We love to hate it for one reason, but over the years it’s become an extension of every gay man’s life, at least in Europe. PlanetRomeo, or GayRomeo as it’s called by everyone but the company itself, the ubiquitous gay hook-up site that’s your first go-to online hub for boy-boy love has been facilitating faggotry for over 12 years. And not just through hook-ups, dating and (eventually) long-term relationships, but as a social network as well. It’s a staple in liberated life, regardless of country or language.

But there’s this thing. The “blue pages” has had a problem for years: its interface. First-timers to the site, especially in 2015, are in for a shock not only from the design but also its confusing layout: sparse fortress walls of numerous links and options guarding a central quadratic court of next to no content in the middle. But Europe gave in to GR years ago, taking the bad and the ugly with the good: the sexcess rates are undeniable. So a girl can get what she wants but can’t have everything.

Or can she? GR is finally addressing what’s stopping the European fortress of faggotry from becoming a palace. In August 2015, GR rolled out the beta version of its new interface. The option is only available to those with a premium account (I’m looking at you hookers and daddies with a bit of extra pocket money). For those who never upgraded for financial reasons, a jump to premium isn’t going to result in a jump in the number of blowjobs you’re getting, but those with the extra money already invested are definitely going to appreciate it.

The new interface puts front and center the purpose of the site in the first place: meeting men.

What we have now is the exile in Guyville we always wanted. If you were one of the arrogant (which includes this writer) who never visited another profile – those days are gone. After logging in at the semi-politically correct login page (men of different ethnicities and ages, although differently abled is still missing), the user is instantly blasted with a grid of men that can’t be navigated away from (and who would want to?). Visiting others – now unavoidable. And that’s a good thing.

A checkerboard of guys sorted by either distance or login time is laid out in front of you, with three self-explanatory links reigning at the very top. Gone is the confusion of the old interface. Horny users could be of Viagra age by the time they figured out whether it was the castle or the tiny avatar (it’s neither) that allowed them to actually edit their profile!

In the new version, checking out guys’ profiles no longer means unleashing a million separate pop-ups to look at all the good stuff. Beta allows pop-ups to open within your GR browser tab, so you don’t lose your spot (which is still just checkerboard Guyville) and don’t have to leave your browser window or tab. Staying focused and within your browser tab now also applies to the key to making the whole thing work as well – messaging. If you can’t talk to the boys, it may as well just be porn.

You may have to wait awhile as there’s no official launch date, but now your blue future is looking a lot brighter and sexier, at least onscreen.

The best new features in a nutshell

• Minimalist and crisp with no clutter
• Streamlined navigational links – three main on top: messaging, visits and favorites
• Everything opens in standalone dialog windows without making you navigate away from the page or the window
• Messaging actually presented as conversation, rather than stand-alone messages, allowing for a simpler exchange
• Main page of content is men in your area, getting you right to the point