Suggestions for the database system and message counters.

And how does it "display natively"?

In a specific section, it will display the number of messages posted only in that section.
For example:
Mafia: 455
Heroes 3: 566
Chatter: 999 ...
You can also add the total number of messages:
Mafia: 455/2020
Heroes 3: 566/2020
Chatter: 999/2020 ...
But that's complicated, and it's probably easier to just allow a simple counter everywhere...