Zoo Tycoon Volcano
| Forum · Message Board | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Zoo Tycoon Volcano, ZTV |
| Date(s): | 2006-Present |
| Moderated: | |
| Founder(s): | Zooasaurus Rex |
| Type: | Video Game Forum |
| Fandom: | Zoo Tycoon 2 |
| Scope: | Video Games, Community |
| URL: | WebsiteArchived Version |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Zoo Tycoon Volcano (or "ZTV") is a forum created in 2006 for the fandom of Zoo Tycoon. It is most well known for its extensive Zoo Tycoon mod downloads and its contentious user base.
It was created by a user named Zooasaurus Rex using a free website host called InvisionFree.[1] Despite the waning interest in Zoo Tycoon as a franchise over time, ZTV still has over 4,000 members as of 2020. Modernly, the community members are not quite as concerned with Zoo Tycoon nor fandom as a whole, instead sticking together out of community. They hang out on Discord and may have a Minecraft server they gather in.
History
Forum topics ranged from screenshots from the game, to political discussions, to threads for the download of mods. The site moved hosts in 2009 due to issues with the original host, InvisionFree. Not long after the move internal issues began to occur among site staff. Some staff were more strict on inappropriate behaviors, such as trolling or flaming, while the other half of staff believed it was their right to do what they'd like (see Internal Conflicts). This conflict resulted in two of the administrators, ZooMaster and FelixPrismus, being removed.
The website was hacked soon after, with come credit going to a previously removed then re-added admin named King Hoopla. King Hoopla would later go on to credit a method devised by FelixPrismus for helping him hack the website.[2] The website moved hosts again after this attack, and then after Zetaboards became Tapatalk, moved hosting again to Jcink. On July 16, 2018, Zooasaurus (Now under the username Zooa Kai) transferred ownership of Zoo Tycoon Volcano to Incinerox.[3]
The website, since it's move to Jcink, has been renamed to Planet Zoo Volcano in reference to the 2019 title Planet Zoo. Its forum threads and replies are dated incorrectly due to the hosting move. Posts are dated at the bottom of each post with the true date of posting, while the left hand side's date is the date of archiving after the move. Zoo Tycoon Volcano is no longer just a ZT2 fan site, but remains an archive of what it once was. The community that used to frequent the site now mostly uses Discord to communicate rather than the forums, though an occasional new post still happens.
User Base
Users who have been on the website for several years often claim to have joined the site anywhere from between age 9 to of high school age. As of 2019, there are very few children in the ZTV community as they have since grown up. Users frequently self-identify as liberal, however browsing the archived debate[4] threads could suggest otherwise.[5][6] Zoo Tycoon Volcano's user base as of 2019 can thus be summarized as adults with conservative leaning opinions. The user base may be comparable to 4chan or Reddit.
Threads
Internal Conflicts
Staff Schisms
Most conflict can be attributed to the difference in management styles among the staff concerning minors on the forum, particularly if trolling and adult discussions were acceptable. Children were an easy target to the staff and forum members who believed this behavior was acceptable.[7][8] Other staff members saw this as something that was wrong or inappropriate for the community, especially considering Zoo Tycoon was a family friendly game.
Two groups of staff members were created in 2008 to reflect this schism in management style. The Purple Box faction, which supported a more adult forum, was lead by FelixPrismus and Mint. Then, The Orange Ribbon faction, which supported a kid-friendly site, was lead by ZooMaster and Simba. The Zoo Tycoon Volcano wiki page on the Zoo Tycoon Wiki says:
"This initial conflict, however, had a negative impact on the site's reputation, creating a repute for a lawless and corrupt atmosphere, where staff members were too busy fighting amongst each other to actually enforce rules. As certain members became uncomfortable with the site's direction and left to other fansites, such as Zoo Tycoon River, many remaining members took advantage of the absence to promote a more adult environment."[1]
Non-Human Users
Non-human users were users who would pretend to be an animal at a keyboard. This was considered a fun and harmless way to roleplay while also partaking in the community. However, some staff members and users did not approve of this and attempted to prove they were not actually animals. Enough problems came from this to have a new rule implemented to not harass the non-human users simply for pretending to be animals. Mint, along with the ex-admin FelixPrismus, then went on to create a "faction" called the "Sons of Liberty," as they believed the new rules were a "violation of their rights." FelixPrismus would, a few years later in an interview, go on to describe the non-harassment rules of ZTV as "imperialistic," and that they were "fighting imperialism."[2] In the interview, he also describes himself and his faction companions as "a movement of heroes." Though they self describe as all these things in the interview, it's unclear if this is supposed to be a joke or if they were serious. Signing up as a non-human user is no longer a popular pass time and has fallen into obscurity in the fandom. It is also possible that the non-human users were engaging in the concept of "trolls trolling trolls," a common phrase and occurrence in the early 2000s.
Teenage Forum
In Aug 2008 members and staff began joking about creating a teenage forum after ex-staff ZooMaster called the forum perverted. Thus, with support from staff, a "teenage forum" was created for minors to talk about mature topics among themselves, with the youngest age allowed being thirteen. The Zoo Tycoon Wiki states: "...but topics with innapropriate jokes caused it to develop a reputation as being about adult (18+) content."
Then a "teen roleplay" section was added, in which both adults and minors would roleplay NSFW situations publicly together. The section had to be deleted after the supposed father of one of the minors sent the staff a threatening email.[1]
References
- ^ a b c Zoo Tycoon Volcano, Zoo Tycoon Wiki. (Accessed 9/15/2020)[dead link]
- ^ a b Six Year Anniversery - [Famous FelixPrismus Interview from July 20th, 2013 July 20, 2013 (Accessed 1/13/2024) (Archived 1/13/2024)
- ^ 2018 Anniversary and transfer of command July 16, 2018 (Accessed 1/13/2024) (Archived 1/13/2024)
- ^ Debate Board, Zoo Tycoon Volcano. (Accessed 1/13/2024) (Archived 1/13/2024)
- ^ When Phoenix snaps and squawks off, Zoo Tycoon Volcano. Dated 05/12/16 (Accessed 12/17/19) (Archived 1/13/2024)
- ^ Official ZTV Whine/Baww Thread 2.0, ZTV's Ballpit of Misery, Zoo Tycoon Volcano. Dated 09/20/16 (Accessed 12/17/19) (Archived 1/13/2024)
- ^ Good Or Bad1, YouTube. Dated Mar 2008 (Accessed 12/19/19) (Archived 1/13/2024)
- ^ Good or Bad2 Dated Apr 2008 (Accessed 12/19/19) (Archived 1/13/2024)