Why most SMPs fail socially

Most SMPs don’t fail because of technical issues. They fail because the social contract is undefined or unenforced.

Common patterns I keep seeing:

• No reason to log in once novelty wears off
• No shared goals beyond “play Minecraft”
• Discord becomes the primary interaction surface
• In-game identity becomes meaningless
• No cost to leaving, so leaving is the default

The servers that do work usually have: - Persistent identity - Reputation or social memory - Some form of scarcity (not grind) - A reason to care about other players

This is not a content problem. It’s a governance problem.

Open question: Can a server be designed like a clubhouse instead of a game?