RMN SNEWS - ISSUE #9

From Feldsnatch IV:

We all know that the level of participation in the RM* (and game making) community isn't what a lot of us would like it to be. 'This is a developer community, not so much of a game playing one' is the general sum up of how RM is, and has been for quite some time. Almost everyone here is working on a project, and therefore, everyone here would very much like their projects, demos, and completed gems to be played by the community at large. But this doesn't happen as much as we would like.

So why is this? What can be done to help get games actually played and not just quickly looked at with a 'looks great can't wait to play it'? The typical response of 'this is a developer community that's it deal with it' isn't really going to cut it anymore. Considering that since the release of RMN 3 has done a very admirable job of putting the playability of games up front and has actually gotten me to play (and even *gasp* review!) games, this isn't some sort of irreversible condition. What do you guys suggest in making our games more 'playable', and putting games out in the forefront so YOU, not just 'some other guy', will play them? Discuss.








Yep! I'm leaving soon. Thanks again everyone for their support and thank you holbert, WIP & co. for putting your confidence in me and allowing me act as admin (though I did next to nothing administrative).

FUN FACT: Wayne Gretzky also retired today from coaching the Phoenix Coyotes (an NHL team (as in hockey)).












Who made it?
Feldschlacht IV

What is it?
Chronology of the Last Era (formerly Zero Reality) is a traditional RPG following the story of a man named Leo and his involvement in a great war.

Why should you care?
The game is being picked up to play a lot in the recent Release Something! Day event. If others are intrigued, why aren't you?








Who made it?
Tezuka

What is it?
Final Fantasy V-II is a fanmade direct sequel to the popular Squeenix title FFV.

Why should you care?
Sure, FF fangames seem a dime a dozen but FFV-II is shaping up to be a quality project! It recently received POTM (Project of the Month) honours at RMRK, too. If you are a fan of Final Fantasy, check this game out.









Who made it?
Sovan Jedi

What is it?
Idunn Ymiraldor is one of the revered RPGs of yesteryear.

Why should you care?
This would be like the best Rm2k game out there if it was to be completed!...so sayeth its fans. Is it true?





THEME: RMVX

Legionwood by Dark Gaia
Rhukaat II by Shaboba
Geodun by Craze
Mage Duel by Max McGee
The Cartographer by Avadan

A common complaint from a lot of members seems to be that so many of us are resisting change - specifically, moving on from RM2k3 to the new RMVX. So, to speed things along, this installment's Play Something! challenges us to pick up an RMVX game and play it!

1. You don't have to actually finish the game/demo, but of course you should get far enough as to where you can say you've actually played it.
2. You don't have to like the game/demo. You're completely entitled to think that the games you picked suck ass. And that brings me to my next point, and perhaps most important...
3. After you've played the games/demos you picked, give something back! This is the most important part of the whole thing! Not just a "Looks good", or "That was fun", give something more. Write a review (and submit it to the site even), post your opinions on the gamepages, list bugs you encountered, hell, maybe we'll even get something that I couldn't even have imagined. Surprise me.

Embrace the future and play these games!






All rise! All hail our Grand Exalted Imperial Poobah R.C. Holbert!

*Huzzah!*

In his own words...

RMN HISTORY:
I've been involved in the RPG Maker community since October of 1998. Sometime early in 1999 I went on to found the NeXus, which ended up being a pretty popular community site, if only because I had managed to get a hold of the then uber-rare Sim RPG Maker 95 and translated the majority of it and made it publicly available on the internet. However, when I left the site it kind of crumbled and died. I wasn't satisfied with that outcome so in July of 2003 I bought the rpgmaker.net domain from Rast, its founder, and started over. After four horrible years of development hell, the new rpgmaker.net emerged. I've essentially passed the reigns over to WIP and I don't have a fear of this place crumbling as well -- it was built to be pretty self-sufficient.

PERSONAL BLURB:
I'm just a twenty-seven year old guy from Iowa. I got married when I was 20. We had our first child in 2004 and our second in 2009. I've worked retail for over a decade now, serving in management positions with several national chains. This has allowed me to work pretty much all over the United States. I started going back to school in 2007 because I am interested in working on something more important than, well, retail and education has kind of been a chip on my shoulder. I've done a lot of volunteer and professional work, serving as treasurer-secretary for a local Chamber of Commerce, as a precinct campaign for the DFL Party in Minnesota and most recently I joined the Iowa PTA to boost their manliness rating. I'm hoping to obtain my bachelor's degree in public administration in about a year and then I will trudge through graduate school -- not sure for what yet.

SPARE TIME:
What is spare time? In between working full-time+ as a salaried manager, attending university full-time, volunteering for non-profit and professional groups like the Chamber of Commerce, the Democratic Party and the PTA, and raising two children ages 5 and under, I barely have time to spend with my wife. If the occassion does occur, however, I can usually be found on Xbox Live, playing Lord of the Rings Online and using weapons of mass banning on RMN. I also like to play basketball and watch NBA games.

FAVORITE FOOD:
A medium rare ribeye steak from Texas Roadhouse is good times. Seriously, you can never go wrong with a steak or ribs from Texas Roadhouse.

FAVORITE SAYING:
"WIP, have you lost your damn mind?!"

PET PEEVE:
People who are overly sensitive on the internet. Christians who think Christianity is about low taxes, limited government, rejecting science, "conservative" social values and hating foreigners, and not all the things Jesus Christ actually talked about and did in his life like caring for the sick, feeding the hungry, and not placing emphasis on material wealth.

LITTLE KNOWN FACT:
I have no intentions of resuming any official RMN duties.





Darken for his enthusiastic work since becoming a staff member.




As I am taking a planned long hiatus from the community, I thought I'd wrap up the RMN SNEWS with a list of the handful of hidden easter eggs in the newsletters:

RMN SNEWS Issue #2: Clicking on the picture of the pirate takes you to Weebl's "Somalia" song.
RMN SNEWS Issue #3: Clicking on the picture of the robots takes you to an awesome video of BREAKDANCING DECEPTICONS.
RMN SNEWS Issue #3: All the links in the fake spam message are RickRolls.
RMN SNEWS Issue #8: The Old School Gold Collector image links you to the 8-bit Trip music video.
RMN SNEWS Issue #9: The ParticipACTION image links you to a Corner Gas clip spoofing the Do it! Do it! Do it! commercial from the '70s
RMN SNEWS Issue #9: The randomly appropriate avatar links you to a How To Change a Diaper instructional video.

And that's a wrap! So long and thanks for all the fish!