My opinion? Let's start off with a general summary.
This place feels more like a community than another Pokemon forum I've been to, but less so than an MLP forum I went to. So based on my experiences, it's really sort of middle ground. I do see a small version of cliques occurring, and a lot of the more "famous" members alongside moderators seem really friendly with one another. But I don't notice much community besides that. Except maybe a tiny bit in the Forum Games, because the same people post there a lot. Otherwise, most people appear to keep to themselves much like I do. I've been approached and spoken to by a scant few people, but not really all that many. I do admire the activities and events that appear to be a thing though, but I'm not really interested in participating in them myself.
I believe the forums that give off the best sense of community are the smaller ones due to how intimate they tend to feel. (For instance: I'm a part of another forum that is really old, but only has around 10 or so active members, and I feel the most welcome there I've ever felt anywhere.) This one is a bit too big and impersonal to really give me that feeling. At least the moderators post frequently though? That's something I haven't really seen on bigger forums (they usually just do their jobs and don't partake in the community), so bonus points for that.
Honestly, I think this sort of question is extremely subjective in general. It depends a LOT on your personality and who you interact specifically with in addition to the people themselves. And your level of investment in the forum. My perception is flavored by the fact that I tend to avoid people in general, and am extremely self-conscious and kind of... different from a lot of others on the internet, so I don't tend to get into the community spirit in many places. I've only gotten into it in two forums. Here, I'm not really invested. Honestly, I could just disappear off the face of the earth and nobody here would really care. I wouldn't really care myself either.
Now, to answer the specific questions I haven't already addressed in this:
Is it different to any other Pokemon forums?
Every Pokemon forum I've been on has been different. Different people give a different sense of a place. So I suppose it is. But it isn't the most unique one I've been to.
That honor belongs to one I was active on for five years, but the people there were rather hostile towards me at the time, so I can't say that place was better than here. This place is friendlier than that, whilst having a similar level of intelligence. So bonus points on that. The only reason I haven't left Pokecommunity is because the people here at least can have semi-intelligent discussions. Honestly, most places (not exclusively in the realm of Pokemon forums), people post nonsense that is short and thoughtless, and belongs in chat rooms. I haven't found many places of increased intelligent, so we can say it is unique in that sense.
Do you have lots of PC friends (and/or foes)?
No, not really. Nobody seems to really pay me much mind, nor do I them. Of course, because I'm paranoid, I'm under the belief that there are people who dislike me for certain things I've said. But I'm not aware of who they are at this present time, and I'd rather never become aware.
Are some members treated as royalty whist others are overlooked or ignored?
From my observations, I would say definitely yes. That part about what I said of the whole "famous members and staff" interactions applies here. I often see the same few people being mentioned again and again, whilst everyone else is kind of... left in the dust.
Do you feel a valued part of the community?, If yes or no, why?
You basically already know my answer to this based on what I've said earlier in this post. But I'll elaborate. No, I do not. I'm just some nobody who comes here on occasion to post, and it does bother me. I wish I could be noticed more, but I know part of the blame goes to me for the way I behave. (Being extremely avoidant and posting at random intervals)
It's kind of a vicious cycle. I get into a super posting mood and post a lot. Then I wait. There's no response. Nothing. Not a like, nor a quote. So I lose motivation to come here and don't post for several days. Or weeks, if it's really intense. I just feel like whatever I say is completely irrelevant to anyone due to the lack of feedback or occasional negative feedback. "What's the point?" my mind tells me. I've grown used to getting a lot of feedback on other forums.
On a particular forum, people were much more liberal about using the Like button. And that was nice, because it made them seem more friendly. Also, I posted some art on a much smaller forum with much less activity and people, and got a response almost immediately, whereas here? I got no response. Here, that doesn't seem to be the case. I realize that it's because of all the other art threads taking attention away from me, but with so many people in this forum, you'd think there would be a response sometime, you know?
So why do I keep coming here? Because I get lonely/bored, because there's really no other place better. This is the best I could find besides that small place that is still a bit too dead for me to feel super immersed. Also, the topics are interesting. And I always have a craving to interact with other humans, even if I'm so ridiculously bad at it. So I return again and the cycle continues. If I didn't get so discouraged, I realize people would pay more attention to me. Nowadays, I just don't have as much motivation to push through the whole "being an insignificant newcomer" phase that everyone has to go through on a forum.
I still have this feeling though that they still wouldn't pay all that much attention to me. Due to the other part is the aforementioned problem of the "famous members and staff." This forum just feels kind of too established and large for someone like myself to really have a significant part in it, to be honest.
Also, my personality just... doesn't really fit so well with this forum's atmosphere. But that isn't the forum's fault. Again, that's me. Whenever I say something, I get this unsettling feeling that someone was offended by it. And it's worse than my usual feeling that I have.
Is there anything you would change?
I don't really know. I suppose I'd change this place so I could fit in better, but then everyone else wouldn't appreciate that. If you can be happy here, then good for you! I don't want to ruin that for anyone else. So in spite of the issues, I wouldn't really change anything. For what this forum wishes to accomplish in its overall vibe and vision, it's pretty much spot-on. It just... isn't really for me, I guess. Hrm. Writing up this post is actually making me seriously contemplate leaving. I guess I'll have to think about this more extensively.
But yeah, there you go, a long detailed post about my particular feelings. These feelings are extremely subjective and I realize a lot of it is moreso myself as the problem than this community. So if you feel differently, that's fine.
