We recently caught up with the guys over at Aegis7 Gaming to talk about their Discord community and all things gaming. If you are looking for a fun Aussie and abroad community to play anything and everything with, this is your new family.
Q: What is Aegis7 Gaming and where did it all start for you guys and the community?
Aegis7 Gaming has an interesting history. I actually started it off as a Dead Space community site - ‘Aegis7’ - the name of the planet where it all went to crap in the original Dead Space. It was very popular and it swelled in membership making it a hub for all things Dead Space. It also helped that we had very close ties with the developers, Visceral Games (Rest in peace, guys). After Dead Space 3 came and went, the site went into stasis.
The next time Aegis7 was resurrected was when PlanetSide 2 was released. Being the creative person that I am (not bloody very), I had to come up with a name for the clan in this new game. I racked my head for hours and then I saw we already had a great name: Aegis7. So “Aegis7 Australia” was born. It was quite sobering to see that not many people knew the origins of Aegis7, probably another reason why Dead Space… died?
As we grew it dawned on me that the worst thing I did was call it ‘Aegis7 Australia’, it was a regret and I couldn’t rename it afterwards. It turned out that people outside of Australia loved our approach to gaming. It didn’t take long for us to have Australians, Kiwis, Europeans, Americans, Canadians and pretty much everyone else in our ranks despite the ‘Australian’ name - it became a joke in the group that we had to outsource. We were a bunch of men and women just trying to have fun and not take things seriously. Our mantra was: “Don’t be a dick” and we repeated it ad nauseam.
When PlanetSide 2 was slowing down, we realised we didn’t just play the same game for the last 2 to 3 years non-stop because of its enthralling gameplay (it gets stale really quickly, only the politics kept it interesting). It was just to be doing something that our mates were doing, it was our version of going to the pub and having a beer with friends. We were saddened that it was coming to an end and we would need to ‘start over’ when we played another game, join another group/clan… and we didn’t want to do that. So we looked at ourselves and made a collective decision to become a full gaming community and spread out - as surely we could not be the only ones looking for something like this…
Today, we’re a gaming community organisation with members all across the world that plays all manner of games with our open, quirky approach.
Q: How has the community developed and grown from its beginnings and what is it today?
It’s funny looking back to see where we’ve come from. We honestly can say we had zero idea we would be here today. I’m looking around the room now and can see jerseys, a helmet, business cards, shirts, epaulettes, logo keyrings, a damn full-sized flag… all branded with our logo. We joked about having ‘Aegis7’ underwear as well, which I think may actually happen if members keep insisting on it.
We run events, meetups (both online and in person across Australia) and even throw our hat into the ring for some eSports when the itch is there and the members want to have a go. We don’t like to limit ourselves but we’re also realistic that we cannot do everything.
This would never have been possible without the continuing drive and support of our members. Our sponsors also help us keep the focus on where it needs to be, the gaming.
Q: Who can join the Aegis7 community and what can they do to get involved?
Anyone 18 and over.
We encourage all our members to get involved. Our flat structure makes it possible for members to flag ideas or events that they wish to see or even would like to run. It’s not hard to make an impact and many members opt to do just that. All of those who carry the title of ‘Coordinator’ or ‘Administrator’ started off as Members and became what they were simply by adopting the responsibilities themselves and we think that’s pretty cool.
Q: Why should people join and what does it take to become a fully fledged member?
People should consider joining if they are looking for a community that values mutual respect for one another over their gaming ability. If they believe that people should be able to play a game without fear of abuse, bullying or harassment.
Anyone 18 and over can apply to join the community if they agree to abide by our code of conduct of which can be summed up as ‘Don’t be a dick’. You would be surprised how often people break that golden rule. Once accepted, they are a ‘fully fledged member’ all things considered but that doesn't mean the high expectations of becoming a member is relaxed. It merely begins and we take public reports of a member’s conduct as serious as an internal report.
Q: What games do your community predominantly play and are you looking to branch out into other games?
We let the community dictate to us what they wish to play. We all have our own personal likes and desires, for instance, a few of the administrators really have high hopes for games like ‘Star Citizen’ which will be excellent for a community such as ours. PUBG was a seriously big thing for us when it began and so is Fortnite. Honestly, it is quite difficult for us to name games since we pretty much play ‘everything’ and I do mean everything.
Even games like D&D and Cards Against Humanity.
Q: Do you run community events, if so, what kind of events do you run and for what games?
We sure do. At the very moment, we run a monthly ‘Community Gaming Night (CGN)’ where members vote on a particular game they wish to play as a collective, usually, this game is free or a majority have it already and gives members plenty of notice to obtain it. CGN has been very popular and has introduced members to games they probably would have never played for it if not for the CGN.
Up until recently, we also had a weekly PUBG custom games night as well. However, due to waning interest and life getting in the way of the Administrator who has the ability to host customs, it has since been retired in favour of focusing on other games.
We don’t tie ourselves to one particular game or fad. Our approach is constantly changing and adapting to the needs and wants of our community. If tomorrow the demand was there to play Monopoly, we’d probably have to veto that. No community survives playing Monopoly. I mean, all it takes is one smart arse to buy all the houses and refuse to upgrade to a hotel. Wait, I think I can solve the housing crisis in Australia now!
Q: What milestones are you proud to have reached or even smashed so far?
We used to keep track of this, membership numbers - etc. It has become really hard to do so, it seems like every day we are smashing our own expectations.
- We became a registered business in Australia last year.
- We are planning our 3rd annual meetup during PAX Melbourne this year - it has become a tradition.
- We partnered up with some seriously cool sponsors who provide us with infrastructure, gear and technology to help us focus on the gaming.
- We teamed up with local businesses to bring further awareness, run local meetups (not just AG7 focused ones).
- We had advertisements, both online and in real life. I mean, you know you’ve made it when you go to the local gaming bar’s bathroom and can see your ad on the wall.
Q: Where do you plan to take the community next, in the near or distant future?
Personally, I really want to see us own a house that we can convert into a gaming hub. Wire it all up with cameras, stream it 24/7 - sort of like a Big Brother but you know, actually ‘good’. I know that’s a crazy dream but look at us today. That wasn’t even a dream at one point.
In truth, we have no plans other than to possibly obtain a booth or something at PAX. That’d be a sweet milestone, but we just cannot justify the expense right now but still - that would be sweet.
We are agile and take direction from our members, if we can do it, we’ll do it.
Q: What else would you like the readers to know about Aegis7?
We’ve been around for years. We are not a passing fad, we are not going to disappear tomorrow and despite the fact we’re a registered business, we operate with no one being paid - none of us make money. It is seriously loads of fun, and we honestly cannot imagine our gaming lives without it.
If you need more convincing, here’s a video of our antics from back in the PlanetSide 2 days, there’s a bit of excited swearing (this is why we’re over 18):
Come chat with us on Discord via https://ag7.gg. You don’t need to be a member to see what we’ve got to offer.
