It’s the million-dollar question, on why quite literally more than 70% of the community decides to make a return to the community. Are we just all too attached to our old memories and choices we made before, or is there a secret meaning behind it? In this editorial, we will look deeper into this huge dilemma we face.
Our current-day community notices a similar pattern in the active individuals. We notice most current Leaders, High Commands, and various community members have at one point taken a huge step back from the community, or rather flat out retired. You don’t really notice it until you see it on your own, that the community we have today is a culmination of past eras brought together. It begs the question: are we really independent without our past versions of ourselves?
The Common Dilemma
What we find most about the people returning is the previous army they were affiliated with. No matter how many years we stay away, our months and years of constant activity and work given puts us a vulnerable spot. However, there would always be issues within the army that would put a bad taste in anyone’s mouth. And yet, we would still be heavily attached to what we were once a part of. Why is that?
The essence of the human body reflects how our soul is shaped by the different stages of life it experiences. Most people when they first join armies are about the age of 12 to 16, a phase in your life where you make the most memories in and as you grow, your body is attached to whatever you grow with. Most of us have spent a huge part of it in this community doing all sorts of things. We are devotedly connected to a whole different world that we could manipulate. It is not a coincidence that we see the average age of the community grow every year, and not stay the same.
Why This Is The Case
Personal Attachment
It can go from simply having a friend still around, to an entire community you’ve grown with. Part of what makes Club Penguin Armies fun is the friends we stay close to, and for a great reason. The biggest fundamental part of armies is teamwork and cooperation to ensure success, and when teamwork and success are brought together it creates a close personal attachment.
It is no coincidence that many successful leaders return to the community. Their sheer impact on the community leaves a lasting essence of passion, not only for them but for others too. Many believe that companionship is what brings nations together, and armies that are well within that framework see the most amount of people return to it.
Our Choices Matter
It is a clear case for many, and for many reasons. As we live in a world where we need to abide by many rules and directions, leaving us in a chained state of mind. This community acts as a way where our choices matter, and what we say is heard and talked about. It’s as if we create our own new character where people can be who they want to be. It is a dream for many, where we live in a world we can control and change the outcome of. The actions of war, friendship, goodwill or deception, it is part of the freedom we all have the privilege to.
However, it can clearly be an extreme case for some. The freedom to do anything while staying hidden drives a lot of issues to the mix. It does support the freedom theory to an extent, as there is still consequences you can face based on what you do.
Life Lessons We Learn
Most of us experience this community at a stage where life only grows more unfamiliar and bizarre. Coincidentally, it’s a stage of life where you learn more about life and its many challenges and dilemmas. CPA on paper is a simple strategy-like game to be the best, on the surface. However, many things we witness the longer we stay, from deception, resentment, management, intelligence, perseverance, integrity, and justice. Many things we see in life we also go through in this community first, as if it’s our caretaker.
This close connection to our real life day-to-day events to what we face here grants many valuable benefits. Giving us a taste of what’s to come, and preparing us for when it does. And this, with many other reasons, is why we always look back to where we were. A place where we witness a glimpse of who we would be in a perfect world.
Club Penguin Armies contacted Cobra, a seasoned and well-experienced army leader. We have seen him take various steps back from the community and still return. We will be exploring with him what made him take that call and his reasoning behind it.
The real truth is that I never really thought I would return to armies. By the time I left the community in early 2021, I really didn’t want to return to armies at all, especially when the later parts of 2021 came around. The only scenario that I’d return, as I would tell my friends who were in CPA at the time (such as Aaron and Dino), would be that the only scenario that I’d return would be if EGCP returned. From that period afterwards, while I still was in some chats related to CPA, nothing was really significant to really draw me back in and I really had no interest in doing so.
That being said, in May 2023 Edu and the others from EGCP approached me about the EGCP revival. I signed off on it as okay, and still, I didn’t want to return initially. However, due to EGCP being my home army, I inevitably began helping EGCP that year in more ways than one, and ways that if I told you, you would laugh.
I guess if you think about it, the reason why myself and others return to army in the first place is usually the people. I was also in a tougher moment in my life at that time, so you can say it’s also a degree of escapism. That usually is the reason why many return, but isn’t necessarily the case for all. I can say that is what it was for me. I was tied to the people here and seeing my home army return really motivated me to return and help out.
I was supposed to leave at the end of August 2024, not returning for a rank anymore after that point. That again did not occur. What got me back around CPA chats was the Fitsuki dilemma, which ultimately led to me remaining here. I joined Water Vikings afterwards because Lass did, and I ultimately set a goal as to why I returned in the first place. I guess, in this sense, of why I am at Water Vikings was initially my good friend, but also became the idea of “completing a job”. I got attached to the community and people here during that time, though, and I am pretty grateful in that regard.
So, yeah, the big reason why I am here in the first place is a combination of things. Completing goals and closure is a big one, but the real thing that has kept me and others here is simply the people, the nostalgia, and the thrill of being a part of this community, especially the ones that I am internally involved in (no offense to others, I think the CPA main chat is the Discord equivalent of a herpes infected toilet seat).
Biggest lessons you learn here are how to keep yourself save, how to direct a team, how to speak to people, and a big one, how to understand people. That is at least what I got from this all. Within this (not consistent, but nearly) 8 year run of mine since 2017, every lesson you learn comes at the circumstance of the time. You learn how to perfect a game, learning survival skills on the internet, and ironically enough you learn a lot of about people from a psychology standpoint. It’s an interesting community in that regard.
Regardless of any stance you hold on either present-day or previous generations of this community. We could all come to the conclusion that when we were there, CPA was a place you would enjoy. As time goes on, the community changes and while many grow apart from it, some take it as an opportunity for new memories, a place you can still call home, and the many people still here that make it extraordinary. And that is what makes our community so special, the ability to make everyone grow attached to it.
Ugly
Associate Editor