Genka

Hi Status-Lock, No problem at all :) I've been around this community for a very long time, so always more than happy to share some of my knowledge accumulated over the years :) In regards to the "archive", That situation is completely different, and a little lengthy to explain but I can try summarize. Before I do, full disclaimer: I have no personal issues with any of the sites mentioned from here on wards, I am merely offering my personal observations from during the time of these events: In summary, rewind to around 2008-2011. Mugen forums were super active. Forums were were the lifeline of mugen . no discord or twitter then. One particular site, we can refer to as "the Guild" was the main hub. They had the highest activity compared to other sites. It was always the first stop when you wanted new downloads. There was a cabal of gatekeepers on that site at the time with specific views on "the rules of mugen". Things like, always give credit, ask permission to use/edit. don't re-upload/share other peoples work and so on. Mugen was a less friendly place for casuals just wanting to download stuff. It was definitely an ingroup/outgroup gatekeeper culture then. Fast forward a few years, the japan mugen scene was on life support, many forums began dying off, so did links to older content. What resulted was a resurgence of the long time mugen debate over warehousing & how resources should be curated. The archive was born from this (they had another name before this). and so, war began between "the guild" and "the archive". At the peak of this drama, it became a "this site" vs "that site". After lots of toxicity, drama, personal beefs, name slurs, and an entire encyclopedia dramatica that ensued, the end result was "the archive" became the most popular, and main mugen forum of today (atleast definitely among the younger mugen generation of today). I heard someone on another forum once put it this way: "The retro boomer bro coin-op gatekeepers of old, were usurped by the gen-z Anime generation" (which i found quite humorous as a retro gamer of old myself XD) Now to answer your question specifically, "The Archive" as I understand does have a reputation for strictly and also questionably curating its members, but that was born from necessity to manage their community during the drama phase; and has just remained a constant. I think that at it's fundamental core, the idealogy that members must post/interact/contribute, is an attempt to preserve the essence of what mugen was built upon, which is traditional public discourse on an open web forum - as opposed to snowballing group chats that fade into obscurity after 20 or more new posts, as we see on social media applications like discord which have widely replaced traditional forums like this one. There were definitely pro factions of both sides fueling the fire, but ultimately, the reality is that a site similar to "the archive" was always going to happen, regardless of by who and when. The alternative would be that mugen knowledge, resources and the community aspect would have held by the gatekeepers and less accessible/user-friendly than it is today. So yes, there are always 2 sides to a story and nobody in glass houses should throw stones, and in this case, it's just another story from the legacy of the wild, fascinating world that is mugen XD

Hello there everybody Allow me to introduce myself, I go by the handle Genka/Basilisk445/FXshooter depending on the site/console/game and im a veteran mugen creator & fan of the engine for over 20 years. I first dabbled with mugen after seeing it for the first time featured on a cable access channel called techTV. so yes i am an old flame. I recently had some time to take off work and stumble back down nostalgia lane and i am exploring how the mugen community has grown and evolved over the years. i hope to contribute here as best as I can with my wealth of accumulated knowledge of the engine and also make some great new friends along the way

Hi Status-Lock I can shed some light on this. As a 20+ year veteran Mugen community member i've been on pretty much every forum (incl Newagemugen) Your experience is due to a common misconception. There is an assumption among all types of new/long-time users alike that all mugen sites operate the same. Most mainstream sites operate as follows: 1. You register & download stuff 2. you post feedback (optional) 3. you join a discord 4. you post work/findings/videos/screenshots (optional) 4. you go about your merry way. This is how 90% of all mugen forums have operated over 24 years of mugen. (to name some, MFG, MFFA, MGBR, MMV, IMT, Mugenation, Mugen Infantry and many more.) Then there are the other 10% of "underground" forums. These are close-knit communities that operate more like organisations/fraternities rather than generic "warez" sites. These sites have strict rules/guidelines and obligations that need to be met in exchange for membership. The trade off of course is usually access to exclusive/private content unavailable anywhere else. The registration processes are litmus tests to weed out members unlikely to add value to the community. In the case of Newagemugen, as I recall that site was founded by actual professional digital creators that work/worked in the industry. Originally only advanced creators with design skills could join. (Noz the Legacy screenpack guy & ExShadow the stage maker came from that group). I remember the feedback among members there was brutal and they really pushed each other to improve and elevate. The registration process & rules are intrusive on purpose to weed out people unlikely to add value to their community I guess. I see there are lots of Youtubers with large followings that are part of that group nowadays so i see the logic behind this. So in summary, I hope that explains the dynamic of mugen sub-communities. If you are a casual user only after downloads & a few lulz on your days off work, this site and the other main stops are perfect. But if you are looking for more high end content or to push yourself and really go deep on creation and high level/advanced mugen content among like-minded people, then there is always those underground groups to explore at your discretion.