New Duel Academy Review

Apr

2011

Name of the Forum: New Duel Academy
Address: http://www.newduelacademy.com/
Area's you wish the reviewer to review: Full review
Your Name on the board: EvilShadow

Very Happy

1 Drogba921, on 14/04/2011 at 22h03

tagged. Will be complete withn 48 hours

2 konstantinos zorbas, on 15/04/2011 at 20h52

nice w8ing for it Wink

3 Drogba921, on 15/04/2011 at 21h59

Uff. Sadly I will not be able to complete this review... My virus system has blocked it, and there is no way for me to unblock it. So I will need to forfeit this review.

4 CANADIEN, on 16/04/2011 at 06h33

EDIT (With Review):

New Duel Academy

Congratulations! Your free forum review has been completed. The forum review will hold many tips, suggestions, comments, and feedback that's convenient and voluntary for your forum. Here is your forum review:

Generalities

First Impressions (Score: 19/20):
The first impression I got when I went to your forum was that it looked rather professional. The design is simple, and all of the images fit in well. I also noticed you had a sidebar on the left-hand side of your forum. That's a great thing to have as it creates more entertainment for your members. The Card of the Week competition seems cool also.
Categories & Forums (Score: 8/10):
I noticed that you have a lot of forums, with varying degrees of activity. Maybe it is just that your forum is starting out and hasn't grown that big, but some forums had 0 posts. In fact, multiple forums in a row were the same, notably in the Special Fun section. I could suggest merging the less active boards into larger ones as a sub-forum. I like the big icons you have in the board descriptions, but you should make sure to check the spelling. I found one or two with spelling mistakes. If you do that, and correct them, it'll make your forum look a lot better.

Generalities total :: 27/30

Graphic Design & Layout

Graphics (Score: 15/20):
Banner
Your banner definitely goes with the Yu-Gi-Oh theme. You've made good use of the lighting in it, as it's dark like the rest of the forum. The only thing I could mention is that the text 'Duel' is a bit obscure. It is into the shadow in the corner a bit, and is hard to read. The text actually looks a bit small in comparison to the banner. You should make the text and the picture the priorities. You want people who visit your site to see what the name is so they can remember it for later. I'd suggest making the font bigger and moving it away from the shadows. Although, it does give a good Yu-Gi-Oh feel to the site, especially the brown and gold colours you used in it.
Navigation Bar
The navigation bar does not really fit in with the rest of the forum. While the inside of the navigation buttons are black, the borders and text are a silver/gray colour. I would suggest making the borders white with with text or finding a new navigation bar that works better with the skin.
Forum Icons
The forum icons are simple, and they get the job done well. I love the simpleness of them; just having the text 'DA'. The colours you chose to use also go well especially with the white text of the boar descriptions, which they are right beside. I also like how you simple change the colour of the 'D' to indicate New Posts, or if the board is locked. The board icons (inside the board) seem a bit Vista/Computer like to me. Maybe it's just me, but they remind me of the Windows Vista type skins I've seen. However, this is not a major issue and you only need to change it if you feel like it.
'Who Is Online?' Image
I have no problem with the question mark image itself, it is just the colour choice that I do not think fits the theme. I'd suggest changing the outline colour to gray, as it would bring all of the images together (if they were similar colours). The reflection/drop shadow of the bottom of the question mark looks nice.
Forum Layout & Colors (Score: 7/10):
As a whole, your layout is a bit mismatched. You've got blues, grays, reds, and whites. Your navigation bar is blue, buttons are white, page outline is red, etc. I'd suggest picking one or two colours and then editing the colours to revolve around those two. Personally, I would change the red outline to white, and make the navigation bar black with a light gray outline. If you make the images relatively the same, the forum really comes together, and doesn't seem like items were just thrown together. On another note, I think that having a dark theme works well with your forums focus (YuGiOh). The dark theme relates directly to your forums genre and it fits well. You've got some good points to the theme and layout, but there are also a few points I feel could be improved on.

Graphic Design & Layout total :: 22/30

Usergroups

Population of Groups (Score: 10/10):
Your user groups have good population. The only one I noticed had one member (aside from the Admin group) was the Designers group, but that is totally understandable. Your dorm groups are good and have adequate amounts of members.
Staff Groups / User Groups (Score: 9/10):
One of the things I like is how you created dorms, which, I take it are similar to the houses in Harry Potter? If so, I think it's a great idea. From my past experience, it really gets the members interested and entertained if you have fun competitions between the dorms. I also think your colour choices are appropriate. There aren't really any similar colours, so it is east to distinguish between each group. The Testers group are interesting. From what I gathered they administer tests? Or am I totally wrong? Either way, your staff groups and user groups are good. Both in population and usefulness.

Usergroups :: 19/20

Forum Activity

Post/Member Ratio & Quantity (Score: 7/10):

Our users have posted a total of 2807 messages
We have 81 registered users
The newest registered user is Teise

Your forum activity is a bit low, considering that you registered on December 29th, 2010, which I am assuming is the opening date of your forum. When I looked at your members list I found that 30 of 81 members had 1 or less posts on your forum. That's almost half your members. A lot of them hadn't recently returned to your forum to continue posting. I'd suggest posting your forum in the directory (if you haven't already) and work on promoting your forum a bit.
Users Active (Score: 9/10):

Members connected during last 48 hours : 3Dee, akaFilanachi, Anakin1121, Aqua_Lad, bakura normal, BlackLeg-Sanji, ChaosLord, coolchemist2001, CyberZane, D.D._Hunter, DarkFusion, EvilShadow, E_Hero_Atilla, FreXty, Glowupbulb, Lavi, Lunak, MonsterWithin, Naruto, Owydelu, Portal8229, Prince_of_Games, remind, Sunstorm, Supreme_King, SuSiiao, Teise, Vongola-x, wh0_ar3_y0u, yusei

This is a great statistic. 30 members online in the past 48 hours shows your forum is steadily increasing activity. I am sure that if you continue to promote your forum you will receive good results. As I mentioned earlier, a lot of your member have not returned since March, or even later. Try and get new members or even send an email to those that haven't returned letting them know you're still around and open as a forum. Just make sure you don't send too many emails, it can get annoying.

Forum Activity total :: 16/20

Would you like to share your review on your forum, on another forum, or with your friends? Then here you go... grab the code!

Code:: [center][img]http://i87.servimg.com/u/f87/13/67/77/07/yourfo10.png[/img] [color=limegreen][b][font=Trebuchet MS Bold Italic][size=24]New Duel Academy[/font][/b][/size][/color] [/center] [table][tr][td][img]http://i87.servimg.com/u/f87/13/67/77/07/review12.png[/img][/td] [td]Congratulations! Your free forum review has been completed. The forum review will hold many tips, suggestions, comments, and feedback that's convenient and voluntary for your forum. Here is your forum review:[/td][/tr][/table] [img]http://i87.servimg.com/u/f87/13/67/77/07/genera12.png[/img] [b][color=limegreen][size=19]Generalities[/size][/color][/b] [list=1] [*][b]First Impressions (Score: 19/20):[/b] The first impression I got when I went to your forum was that it looked rather professional. The design is simple, and all of the images fit in well. I also noticed you had a sidebar on the left-hand side of your forum. That's a great thing to have as it creates more entertainment for your members. The Card of the Week competition seems cool also. [*][b]Categories & Forums (Score: 8/10):[/b] I noticed that you have a lot of forums, with varying degrees of activity. Maybe it is just that your forum is starting out and hasn't grown that big, but some forums had 0 posts. In fact, multiple forums in a row were the same, notably in the Special Fun section. I could suggest merging the less active boards into larger ones as a sub-forum. I like the big icons you have in the board descriptions, but you should make sure to check the spelling. I found one or two with spelling mistakes. If you do that, and correct them, it'll make your forum look a lot better. [/list] [color=limegreen]Generalities total :: 27/30[/color] [img]http://i87.servimg.com/u/f87/13/67/77/07/forums10.png[/img] [b][color=darkred][size=19]Graphic Design & Layout[/b][/color][/size] [list=1][*][b]Graphics (Score: 15/20):[/b] [size=11][u][b]Banner[/b][/u][/size] Your banner definitely goes with the Yu-Gi-Oh theme. You've made good use of the lighting in it, as it's dark like the rest of the forum. The only thing I could mention is that the text 'Duel' is a bit obscure. It is into the shadow in the corner a bit, and is hard to read. The text actually looks a bit small in comparison to the banner. You should make the text and the picture the priorities. You want people who visit your site to see what the name is so they can remember it for later. I'd suggest making the font bigger and moving it away from the shadows. Although, it does give a good Yu-Gi-Oh feel to the site, especially the brown and gold colours you used in it. [size=11][u][b]Navigation Bar[/b][/u][/size] The navigation bar does not really fit in with the rest of the forum. While the inside of the navigation buttons are black, the borders and text are a silver/gray colour. I would suggest making the borders white with with text or finding a new navigation bar that works better with the skin. [size=11][u][b]Forum Icons[/b][/u][/size] The forum icons are simple, and they get the job done well. I love the simpleness of them; just having the text 'DA'. The colours you chose to use also go well especially with the white text of the boar descriptions, which they are right beside. I also like how you simple change the colour of the 'D' to indicate New Posts, or if the board is locked. The board icons (inside the board) seem a bit Vista/Computer like to me. Maybe it's just me, but they remind me of the Windows Vista type skins I've seen. However, this is not a major issue and you only need to change it if you feel like it. [size=11][u][b]'Who Is Online?' Image[/b][/u][/size] I have no problem with the question mark image itself, it is just the colour choice that I do not think fits the theme. I'd suggest changing the outline colour to gray, as it would bring all of the images together (if they were similar colours). The reflection/drop shadow of the bottom of the question mark looks nice. [*][b]Forum Layout & Colors (Score: 7/10):[/b] As a whole, your layout is a bit mismatched. You've got blues, grays, reds, and whites. Your navigation bar is blue, buttons are white, page outline is red, etc. I'd suggest picking one or two colours and then editing the colours to revolve around those two. Personally, I would change the red outline to white, and make the navigation bar black with a light gray outline. If you make the images relatively the same, the forum really comes together, and doesn't seem like items were just thrown together. On another note, I think that having a dark theme works well with your forums focus (YuGiOh). The dark theme relates directly to your forums genre and it fits well. You've got some good points to the theme and layout, but there are also a few points I feel could be improved on. [/list] [color=darkred]Graphic Design & Layout total :: 22/30[/color] [img]http://i87.servimg.com/u/f87/13/67/77/07/usergr10.png[/img] [b][color=teal][size=19]Usergroups[/size][/color][/b] [list=1] [*][b]Population of Groups (Score: 10/10):[/b] Your user groups have good population. The only one I noticed had one member (aside from the Admin group) was the Designers group, but that is totally understandable. Your dorm groups are good and have adequate amounts of members. [*][b]Staff Groups / User Groups (Score: 9/10):[/b] One of the things I like is how you created dorms, which, I take it are similar to the houses in Harry Potter? If so, I think it's a great idea. From my past experience, it really gets the members interested and entertained if you have fun competitions between the dorms. I also think your colour choices are appropriate. There aren't really any similar colours, so it is east to distinguish between each group. The Testers group are interesting. From what I gathered they administer tests? Or am I totally wrong? Either way, your staff groups and user groups are good. Both in population and usefulness. [/list] [color=teal]Usergroups :: 19/20[/color] [img]http://i87.servimg.com/u/f87/13/67/77/07/foruma30.png[/img] [b][color=orange][size=19]Forum Activity[/color][/b][/size] [list=1] [*][b]Post/Member Ratio & Quantity (Score: 7/10):[/b] [quote] Our users have posted a total of 2807 messages We have 81 registered users The newest registered user is Teise[/quote] Your forum activity is a bit low, considering that you registered on December 29th, 2010, which I am assuming is the opening date of your forum. When I looked at your members list I found that 30 of 81 members had 1 or less posts on your forum. That's almost half your members. A lot of them hadn't recently returned to your forum to continue posting. I'd suggest posting your forum in the directory (if you haven't already) and work on promoting your forum a bit. [*][b]Users Active (Score: 9/10):[/b] [quote]Members connected during last 48 hours : 3Dee, akaFilanachi, Anakin1121, Aqua_Lad, bakura normal, BlackLeg-Sanji, ChaosLord, coolchemist2001, CyberZane, D.D._Hunter, DarkFusion, EvilShadow, E_Hero_Atilla, FreXty, Glowupbulb, Lavi, Lunak, MonsterWithin, Naruto, Owydelu, Portal8229, Prince_of_Games, remind, Sunstorm, Supreme_King, SuSiiao, Teise, Vongola-x, wh0_ar3_y0u, yusei[/quote] This is a great statistic. 30 members online in the past 48 hours shows your forum is steadily increasing activity. I am sure that if you continue to promote your forum you will receive good results. As I mentioned earlier, a lot of your member have not returned since March, or even later. Try and get new members or even send an email to those that haven't returned letting them know you're still around and open as a forum. Just make sure you don't send too many emails, it can get annoying. [/list] [color=orange]Forum Activity total :: 16/20[/color]

5 konstantinos zorbas, on 16/04/2011 at 09h11

no need an acc ...

6 Rideem3, on 16/04/2011 at 23h04

Your review has been proofread and has been marked "completed." This review has been accepted and will now be moved to the official review archives.

If there were any mistakes that I found to be a misunderstanding, I edited it out, and made the correct additions to the review in bold color.