History Platform / GaiaOnline

** Quite a few items make it easy for your avatar to become a CaptainErsatz. [[http://www.tektek.org/avatar/33149145 Say hello]] to the [[VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou Shibuya]] [[KingdomHearts Nobody]] and the Keytarblade. That is just one of many.

** During the Christmas 2K9 event, [[CrowningMomentOfFunny he wanted to use the Sentinel's hair for a scarf]].

** This seems to have been toned down a bit since her shop's updating. Except when she shows off [[CrowningMomentOfFunny the poem she wrote for her community college course]].

* TemporaryOnlineContent: Many sponsored events featured quests and items that are no longer available.

* BribingYourWayToVictory: The main shops all sell for Gaia Gash (bought for real money) as well as gold, there are special stores that are Gaia Cash only, and the player to player market allows players to buy items with gold or Gaia Cash at the rate of 1 Gaia Cash being worth 50 million gold. To compare values your first forum post of the day is worth 100 gold with the value decreasing each time you post that day or you can spend under a penny and get something worth 50 million gold right away. If someone buys an item from another player for Gaia Cash the seller gets gold instead which only further devalues Gold. When faced with grinding for months to get a single item or paying fifty cents most people bribe their way to victory.
** ZOMG powerups were all Gaia Cash only.

* StatusQuoIsGod: The 2009 Halloween event featured an epic battle between two demigods. It was good vs. evil, the outcome of this battle would change Gaia as we know it! Then Jack steps in and hits the ResetButton by de-powering both demigods. What makes this example particularly {{egregious}} is that the side of evil did win the event.

* PrettyWoman: the mother of Anne and Marie Von Helson was allegedly a "showgirl."

* {{Meganekko}}: Several! Meredith the [[OfficeLady bank teller]], Cindy Donovinh the [[HotScoop reporter]], and Flynn in the Cash Shop, for starters.

* HotScoop: Cindy Donovinh. She might also qualify for HotLibrarian, since she apparently runs the archives where records of past events are kept.

* {{Vaporware}}: If you go to Durem on the world map, go down, and go left, you'll find HalloweenTown. It's been there for a couple of years, and nothing has been done with it.

* GenreSavvy: Louie decides to throw a Masquerade for Halloween 2011, only to find that nobody even wants to leave home, since Halloween events [[HilarityEnsues inevitably end in disaster]]. Unsurprisingly, his party guests end up becoming [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent werewolves]].

** Provokes GenreSavvy from the players, as [[spoiler: most of ''them'' don't buy it, either. Most of the Labtech X fanthread simply believe that Labtech X teleported to a safer place upon the robot's defeat, just like Labtech 123 did earlier.]]

* SuspiciouslySimilarSong: Anybody else notice that the club music in Virtual Hollywood sounds eerily similar to the music heard in the SaintsRowTheThird when selecting cars or the like?

* ShoutOut: The writers love these. From Rubella's [[AStreetcarNamedDesire dependence on the kindness of strangers]], to various Guards acting like their namesakes, to a big Franchise/{{Stargate|Verse}} stand-in in one area. Not to mention everything Anniedroid says.

** Crescento. He crushes the [[FanNickname Hoboverseer's]] puny ship and does not give a flying crap about it or its pilot.

* CoolAirship: Captain Crescento's airship, which appeared for the April Fool's Day event.

** Another point at which this happened was during the April Fool's Day event, where your character tells a confused Crescento that the airship "crashed", meaning the game refused to load the area (because it never existed in the first place).

* {{Dojikko}}: Kanoko, particularly in the beginning of the Dark Reflection RIG.

It's come a long way since its humble beginnings, going from a simple forum to an enormous multi-faceted community. And with the release of "zOMG!", Gaia has also gained its own {{MMORPG}}. Unfortunately, zOMG! came to a close in late 2014, citing various major security bugs and exploits being too much a time-waster to fix as none of the staff at that point knew how to work with the code, but was revived in March 2017.

It's come a long way since its humble beginnings, going from a simple forum to an enormous multi-faceted community. And with the release of "zOMG!", Gaia has also gained its own {{MMORPG}}. Unfortunately, zOMG! has come to a close in late 2014, citing various major security bugs and exploits being too much a time-waster to fix.

** The COO himself says:

* JustForPun: In Lake Kindred for Valentine's 2k16, a new creature was released called the Lovebug. It turned out it had gltitched and was stuck at level 2 for a bit... [[http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/gaia-news-updates/staff-updates/t.63632027_1506/#1505 or bugged.]]

*** Except then people post on the forums saying [[TooDumbToLive they don't know how to grandfather their rings so they can sell them]]...

* ArtisticLicenseEconomics: For a period of time they employed a pair of economists to keep the system stable. However, after a change of management in 2013 the economists were fired and [[BribingYourWayToVictory items that give players millions (later billions) of gold instantly]] began to be released, leading to [[RidiculousFutureInflation out-of-control hyperinflation]]. Some junk items now sell for thousands of in-game currency.

* DoNotCallMePaul: [[EnforcedTrope Enforced]] in the forums for the CEO ([[spoiler:[[HeWhoMustNotBeNamed Gary Schofield]]]]) and the COO ([[spoiler:[[HeWhoMustNotBeNamed Jason Loia]]]]) since the rule change in December 16, 2013, even if [[EverybodyKnewAlready it's available through a quick Google search]].

* HerCodeNameWasMarySue: The Crystal Overdrive RIG took the form of Rina and Kanoko's attempt to co-write a fanfiction. Kanoko tried to center it around her character, an amalgamation of CommonMarySueTraits, while Rina tried to tone it down (mainly by shifting the focus to [[PossessionSue her version of Ian]]) and stick to the original story.

* PowersThatBe: The "Giant Holy Head" a {{God}}-type being that appeared to Adult Timmy as a... giant human head, who [[YouLookFamiliar looked rather familiar]] by the way. The Giant Holy Head took pity upon Timmy and his unfortunate life (mainly due to Dr. Singh's [[SarcasmMode wonderful parental skills]]), and gave him three arbitrary options to change it (with the help of his fellow Gaians!!). The choices were 1) [[DeusExMachina Become a child]] again and be placed with a suitable guardian, 2) Shed his mortal form and [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence become an Evolving Item]] or 3) [[AnvilsThatNeededToBeDropped Divine punishment]] for Dr. Singh.

* TheDevTeamThinksOfEverything: Word Bump contains a set of Gaia related terms as well as internet chatspeak and slang.

** The badges. The main site will track the ones for killing certain numbers of each type of enemy, but other flavors (such as finding a certain location of the map) aren't hinted at. There are also the holiday-only badges, which may or may not be LostForever depending on whether the same type of activity is repeated next year.

** Air Shark, originally a fan elaboration on the AprilFoolsDay joke, has become an actual Animated monster that occassionally drops bombs on Barton Town.
** Not to mention the Chyaku Norisu Clan, which was named after a Monthly Collectible scarf. (Which was named after... [[ChuckNorris You know...]])

* ArtisticLicenseEconomics: For a period of time they employed a pair of economists to keep the system stable. However, after a change of management in 2013 the economists were fired and [[BribingYourWayToVictory items that give players millions and/or billions of gold instantly]] began to be released, leading to [[RidiculousFutureInflation out-of-control hyperinflation]]. Some junk items now sell for thousands of in-game currency.

* {{Hatedom}}: ImageBoards.

* MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch: A [[{{Tanabata}} Wish Tree]] in the Zen Gardens is inhabited by Animated written wishes with a HiveMind. Since it has been imbued with the goodwill of humanity, it is benevolent.

** The best one has to be the symbol for the willpower boost: A [[TengenToppaGurrenLagann drill.]]