The original purpose of groups was to allow you to organize lan parties to play Halo: CE. Then it was going to be for a web presence for your Halo 2 clans before clan functionality got scaled waaaay back. Then, they just became places to hide from the moderators, for good or bad (i.e., your own little walled garden). That last purpose serves little value to the community - we want to you to create more open, inclusive groups. That's why everything tries to push you in this direction in the system. Lower membership limit, bans applying to groups too, defaulting your group to public upon creation, etc. We definately intend to give groups real purpose, though, these are only the first steps toward a goal you can't see yet. But don't expect that purpose to include the "hiding in your own walled garden." You'll still be able to lock your group down if you want, but that won't really be the best way to use groups in the future. The Internet is a big place, you can do that elsewhere.

[quote]Before there were rules to be broken...[/quote] It is my sincerest hope that our new game will give you more sustainable reasons to belong to groups. It's a shame that our old forum structure drove you into deeper corners of the site in the interest of the freedom to express yourselves. We saw that as a shortcoming, and we changed it. The dialogue is more complicated socially here now, but you all have the power to design the Bungie Community in your own image. I have paid a lot of attention to groups of gamers and what makes them successful, and not just as your loyal servant. As a gamer who first started to get organized in Halo 2, I have seen many groups rise and fall for a number of reasons. Games change. Hairstyles change. Seasons change. As much of a threat that change poses to a group, the sure killer is no change at all, as members evolve to embrace other hobbies. The most successful groups I have seen embrace a niche. In most cases, they like the same game - and they appreciate the same aspects of it. In recent history, the [url=http://www.bungie.net/7_Art-and-Stuff/en-us/Groups/Detail?groupId=39813]Art and Stuff[/url] group is a great example of people uniting around a common interest. They certainly didn't invent the notion of fan art appreciation, but they have the initiative right now. Can they go the distance? That's up to their leadership to keep their interactions interesting, and up to us to keep them inspired. Time will tell. Maintaining a healthy group is hard work. You need a dedicated staff, a solid membership core to drive momentum, and a sustainable reason for being. While it's regrettable that groups that were created to skirt forum rules have taken a hit, it was by design that you all have more freedom to explore your destiny among the general population. Above all else, groups are about relationships with a smaller sampling of the community. If those relationships are strong, the group has a better chance of enduring. That's been my experience, at least.