New user navigation

[MMcurrency]

Perhaps this is planned and just not done yet but currently there seems to be no way to browse forums. The only way to even find and get to many/most of the forums is by using the search box - which is a great tool but should not be used as a replacement for click navigation (can't even click the name of the forum listed under the ad boxes!). Especially considering that a new user to the site may not know exactly what forum they want since they don't know how things are set up here. The ability to click a link and go back is invaluable when exploring a new site. Same with the ability to 'drill down' through the content and seeing the structure of the sub forums while doing so.

I know there are a lot but with a drop down/scrolling list like you already have setup for "EpicNPC Discussion", "Steam, Consoles & Other Gaming Platforms", etc, it seems like a huge oversight that the forums that most represent what the site is about don't even have a category or header on the main page.

Related suggestion: why not swap the ad boxes with the Recently Added and Trending boxes. Even though they are ads, they are more exciting and more dynamic than 2 boxes of boring forum titles. The first screen that people see, without having to scroll, should have something to grab their attention.

Ideally the forum search box would not even be seen on the first screen of the main page since there is already a search box in the upper right, but you seem to have some reason you want users to use that over browse navigation considering the prime real estate you allocated to it.

 

[MMcurrency]

Another unrelated suggestion: considering the sale nature of the site, join date and post count are important enough that they should be incorporated into the posters identity on the left, without having to hover to see them.

 

[EpicNPC]

In the top "Forums" menu is a complete forum list.
https://www.epicnpc.com/forumslist/

The issue with clicking categories is on our bug list and will be fixed soon.

The 'recently added' and 'trending' boxes are very popular with members, so those will not be removed.

Post count and join dates were removed from the profile on the old site also and only appear on hover. Profiles areas were very large and created a lot of dead space, so this will not be changed, sorry.

 

[MMcurrency]

Yep I get it, just suggestions. I was on break when the site changed and came back to the new one and unfortunately my first experiences with it are not positive compared to the old. Hopefully over time...