the Foundation. I dunno, it kinda cheapens the effect somehow...

<Dr-Kondraki> Why do you think I became so bitter about the wiki? I couldn't deal with the fact that the kind of change we needed would never happen because no one would step up with me and say "Alright people, shit is happening. Deal with it. We'll come out better because of it."

<Paradox> At one point I wasn't sure that we'd surive such a thing, Kon
<Dr-Kondraki> Because we'd lose people? So what?
<Dr-Kondraki> Since when did popularity or website hits become the point?

<Paradox> I mean, we're doing badly, but I think we're a frog in slowly boiling water
<Paradox> it might not be apparent how far we've sunk if you're caught up in the day-to-day of the site, but stepping back I think it's certainly noticeable

----- Gallery -----​

<Paradox> that while nicely designed websites are nice and designed
<Paradox> it doesn't really immerse people into the 'looking through something that perhaps I shouldn't be' feeling
<Paradox> and it's all about immersion, you know?
<Paradox> I loved first coming here and seeing the totally serious fashion in which everything was arranged
<Paradox> The first articles I saw did a good job of establishing the SCP Foundation as a potential actual organization.

vs

View attachment 2071949

-----

"We kinda had to choose to be mean. It really sucks, but. We kinda looked at other forums and writing projects that were very open, and non-judgmental, and touchy-feely, and they didn't go so well. So we said, 'Ok fine, we'll be jerks."' - Dr. Gears

vs

View attachment 2071880

-----

"You look at the old author pages... the author pages and author personas never really were intended to be a part of that. They were just crap that we stuck up to have quick links to our articles; we were horsing around." - Dr. Gears

vs

View attachment 2071884

------

""[When kids come into #site19 asking if SCP is real]... That's always been a thing since forever, the whole idea. The second that stops, we're done, close up shop,." - Dr. Gears

vs

View attachment 2071844

Spoiler: Unrelated

I will parry this with commentary on the application process itself, from 2010:

creating an account on the SCP wiki is like pissing glass | the bblog

bbot.org

Piggybacking off that, here’s the sidebar from a little less than 10 years ago vs today

Spoiler

2013

Spoiler

Modern, can’t even get the whole thing in one screen on mobile and the stuff you have to scroll for is user resources. But hey, isn’t it so cool and #modern have social media on top

If you asked any of the SCP staff if they could pare this down to something that isn’t overwhelming they’d be apoplectic that they’d have to bookmark the pages they use for staff work instead of having it for them on the sidebar. Y’know, because everyone is a power user just like them and they don’t have to worry about it overwhelming someone finding the site for the first time.

 

[ToS]

Piggybacking off that, here’s the sidebar from 10 years ago vs today

Spoiler

2013
View attachment 2071995

Spoiler

Modern, can’t even get the whole thing in one screen on mobile and the stuff you have to scroll for is user resources. But hey, isn’t it so cool and #modern have social media on top
View attachment 2071996View attachment 2071997

If you asked any of the SCP staff if they could pare this down to something that isn’t overwhelming they’d be apoplectic that they’d have to bookmark the pages they use for staff work instead of having it for them on the sidebar. Y’know, because everyone is a power user just like them and they don’t have to worry about it overwhelming someone finding the site for the first time.

The social media buttons moving to the top from the very bottom was sort of a whimper in the site’s death rattle. Perfect symbolism.

 

[BurnerPhone]

These are some of my highlights in a very very old staff chatlog that Harmony dug up. I'll put it here without comment, just screenshots, to contrast how the site's old leaders thought, compared to how the current ones do on some themes:

Spoiler: Old Old Guard vs Now

<Paradox> I honestly think the only reason we kind of gave up and started lowering our standards is that there's waaaay too much stuff coming in compared to the number of people who we trust to have a good eye for what is good and what isn't


<Paradox> I'm tired of others always whining about originality, as if that was the most important thing, like something isn't creepy or interesting if you didn't think of it first. Anyway, it seems that no matter what you come up with, someone, somewhere, probably in Japan… has come up with it first or beaten it do death. For every one of my favorites, I can give you at least one example where its already been done, (on probably either Star Trek or the Twilight Zone).That doesn't mean that they aren't good. For me, someone who puts their time into researching it, structuring it, making it believable but still pulling me into it. That's work you can take pride in, that's the work that I enjoy.


<Paradox> To be honest, I've never particularly been thrilled with how far we've taken it

<Dr-Kondraki> That, and the second we started courting new membership, things started going downhill.

<Paradox> I actually don't like knowing about the "characters" involved in the Foundation. I dunno, it kinda cheapens the effect somehow...

<Dr-Kondraki> Why do you think I became so bitter about the wiki? I couldn't deal with the fact that the kind of change we needed would never happen because no one would step up with me and say "Alright people, shit is happening. Deal with it. We'll come out better because of it."

<Paradox> At one point I wasn't sure that we'd surive such a thing, Kon
<Dr-Kondraki> Because we'd lose people? So what?
<Dr-Kondraki> Since when did popularity or website hits become the point?

<Paradox> I mean, we're doing badly, but I think we're a frog in slowly boiling water
<Paradox> it might not be apparent how far we've sunk if you're caught up in the day-to-day of the site, but stepping back I think it's certainly noticeable

----- Gallery -----​

<Paradox> that while nicely designed websites are nice and designed
<Paradox> it doesn't really immerse people into the 'looking through something that perhaps I shouldn't be' feeling
<Paradox> and it's all about immersion, you know?
<Paradox> I loved first coming here and seeing the totally serious fashion in which everything was arranged
<Paradox> The first articles I saw did a good job of establishing the SCP Foundation as a potential actual organization.

vs

View attachment 2071949

-----

"We kinda had to choose to be mean. It really sucks, but. We kinda looked at other forums and writing projects that were very open, and non-judgmental, and touchy-feely, and they didn't go so well. So we said, 'Ok fine, we'll be jerks."' - Dr. Gears

vs

View attachment 2071880

-----

"You look at the old author pages... the author pages and author personas never really were intended to be a part of that. They were just crap that we stuck up to have quick links to our articles; we were horsing around." - Dr. Gears

vs

View attachment 2071884

------

""[When kids come into #site19 asking if SCP is real]... That's always been a thing since forever, the whole idea. The second that stops, we're done, close up shop,." - Dr. Gears

vs

View attachment 2071844

Spoiler: Unrelated

I will parry this with commentary on the application process itself, from 2010:

creating an account on the SCP wiki is like pissing glass | the bblog

bbot.org

Dang man, I try not to feel too nostalgic about old SCP but seeing such a drastic change in staff mindset hits my feels

 

[Furret]

These are some of my highlights in a very very old staff chatlog that Harmony dug up. I'll put it here without comment, just screenshots, to contrast how the site's old leaders thought, compared to how the current ones do on some themes:

Spoiler: Old Old Guard vs Now

<Paradox> I honestly think the only reason we kind of gave up and started lowering our standards is that there's waaaay too much stuff coming in compared to the number of people who we trust to have a good eye for what is good and what isn't


<Paradox> I'm tired of others always whining about originality, as if that was the most important thing, like something isn't creepy or interesting if you didn't think of it first. Anyway, it seems that no matter what you come up with, someone, somewhere, probably in Japan… has come up with it first or beaten it do death. For every one of my favorites, I can give you at least one example where its already been done, (on probably either Star Trek or the Twilight Zone).That doesn't mean that they aren't good. For me, someone who puts their time into researching it, structuring it, making it believable but still pulling me into it. That's work you can take pride in, that's the work that I enjoy.


<Paradox> To be honest, I've never particularly been thrilled with how far we've taken it

<Dr-Kondraki> That, and the second we started courting new membership, things started going downhill.

<Paradox> I actually don't like knowing about the "characters" involved in the Foundation. I dunno, it kinda cheapens the effect somehow...

<Dr-Kondraki> Why do you think I became so bitter about the wiki? I couldn't deal with the fact that the kind of change we needed would never happen because no one would step up with me and say "Alright people, shit is happening. Deal with it. We'll come out better because of it."

<Paradox> At one point I wasn't sure that we'd surive such a thing, Kon
<Dr-Kondraki> Because we'd lose people? So what?
<Dr-Kondraki> Since when did popularity or website hits become the point?

<Paradox> I mean, we're doing badly, but I think we're a frog in slowly boiling water
<Paradox> it might not be apparent how far we've sunk if you're caught up in the day-to-day of the site, but stepping back I think it's certainly noticeable

----- Gallery -----​

<Paradox> that while nicely designed websites are nice and designed
<Paradox> it doesn't really immerse people into the 'looking through something that perhaps I shouldn't be' feeling
<Paradox> and it's all about immersion, you know?
<Paradox> I loved first coming here and seeing the totally serious fashion in which everything was arranged
<Paradox> The first articles I saw did a good job of establishing the SCP Foundation as a potential actual organization.

vs

View attachment 2071949

-----

"We kinda had to choose to be mean. It really sucks, but. We kinda looked at other forums and writing projects that were very open, and non-judgmental, and touchy-feely, and they didn't go so well. So we said, 'Ok fine, we'll be jerks."' - Dr. Gears

vs

View attachment 2071880

-----

"You look at the old author pages... the author pages and author personas never really were intended to be a part of that. They were just crap that we stuck up to have quick links to our articles; we were horsing around." - Dr. Gears

vs

View attachment 2071884

------

""[When kids come into #site19 asking if SCP is real]... That's always been a thing since forever, the whole idea. The second that stops, we're done, close up shop,." - Dr. Gears

vs

View attachment 2071844

Spoiler: Unrelated

I will parry this with commentary on the application process itself, from 2010:

creating an account on the SCP wiki is like pissing glass | the bblog

bbot.org

You can tell that Paradox didn't stop using the wiki because he was busy because his Wikidot account (Pair Of Ducks) has large strings of edits on his personal wiki up to mid-2020. He didn't slowly step away because real life got in the way, he stepped away because the wiki was rapidly getting very far from what he wanted it to be. I feel bad for him. The vision he and other old members have here isn't necessarily better or worse than what the modern wiki is IMO, but it's definitely gone, and it does feel like a lot of the original carefree fun of the site has been lost in the transition.

 

[LordSifr]

and it does feel like a lot of the original carefree fun of the site has been lost in the transition.

Echoing this sentiment. Modern SCP is an exhausting competition for popularity. It was never meant to grow that big.

 

[Cow-Chan]

It was never meant to grow that big.

I don't particularly agree with this, I think SCP getting big in its own right is perfectly fine. The site getting popular is different from members getting popular. I think the issue is the site's interpersonal culture. Popular writers aren't writing for random peoples' upvotes, they're writing for the upvotes of other popular writers, that's what these people really care about. That's not something their global popularity would really affect in any way, and it would be the same if there were only 100 or so people on the site, as long as those same popular writers were still around to be won over.

 

[Punished “Venom” pH]

People stopped writing because they enjoyed doing it for its own sake and turned it into a min-Max process to get validation by having the right numbers to prove they’re better than other people. Now, nearly every contest since 2018 has been won by the same clique of power users, the same power users who sucked up all the oxygen in the room until they became too big to ban.

They don’t have the capacity for grace or humility to give other people a shot at glory. I’m sure you can recall the writer who is the poster child, the ur-example, of this narcissistic circle-jerk. But let’s not give the gratification of mentioning the name, it’s not like shame is part of the equation here.

 

[ToS]

Echoing this sentiment. Modern SCP is an exhausting competition for popularity. It was never meant to grow that big.

I don't particularly agree with this, I think SCP getting big in its own right is perfectly fine. The site getting popular is different from members getting popular. I think the issue is the site's interpersonal culture. Popular writers aren't writing for random peoples' upvotes, they're writing for the upvotes of other popular writers, that's what these people really care about. That's not something their global popularity would really affect in any way, and it would be the same if there were only 100 or so people on the site, as long as those same popular writers were still around to be won over.

This is always a tough sort of surgery to do. I’m going to stop sharing my $0.02 on so many things after this, but this is maybe the main crux or lesson of all this, and is important to me.

I agree, SCP’s popularity isn’t inherently a bad thing. Inherently it’s a good thing. It’s great that something like that was championed and nodded to by a greater culture. The whole phenomenon is truly amazing. Their original premise is something that should be appreciated and is worth positive notoriety. It has survived 13 years and several alt platforms mimic it to try and recapture what it was built on.

But it has become a bad thing. The source are the people who are given the popularity and don’t have the maturity for it. The discipline to not become obsessed with number-go-up dopamine. To not read the glowing (or bad) review of their work more than once. To not write, graciously accept the response, file and forget, and then log off and, I don’t know, go pet their cat like the happy people they should be.

Instead they make the paraphernalia of this writing site their preferred social media. They wear the popularity and authority awkwardly, an unnatural fit, as if someone else’s clothes that they came into possession of. These people have overwhelmed the community, despite the quieter role models staying the course like PeppersGhost or Psul, whose hearts still seem to be in the right place more or less. People like that don’t get enough credit for the tightrope act they do balancing their success with their personality; it isn’t easy. But despite the feat, it’s like the proverbial water droplet in the mud vs the mud droplet in the water.

Whether like Bright, who joined first then found themselves with popularity; or like Kaktus, who saw the popularity and then joined... neither type had the discipline or wherewithal to punish their appetites, and instead are punished by them. Natural for young people with talent and egos to match, but it could be managed by leadership & vocal role models. They need someone successful and visible who will explicitly broadcast their disinterest in the accoutrements to the process of writing there, such as upvote totals and bragging rights. Either there is no such person there, or they are quiet to not upset the status quo or be disciplined. So users look up to the louder, incorrect people for the wrong reasons, the squeaky wheel getting the oil.

The circa-CB users just didn’t know how to handle it; half the people were hostile to CB and hated what it did for the site. The ones who stayed became the blind leading the blind. No one’s fault back then really; but now, the fault is on the ones who know better, like Mann, who just want to stay as far away as possible to maintain a tactical legitimacy and avoid doing the right thing. Moral bankruptcy ensues for the sake of maintaining the popularity. Catering to those who didn’t and don’t keep creating the site, the consumption class, is the explicit priority. With this latest scandal, the ruling class has effectively turned the production class into serfs.

So, the popularity now being the main attraction and with no meaningful contract possible for the site’s production class aside from being a battery farm for the ruling class’ undue self-importance, the exhausting competition for it is now like a rat trap, the cheese free for a reason. The wrong people usually want it, will not be deterred by the clear parasitic & unilateral relationship that awaits them. (Are you not popular/powerful enough? Keep contributing. Are you too popular/powerful? We have a legal argument against you.) Some unlucky ones get the popularity or power, believing it gives them worth when they denied it to themselves prior. The possessiveness for the attention becomes caustic because these (let’s face it) historically unpopular and geeky people now and for likely the first time experience being popular and cool somehow and they equate their worth with it. It’s their validation, instead of something deeper.

Same with authority too. So, here we are. And their authority & popularity are now corruptive forces, easily argued as a bad thing, and whose crisis we are now witnessing. The false belief that all is well there is a result of inertia. It’s the cartoon character who rushes madly over the edge of the cliff without seeing it; the power of their imaginations keeping them suspended in midair. SCP’s users — the consumption and production classes — will either call for a return to values like the ones in the minds of the founders, or eventually look down, see where they are, and fall. The staff’s struggling to not make eye contact with their responsibility in all this merely renders their delusion more comfortable in the meantime.

Pay attention, RPC. You’ve inherited a second chance.

 

[ElAbominacion]

People stopped writing because they enjoyed doing it for its own sake and turned it into a min-Max process to get validation by having the right numbers to prove they’re better than other people. Now, nearly every contest since 2018 has been won by the same clique of power users, the same power users who sucked up all the oxygen in the room until they became too big to ban.

They don’t have the capacity for grace or humility to give other people a shot at glory. I’m sure you can recall the writer who is the poster child, the ur-example, of this narcissistic circle-jerk. But let’s not give the gratification of mentioning the name, it’s not like shame is part of the equation here.

In short: the clique running SCP has become The Flesh That Hates?

 

[Punished “Venom” pH]

In short: the clique running SCP has become The Flesh That Hates?

The Flesh That #Upvotes

 

[Lapis Lazuli]

Piggybacking off that, here’s the sidebar from a little less than 10 years ago vs today

Spoiler

2013
View attachment 2071995

Spoiler

Modern, can’t even get the whole thing in one screen on mobile and the stuff you have to scroll for is user resources. But hey, isn’t it so cool and #modern have social media on top
View attachment 2071996View attachment 2071997

If you asked any of the SCP staff if they could pare this down to something that isn’t overwhelming they’d be apoplectic that they’d have to bookmark the pages they use for staff work instead of having it for them on the sidebar. Y’know, because everyone is a power user just like them and they don’t have to worry about it overwhelming someone finding the site for the first time.

Why would a top-secret organization like SCP even have social media, anyway? Kind of breaks the immersion.

 

[Furret]

Why would a top-secret organization like SCP even have social media, anyway? Kind of breaks the immersion.

I think they've given up on immersion since the Pride Month disaster. I can see why they would want the social medias on the sidebar, but I think they would be better suited at the bottom, not the top.

 

[shnoopsis]

Why would a top-secret organization like SCP even have social media, anyway? Kind of breaks the immersion.

I don't believe that just having social media is a crime, but like Furret said, it shouldn't be front and center. Personally, I'd prefer having an official social media account for the site be solely for announcements or updates- leave the 'community outreach' for the authors and the, well, community.

Right now, the official SCP twitter account is doing the former, sure, but it's doing community outreach as well and it feels pretty silly. The whole charade of bureaucratic monotonousness fades. But it's not on the main site, and I don't use twitter beyond announcing my articles, so I don't really care too much.

Here's the account, by the way: https://twitter.com/scpwiki
I also thought this was funny, for...several reasons:

 

[Cow-Chan]

I don't believe that just having social media is a crime, but like Furret said, it shouldn't be front and center. Personally, I'd prefer having an official social media account for the site be solely for announcements or updates- leave the 'community outreach' for the authors and the, well, community.

Right now, the official SCP twitter account is doing the former, sure, but it's doing community outreach as well and it feels pretty silly. The whole charade of bureaucratic monotonousness fades. But it's not on the main site, and I don't use twitter beyond announcing my articles, so I don't really care too much.

Here's the account, by the way: https://twitter.com/scpwiki
I also thought this was funny, for...several reasons:
View attachment 2074307

It's disheartening that they're even joking about him like this. Maybe I'm just particularly close to the subject, but it makes my stomach pit a little.

 

[Punished “Venom” pH]

I don't believe that just having social media is a crime, but like Furret said, it shouldn't be front and center. Personally, I'd prefer having an official social media account for the site be solely for announcements or updates- leave the 'community outreach' for the authors and the, well, community.

Right now, the official SCP twitter account is doing the former, sure, but it's doing community outreach as well and it feels pretty silly. The whole charade of bureaucratic monotonousness fades. But it's not on the main site, and I don't use twitter beyond announcing my articles, so I don't really care too much.

Here's the account, by the way: https://twitter.com/scpwiki
I also thought this was funny, for...several reasons:
View attachment 2074307

Baffling to me why they’d want to keep anything Mitch/Bright related in the zeitgeist but all the more rug to yank out from under them when the full scope of his crimes becomes widespread knowledge outside this thread and the chattering classes.

 

[meinkraft]

Kind of a piggyback, but didn't see anyone mentioning this on Kaktus's Author page.

Spoiler

God complex at its finest.