Players who want to become heavily invested in the game usually find their way to the forum, even if they just lurk like me. Players who aren't in the forum usually won't become committed to the game anyway. It's absolutely hilariously to alienate your most loyal players to hope that it would some how make the come-and-go crowd of players feel more comfortable.
The majority of long-term players I know, aren't on the forum. I'm talking about people who have been playing for 3+ years; 80% of the players I know aren't on the forums much.
