Sup, peeps.
Alright, before we get into the things I teased about at the end of the last blog, we have some breaking news to get to regarding Outcast Island, which is where part one left off. The Outsiders Ceremony has been used, and DWorld is now back in the main game. I said before that DWorld was Team Bluth's MVP last project, so him jumping on an opprotunity to really compete doesn't really surprise me. What does kind of shock me, however, is who he decided to send to Outcast Island in his place. Let me take this time to give my thoughts on Imagineer2017.
Imagineer is now one of the most colorful characters to emerge from the game in the past few years. In the days of my "evil reign" in Season Eight, after Disneyson got eliminated, Imagineer was literally my main competition. I always knew that strategically, Imagineer was NOT on my side and that me and him were essentially rivals in the grand scheme of things, but at the same time, every step of the way I admired his gameplay. At the end of the day, Imagineer ended up in 5th place that season, the best of any of the Wildcards. Imagineer's character really got going, however, when he joined forces with Season Nine collaborator Stratofarious for the Festival of Imagination. After a really rocky but overall pretty memorable first season, Imagineer really established himself as a very unique creative force. He has a mix of good creativity with a reputation for being outspoken and opinionated, which really isn't a bad thing. He's a great character, and now he's a top contender to return to the main game from Outcast Island come semi-finals.
Alright, I think the part of the blog the majority of you are most excited about is my whole "Napoleon Complex" thing regarding Disneyson1, so let's just jump to that right now. Seriously, could Disneyson possibly be in a better position than the one he's in right now? I mean, he's in a better position than KingMickey in Season Seven, and in a better position than I was after his elimination in Season Eight, where after that I had a fair share of enemies. Disneyson1 is completely running the show here. I think the dissolve of Team Davinson was the best thing that happened to Disneyson1 over the course of the first half of the season. Because of that event, he managed to get into Team Baxter and make himself a powerhouse, essentially guaranteeing himself the Golden Power of MVP. Now that he's got a hold of that power, he's practically unstoppable. Much like the Hidden Immunity Idol in Survivor, however, the trick to the Golden Power of MVP is all in the timing. You need to know when to use it, when you are being targeted, or else you'll waste it. Or, if you know someone's going to be eliminated and want to keep them around, the power could also be used for that. Either way, it's a big tool in Disneyson's bag of tricks. That, and now he's Team Leader and a dominant presence over Team Davis. He's seriously THE most powerful person to ever play this game, using sheer reputation, will power, and creative energy to drive his game forward. At this point, he's practically a lock for the Final Three. The only question is, will anyone be able to stand up and face him in the end?
If there's going to be a person like that...I don't think it's going to be Monkey. Sorry pal, but you're hanging on by a thread here. Monkey of course did have his shining moment in the ThatGuyWithTheGlasses project, but since then he's slid considerably under the radar. Like everyone else this season however, Monkey has a story. That's what I love about this game in general. It seems that no matter what happens, each person has a defining element and character trait to them that makes them stand out in their own way. With Monkey, we all know that particular strength lies in the field of comedy.
Finally, we come to Team Coats. Upon the sudden departure of ManEatingWreath, which as I said last post, is best described as a big "turning point", that left the once powerful team down to two members. Hack2112, who carried the team on more than one occasion, and Futureimagineer, who has broken out as the biggest new character of the season. These two are now in the minority here, and a big question is going to be...will people be voting along team lines? Honestly, I think AdvBlueDude is in a lot of trouble here. If you watched Survivor: Redemption Island...AdvBlueDude is the Matt Elrod to Disneyson's Rob Mariano. AdvBlueDude's character this season is all about a personal journey. We wanted a twist that would bring shockwaves to the game, and AdvBlueDude is the poster child for it. After all, this guy already has two instances of coming *this* close to the final project under his belt. It's only natural that the storyline for his third time out should be this way. Unfortunate timing has caused Adv to be the person who has contributed by far the least amount of brainstorming. This of course, puts an immediate target on his back. The only question will be if someone else gets a higher number of votes.
As for my take on how the rest of the season will play out...historically ever since we started the team format back in Season Six, the people that have been in the final project have, straight up, been in alliances together. It's never failed. Fantasmic!, HereWeGo, and PL7764 were all part of the "Yensid Three" in Season Six, KingMickey and Mater for sure had each other's backs in Season Seven, and of course my the three way alliance of myself, Jessiestudio, and Monkey made it all the way to the final three in Season Eight. If you don't want to use the word "alliance", at least having someone else's back can potentially be a very good thing in this game. As we start getting closer to the final project, and the PoMVP (which will return at the end of this project) having a greater and greater value, things are about to start getting intense. Fasten your seatbelts folks. It's been a really fun ride so far, and I can't wait to see where this game goes in the coming rounds.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Monday, July 11, 2011
Project Portal Commentary Part One
Now that's one for the record books!
Alright guys...I have to admit, when ManEatingWreath quit a few days ago...for half a second I kind of had a freak out in my mind, and even refereed to this season as "a joke' to him in a PM. You know what? This season IS a joke! It's a spectacular joke, and the thing I love about it is that literally every step of the way so far we've had turn of events that nobody saw coming. MickeyMania and Basketbuddy being eliminated early on set the tone for what was soon to be the flat out most unpredictable season in the game's history. I am really in love with this cast, we already have a few new people that I would gladly count as "All Stars", and everyone left in the game, including the people on Outcast Island, have been playing hard all season. ManEatingWreath described his departure from the game in a way I completely agree with...a turning point.
From the get go, "Project Portal" was all Strat's idea. I didn't know anything about the game, but Strat insisted that this be included in the group of projects. He had very specific ideas for what he wanted to see done. Portal is one of those things that is pretty widely talked about during the game, just in general, so naturally a few people were really looking forward to this. I'll admit, the story elements of this project really weren't handled in the way Strat wanted them to be handled, and I'll lay the blame on the fact that, again...were still pretty far behind schedule here. The whole outro of the project was planned out pretty far in advance, and me posting Project Six early basically ruined the continuity of the whole thing. I'd like to personally apologize for that particular interference.
As somewhat expected, the core of how this project played out was essentially, each team had a "go-to guy", who was wall versed in the world of Portal. Team Bluth had DWorld (who I must say...is living up to his potential at this point!) Team Coats had the ever-allusive Hack2112, and Team Baxter of course had the mighty and towering Disneyson1. Each of these players really stepped up to the plate, resulting in three very different approaches to a wildly talked about project.
Team Bluth over on Outcast Island really blew me away this time. They were the first to get brainstorming, and they had a solid lead in total posts throughout the entire project. Granted, having more pages in your brainstorming thread doesn't always guarantee a winning project, but it is a pretty good indicator. Team Bluth, even though they were made up of people previously voted out, all contributed a very solid amount of brainstorming to the overall process. CostaFreak...sorry man. I've got to say, while you are definitely a helpful player, your sporatic nature pretty much makes it clear that...you're never going to win this game. Bold statement of me to make, I know...and I'd love for you to prove me wrong, but CostaFreak...that's what makes your character shine. I'm not saying you have absolutely no chance, but your solid reputation of coming and going, always leaving some kind of a mark on every season you're on, but most of the time never really having a considerable shot at the winner's title. Season Eight was a really memorable season for you and it really brought your character full circle. With Season Nine, while like I said every time you do contribute, you contribute something useful, I feel like you're still just kind of playing from the sidelines. Unfortunately, if I don't see SOMETHING from Team Bluth when the projects get turned in, I might have to eliminate CostaFreak if he doesn't end up showing up. Definitely not something I WANT to do, but if you expect to survive on Outcast Island, you must at the very least compete on a project-by-project basis.
AdvBlueDude kind of took a backseat this project, but he deserved it. Thrill, meanwhile, is a big wildcard at this point. He's certainly not the loudest player in the bunch, but he's also had a lot of influence in the events of the season. It was Thrill that sent the infamous StarWarsGeek to Outcast Island, thus potentially ending his game. Then, Thrill gets sent to Outcast Island the very same project as StarWarsGeek, and has now managed to quietly win his way back into the main game. It was pretty obvious AdvBlueDude would be one of the people returning, but the other slot was completely up for grabs. It was a close vote. It ultimately came down to most everybody who cast a vote voting for AdvBlueDude, with one vote for CostaFreak and ultimately two votes for Thrill. Very close call. Oddly enough, DWorld was the only person to not receive a vote, in spite of really being the leader this past project and putting together what I consider to be the best overall project submitted so far this season. So essentially, each and every personality on Outcast Island really shined in their own way. Something tells me DWorld is going to come back sooner than you guys think, and who KNOWS what that's going to bring to the table. Remember, the Outsider's Ceremony is still up for grabs. I changed the rules so that instead of eliminating someone completely from Outcast Island, instead you'll chose someone from the main game and send them to Outcast Island in your place. The twist is still pretty brutal, but at least it's not game ending. Only POTENTIALLY game ending, haha. For all intents and purposes, Outcast Island really is working out how I wanted it to. It's a lot better than how Redemption Island worked out for Survivor. Basically what I wanted to see was a whole other element of gameplay emerge, and I think Outcast Island is really providing that. In general, I'm very satisfied with how this season is turning out, especially if it remains as unpredictable in the first half as it was in the second half. I don't care about the outcome of any one season, but I always appreciate when it's an unpredictable road to get there. I'd say Seasons five and six were probably about as unpredictable as they come, and ever since PL7764 took the title in one of my personal favorite wins the game has ever seen, I've constantly been looking for that next player who comes out of nowhere and takes the title completely by surprise. This season, the potential is definitely there.
In part two I'll discuss.
-My controversial low score for Team Baxter, and personally address Disneyson1 and his potential "Napoleon Complex".
-How ManEatingWreath's elimination will further impact the game, and the overall storyline of Team Coats.
-How I see the rest of the season potentially playing out.
Alright guys...I have to admit, when ManEatingWreath quit a few days ago...for half a second I kind of had a freak out in my mind, and even refereed to this season as "a joke' to him in a PM. You know what? This season IS a joke! It's a spectacular joke, and the thing I love about it is that literally every step of the way so far we've had turn of events that nobody saw coming. MickeyMania and Basketbuddy being eliminated early on set the tone for what was soon to be the flat out most unpredictable season in the game's history. I am really in love with this cast, we already have a few new people that I would gladly count as "All Stars", and everyone left in the game, including the people on Outcast Island, have been playing hard all season. ManEatingWreath described his departure from the game in a way I completely agree with...a turning point.
From the get go, "Project Portal" was all Strat's idea. I didn't know anything about the game, but Strat insisted that this be included in the group of projects. He had very specific ideas for what he wanted to see done. Portal is one of those things that is pretty widely talked about during the game, just in general, so naturally a few people were really looking forward to this. I'll admit, the story elements of this project really weren't handled in the way Strat wanted them to be handled, and I'll lay the blame on the fact that, again...were still pretty far behind schedule here. The whole outro of the project was planned out pretty far in advance, and me posting Project Six early basically ruined the continuity of the whole thing. I'd like to personally apologize for that particular interference.
As somewhat expected, the core of how this project played out was essentially, each team had a "go-to guy", who was wall versed in the world of Portal. Team Bluth had DWorld (who I must say...is living up to his potential at this point!) Team Coats had the ever-allusive Hack2112, and Team Baxter of course had the mighty and towering Disneyson1. Each of these players really stepped up to the plate, resulting in three very different approaches to a wildly talked about project.
Team Bluth over on Outcast Island really blew me away this time. They were the first to get brainstorming, and they had a solid lead in total posts throughout the entire project. Granted, having more pages in your brainstorming thread doesn't always guarantee a winning project, but it is a pretty good indicator. Team Bluth, even though they were made up of people previously voted out, all contributed a very solid amount of brainstorming to the overall process. CostaFreak...sorry man. I've got to say, while you are definitely a helpful player, your sporatic nature pretty much makes it clear that...you're never going to win this game. Bold statement of me to make, I know...and I'd love for you to prove me wrong, but CostaFreak...that's what makes your character shine. I'm not saying you have absolutely no chance, but your solid reputation of coming and going, always leaving some kind of a mark on every season you're on, but most of the time never really having a considerable shot at the winner's title. Season Eight was a really memorable season for you and it really brought your character full circle. With Season Nine, while like I said every time you do contribute, you contribute something useful, I feel like you're still just kind of playing from the sidelines. Unfortunately, if I don't see SOMETHING from Team Bluth when the projects get turned in, I might have to eliminate CostaFreak if he doesn't end up showing up. Definitely not something I WANT to do, but if you expect to survive on Outcast Island, you must at the very least compete on a project-by-project basis.
AdvBlueDude kind of took a backseat this project, but he deserved it. Thrill, meanwhile, is a big wildcard at this point. He's certainly not the loudest player in the bunch, but he's also had a lot of influence in the events of the season. It was Thrill that sent the infamous StarWarsGeek to Outcast Island, thus potentially ending his game. Then, Thrill gets sent to Outcast Island the very same project as StarWarsGeek, and has now managed to quietly win his way back into the main game. It was pretty obvious AdvBlueDude would be one of the people returning, but the other slot was completely up for grabs. It was a close vote. It ultimately came down to most everybody who cast a vote voting for AdvBlueDude, with one vote for CostaFreak and ultimately two votes for Thrill. Very close call. Oddly enough, DWorld was the only person to not receive a vote, in spite of really being the leader this past project and putting together what I consider to be the best overall project submitted so far this season. So essentially, each and every personality on Outcast Island really shined in their own way. Something tells me DWorld is going to come back sooner than you guys think, and who KNOWS what that's going to bring to the table. Remember, the Outsider's Ceremony is still up for grabs. I changed the rules so that instead of eliminating someone completely from Outcast Island, instead you'll chose someone from the main game and send them to Outcast Island in your place. The twist is still pretty brutal, but at least it's not game ending. Only POTENTIALLY game ending, haha. For all intents and purposes, Outcast Island really is working out how I wanted it to. It's a lot better than how Redemption Island worked out for Survivor. Basically what I wanted to see was a whole other element of gameplay emerge, and I think Outcast Island is really providing that. In general, I'm very satisfied with how this season is turning out, especially if it remains as unpredictable in the first half as it was in the second half. I don't care about the outcome of any one season, but I always appreciate when it's an unpredictable road to get there. I'd say Seasons five and six were probably about as unpredictable as they come, and ever since PL7764 took the title in one of my personal favorite wins the game has ever seen, I've constantly been looking for that next player who comes out of nowhere and takes the title completely by surprise. This season, the potential is definitely there.
In part two I'll discuss.
-My controversial low score for Team Baxter, and personally address Disneyson1 and his potential "Napoleon Complex".
-How ManEatingWreath's elimination will further impact the game, and the overall storyline of Team Coats.
-How I see the rest of the season potentially playing out.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Commentary: Season Nine, Project Four
I love where this season is going.
I'm just going to say this right now. Were about half way through the list of projects we have lined up, and already I can tell that this cast is really delivering. There have of course been a few sad events, such as MickeyMania dropping out and Basketbuddy getting caught up in his own schedule, but going into the big Portal project, I think the important thing we have to look at is that now we've got three VERY distinctive teams, each with devoted members who have varied backstories and have ALL taken various steps to get to where they are right now. That is what I'm most excited about. I'm excited about that, and I'm also really excited about the fact that exactly one project from now, we will have a complete merged team. That's right, Team Coats, Team Baxter, and two members from Team Bluth are all coming together to form one team of seven that will last all the way until the semi-finals. It will provide yet another layer of inner-dynamics to be worked through. Before we get to that, let's look at the three teams currently in play.
First, we have Team Baxter. The interesting thing about thee guys is that they're all complete...dare I say it...wild cards. Well, not so much Wild Cards, they just all ended up on Team Baxter by chance. Even Imagineer2017 only ended up as the Team Leader once AdvBlueDude opened Walt's Vault and got sent to Outcast Island. Then we had Monkey, who came over from Team Coats and really led the team to a great victory in the ThatGuyWithTheGlasses project. And now, Disneyson is also in the mix from the dissolve of Team Davinson. The big question mark with Disneyson at the start of this project was if he was going to be able to operate in this game now that he doesn't have the title of Team Leader. I shouldn't say it's an IF question, it's more of a...how will he work this type question. Well, I think he and Imagineer really went hand in hand with the in-attraction dining project, and they both contributed an even amount of ideas. Now that we've come to the Portal project though, and it's a subject that Disneyson is OBSESSED with, will he, dare I say it...perhaps pull a Mouseketeercole one us? By that I mean, will he be able to use the other team members input equally while he himself has such clear and passionate ideas about the project. Honestly, this type of social situation is the type of stuff I like to see in the game, NOT back and forth malicious PM wars. Monkey, meanwhile, took a back seat this project with the PoMVP in his possession from his performance in project three. Monkey better be careful, because Imagineer and Disneyson are both HUGE personalities, and now he's dealing with a subject I have no idea if he knows anything about. Then again, Portal IS largely based on comedy, which we all know is Monkey's specialty. Should be an interesting round for everyone's favorite simian.
Team Coats is pretty much the exact opposite of Team Baxter. The three way trio of ManEatingWreath, Hack, and Futureimagineer has proved to be a powerful one. One of the dynamics I found really interesting this time around was DWorld and his interactions with this already established "unit". DWorld is a contestant that I really have my eye on. He stood up to me when I called him out on being "just there", and he also used the "s" word. S as in "strategy"...Perhaps he is one of those players that is just laying low for now. Now that he's on Outcast Island, however, he's going to HAVE to get noticed. Not much new to say about MEW this time around. (Hey, that rymthes!) He still continues to be a modest yet very powerful presence in the game. He took the somewhat low score the project received very well. ManEatingWreath doesn't want to pretend he's something he's not...or maybe...he's more than he's putting off. Who knows? All I know is that his storyline is yet another captivating storylines. Speaking of storylines...Hack is seriously on a roll here, and now he's got a whole project based on one of his all time favorite subjects. And then, you have Futureimagineer, who at this point is probably the most memorable new personality in the game. On paper, Futureimagineer is basically everything we want in a contestant. He contributes a lot of interesting ideas, he thinks outside the box, he's known for being strategic, and he won't just sit there and take a bad score. Rather the latter two are good or bad are up for debate, but they definitely make him a more interesting overall player. I'd say at this point, he's already earned a place among the "All Stars".
And lastly, there's Team Bluth. First of all, I have to say hats off to AdvBlueDude for sticking it through all this craziness. He's been really patient with the Outcast Island twist, and now, what do you know? He's actually got a strong team going on over at Team Bluth. DWorld and Thrill are both memorable Festival of Imagination personalities who have a lot to prove, but fortunately for them Outcast Island happens to be the perfect place to prove yourself. CostaFreak is just being CostaFreak, as always. He admits that he always falls into a chain of being gone for one day every season and that screwing him over. Again, Outcast Island might be his salvation. One thing I have to point out about Outcast Island and why going there does have some sort of cool merit to it is the fact that getting sent there means you're going to be directly involved in Strat's story. At the moment, we've got five very distinct personalities, and were also about to unleash the Outsiders into the story as characters, so I really think you guys are going to enjoy where the audiosodes are going. The thing on everyone's mind right now is...who is going to come back from Outcast Island, and what kind of an effect are they going to have on everyone's game? Time will tell. I can't wait to see what you guys do with the Portal project, and I'm even more excited to see what becomes of the merged team. This season is just a test drive for what's to come, but it's a really fun and unpredictable (if a bit bumpy...) test drive at that.
I'm just going to say this right now. Were about half way through the list of projects we have lined up, and already I can tell that this cast is really delivering. There have of course been a few sad events, such as MickeyMania dropping out and Basketbuddy getting caught up in his own schedule, but going into the big Portal project, I think the important thing we have to look at is that now we've got three VERY distinctive teams, each with devoted members who have varied backstories and have ALL taken various steps to get to where they are right now. That is what I'm most excited about. I'm excited about that, and I'm also really excited about the fact that exactly one project from now, we will have a complete merged team. That's right, Team Coats, Team Baxter, and two members from Team Bluth are all coming together to form one team of seven that will last all the way until the semi-finals. It will provide yet another layer of inner-dynamics to be worked through. Before we get to that, let's look at the three teams currently in play.
First, we have Team Baxter. The interesting thing about thee guys is that they're all complete...dare I say it...wild cards. Well, not so much Wild Cards, they just all ended up on Team Baxter by chance. Even Imagineer2017 only ended up as the Team Leader once AdvBlueDude opened Walt's Vault and got sent to Outcast Island. Then we had Monkey, who came over from Team Coats and really led the team to a great victory in the ThatGuyWithTheGlasses project. And now, Disneyson is also in the mix from the dissolve of Team Davinson. The big question mark with Disneyson at the start of this project was if he was going to be able to operate in this game now that he doesn't have the title of Team Leader. I shouldn't say it's an IF question, it's more of a...how will he work this type question. Well, I think he and Imagineer really went hand in hand with the in-attraction dining project, and they both contributed an even amount of ideas. Now that we've come to the Portal project though, and it's a subject that Disneyson is OBSESSED with, will he, dare I say it...perhaps pull a Mouseketeercole one us? By that I mean, will he be able to use the other team members input equally while he himself has such clear and passionate ideas about the project. Honestly, this type of social situation is the type of stuff I like to see in the game, NOT back and forth malicious PM wars. Monkey, meanwhile, took a back seat this project with the PoMVP in his possession from his performance in project three. Monkey better be careful, because Imagineer and Disneyson are both HUGE personalities, and now he's dealing with a subject I have no idea if he knows anything about. Then again, Portal IS largely based on comedy, which we all know is Monkey's specialty. Should be an interesting round for everyone's favorite simian.
Team Coats is pretty much the exact opposite of Team Baxter. The three way trio of ManEatingWreath, Hack, and Futureimagineer has proved to be a powerful one. One of the dynamics I found really interesting this time around was DWorld and his interactions with this already established "unit". DWorld is a contestant that I really have my eye on. He stood up to me when I called him out on being "just there", and he also used the "s" word. S as in "strategy"...Perhaps he is one of those players that is just laying low for now. Now that he's on Outcast Island, however, he's going to HAVE to get noticed. Not much new to say about MEW this time around. (Hey, that rymthes!) He still continues to be a modest yet very powerful presence in the game. He took the somewhat low score the project received very well. ManEatingWreath doesn't want to pretend he's something he's not...or maybe...he's more than he's putting off. Who knows? All I know is that his storyline is yet another captivating storylines. Speaking of storylines...Hack is seriously on a roll here, and now he's got a whole project based on one of his all time favorite subjects. And then, you have Futureimagineer, who at this point is probably the most memorable new personality in the game. On paper, Futureimagineer is basically everything we want in a contestant. He contributes a lot of interesting ideas, he thinks outside the box, he's known for being strategic, and he won't just sit there and take a bad score. Rather the latter two are good or bad are up for debate, but they definitely make him a more interesting overall player. I'd say at this point, he's already earned a place among the "All Stars".
And lastly, there's Team Bluth. First of all, I have to say hats off to AdvBlueDude for sticking it through all this craziness. He's been really patient with the Outcast Island twist, and now, what do you know? He's actually got a strong team going on over at Team Bluth. DWorld and Thrill are both memorable Festival of Imagination personalities who have a lot to prove, but fortunately for them Outcast Island happens to be the perfect place to prove yourself. CostaFreak is just being CostaFreak, as always. He admits that he always falls into a chain of being gone for one day every season and that screwing him over. Again, Outcast Island might be his salvation. One thing I have to point out about Outcast Island and why going there does have some sort of cool merit to it is the fact that getting sent there means you're going to be directly involved in Strat's story. At the moment, we've got five very distinct personalities, and were also about to unleash the Outsiders into the story as characters, so I really think you guys are going to enjoy where the audiosodes are going. The thing on everyone's mind right now is...who is going to come back from Outcast Island, and what kind of an effect are they going to have on everyone's game? Time will tell. I can't wait to see what you guys do with the Portal project, and I'm even more excited to see what becomes of the merged team. This season is just a test drive for what's to come, but it's a really fun and unpredictable (if a bit bumpy...) test drive at that.
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