Feel free to disagree or share your thoughts. I'm curious as to what people think and want.
The community appears divided on whether or not this is supposed to be "Garry's Mod 2" or a "spiritual successor" in name only. I appreciate the investment into a new engine/community-based experience - but if we're being completely real, S&box can function as an evolved platform inspired by Garry's Mod, while also functioning as a replacement of Garry's Mod.
The bottom line of developing a game or engine is to create something that people want or need. What S&box potentially offers over Garry's Mod falls in line with what I believe most people would want and need. Better visuals, more in-depth experiences, more expression, "better" accessibility. These are the undeniable improvements.
What is holding the platform back is this mentality of distance from Garry's Mod. Being something different, unrelated to the past, completely independent. Why?
What is the purpose of being so prideful that you're willing to separate entire communities of people? I see no issue in eating up any asset "fee" for Valve's assets when you've now got an economy being built by the community. I see no issue in porting over the existing functions in Garry's Mod to S&box for an accessible server experience to those inexperienced in other facets of development. Why not give the option of player model choice? A menu system akin to Garry's Mod without online necessities? Why not just port your existing libraries of functions at all?
To me, this is such an easy opportunity to update what everyone values from Garry's Mod in a modern platform/engine. As much work as that would be and how far it may go from the intentions of S&box, is that it is a gateway to the new functions of your platform. Old developers migrating because it is unarguably a better experience for the player and the owner is a greater advertisement than a ragdolling Terry could ever be.
In the current state, the game is a disappointment to a majority of people. A message recognizing shortcomings of AI and faithfulness to your fanbase is entirely necessary. An in-depth explanation of the game's direction and reasoning is also necessary when you're pitching a platform for everyone to invest time and money into.
I firmly believe this platform has the greatest potential to establish itself as a replacement, successor, or "sequel" to Garry's Mod without controversy or question if the intentions are well established and explained. It's almost like a lack of confidence in delivery, and an emphasis on profit is the guiding principle over a fun and engaging experience.