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1
News and Updates / Huge "Get Yourself Speedrunning" Sonic 2 race on SRL on Saturday 31/1!
« on: January 29, 2015, 08:24:33 pm »
Since AGDQ, SpeedRunsLive have been doing a series of introductory races to get new players interested in speedrunning. The third and final of these races is taking place on Saturday January 31, and is a full-game race of Sonic 2. Details here, but the relevant part is posted below:
The last two races in this series had 140 and 300 racers respectively, so this is probably going to be the biggest race of any Sonic game we've ever seen. Come and join in! You just have to be in the SpeedRunsLive IRC (server irc.speedrunslive.com, #speedrunslive) to join on race day.
See you there!
Quote
Game: Sonic 2
Goal: Beat the game
When: Jan. 31st, 2pm EST / 7pm GMT
Goal clarification: Start on title screen, .done on screen fade to black after final boss.
Rules: No S&K cart. Zips allowed. Stage select allowed to return to your last stage.
Stage select: At the title screen, select Options. Highlight Sound Test then play the following music and sounds: 19, 65, 09 and 17. You will hear a ring-collecting sound for correct code entry. Then press START to return to the title screen. Highlight 1-Player, hold the A Button and press START.
The last two races in this series had 140 and 300 racers respectively, so this is probably going to be the biggest race of any Sonic game we've ever seen. Come and join in! You just have to be in the SpeedRunsLive IRC (server irc.speedrunslive.com, #speedrunslive) to join on race day.
See you there!
2
Gaming and Grazing / SDA presents Awesome Games Done Quick 2012!
« on: December 28, 2011, 09:22:01 pm »
Well, you guys must be used to this from me by now but in just a few days time my buddies at Speed Demos Archive are, once again, bringing in the New Year in style, with speedruns!
Awesome Games Done Quick 2012 will, as always, be streamed on SDA's front page. It's going to extend from the 4th of January through to the 9th, and feature over 100 speedruns, including a few from some familiar faces!
Most relevantly to you guys, Thursday night is going to feature plenty of Sonic action, where I'll be running Sonic 2 and 3, followed by a race between yoshifan and Psyknux on Sonic Adventure 2! I'm also going to be running Pokemon Red or Blue on Sunday morning, and yoshifan will be running Mario Galaxy on Sunday night.
During the event we'll be collecting donations for the Prevent Cancer Foundation, a nonprofit organization that saves lives through cancer research, education and community outreach. By donating as little as $5 you can get yourself in the running to win some really awesome prizes, such as hand-knitted plushes, perlers, artwork, games, and other great stuff like a Sonic comic collection and Super Meat Boy-themed meat tenderizer!
See you there, starting January 4!
Awesome Games Done Quick 2012 will, as always, be streamed on SDA's front page. It's going to extend from the 4th of January through to the 9th, and feature over 100 speedruns, including a few from some familiar faces!
Most relevantly to you guys, Thursday night is going to feature plenty of Sonic action, where I'll be running Sonic 2 and 3, followed by a race between yoshifan and Psyknux on Sonic Adventure 2! I'm also going to be running Pokemon Red or Blue on Sunday morning, and yoshifan will be running Mario Galaxy on Sunday night.
During the event we'll be collecting donations for the Prevent Cancer Foundation, a nonprofit organization that saves lives through cancer research, education and community outreach. By donating as little as $5 you can get yourself in the running to win some really awesome prizes, such as hand-knitted plushes, perlers, artwork, games, and other great stuff like a Sonic comic collection and Super Meat Boy-themed meat tenderizer!
See you there, starting January 4!
3
Gaming and Grazing / SDA presents Japan Relief Done Quick
« on: April 04, 2011, 01:11:07 am »
Japan Relief Done Quick - April 7-10
This marathon isn't as well organised as the previous two, we've only put it together in a couple of weeks. As such it's not going to be everyone physically getting together, but a bunch of people streaming from their homes. So commentary on the runs will be set up differently, but don't worry, the runs will still be awesome!
The group we're supporting is Doctors Without Borders, a humanitarian organisation dedicated to supporting relief efforts in times of disaster, such as the recent events in Japan. 100% of your donations go to this cause!
TSC representation is huge this time! We've got:
* Miles (Sonic 1, Metroid Prime, Metroid Prime 2)
* Paraxade (Metroid Prime, Sonic 06, Sonic 4)
* yoshifan (Super Mario Galaxy)
Check out the schedule to see when your favourite games are on (Sonic series is late Thursday into Friday) and come support a good cause!
This marathon isn't as well organised as the previous two, we've only put it together in a couple of weeks. As such it's not going to be everyone physically getting together, but a bunch of people streaming from their homes. So commentary on the runs will be set up differently, but don't worry, the runs will still be awesome!
The group we're supporting is Doctors Without Borders, a humanitarian organisation dedicated to supporting relief efforts in times of disaster, such as the recent events in Japan. 100% of your donations go to this cause!
TSC representation is huge this time! We've got:
* Miles (Sonic 1, Metroid Prime, Metroid Prime 2)
* Paraxade (Metroid Prime, Sonic 06, Sonic 4)
* yoshifan (Super Mario Galaxy)
Check out the schedule to see when your favourite games are on (Sonic series is late Thursday into Friday) and come support a good cause!
4
Gaming and Grazing / SDA presents Awesome Games Done Quick
« on: January 05, 2011, 09:08:35 am »
Most of you already know about this but starting tomorrow SDA is hosting their second annual charity marathon, Awesome Games Done Quick. As the name suggests, it's going to be 100 awesome games done over the space of about 100 hours.
As for TSC representation, stanski's going to be there blitzing through Sonic 2 and Altered Beast, and I'm going to be streaming one third of the Rocket Knight Adventures race from off-site. Those start from about 1:30 EST on Sunday, but after last year we know how far away from the schedule we can get, so just keep watching the marathon to stay up to date!
As for TSC representation, stanski's going to be there blitzing through Sonic 2 and Altered Beast, and I'm going to be streaming one third of the Rocket Knight Adventures race from off-site. Those start from about 1:30 EST on Sunday, but after last year we know how far away from the schedule we can get, so just keep watching the marathon to stay up to date!
5
Gaming and Grazing / 72 Hour Sonic the Hedgehog Marathon
« on: May 22, 2010, 04:33:05 am »
Those of you who frequent SDA will already know this but the Bonus Stage Marathons group who had a pretty successful Dragon Quest marathon recently (they raised at least $1500, triple their goal!) are taking on the Sonic series from July 8-11. I've already linked them to here but I'll be consulting with them right up until they start, making sure they put on a good show for everyone. Check them out!
The charity this is in support of is the Baltimore Humane Society. A bit of information on their mission:
From their site, this is the game list that they're tackling:
Sonic 1
Sonic 2
Sonic 3 and Knuckles
Sonic CD
Sonic Adventure
Sonic Adventure 2
Sonic Heroes
Shadow the Hedgehog
Sonic 06
Sonic Unleashed
Sonic Advanced 1
Sonic Advanced 2
Sonic Advanced 3
Sonic 1 Game Gear
Sonic 2 Game Gear
Sonic Triple Trouble (Game Gear)
Tails Adventure
Sonic Spinball
The charity this is in support of is the Baltimore Humane Society. A bit of information on their mission:
Quote
Since its founding in 1927 by Elsie Seeger Barton, the Humane Society of Baltimore County has provided for the care of suffering and homeless animals. Situated on 365 acres of land held in trust for the Humane Society, it operates an animal shelter, a spay/neuter center, a memorial park, and a wildlife sanctuary. The Humane Society is dependent on donations from individuals, corporations, and foundations, and income from fundraising events to support animal care operations.
From their site, this is the game list that they're tackling:
Sonic 1
Sonic 2
Sonic 3 and Knuckles
Sonic CD
Sonic Adventure
Sonic Adventure 2
Sonic Heroes
Shadow the Hedgehog
Sonic 06
Sonic Unleashed
Sonic Advanced 1
Sonic Advanced 2
Sonic Advanced 3
Sonic 1 Game Gear
Sonic 2 Game Gear
Sonic Triple Trouble (Game Gear)
Tails Adventure
Sonic Spinball
6
Gaming and Grazing / SDA Marathon: Classic Games Done Quick
« on: December 02, 2009, 02:23:05 am »
Some of you will have heard me raving about this thing no end for the past few months. Some of you will have been involved in the planning over at SDA, or being asked to participate.
As of today, the marathon has a home page, which during the 54-hour marathon on January 1-3 (EST) will carry an embedded ustream link displaying the goings-on on-site.
The marathon is in support of CARE, a leading humanitarian organisation fighting global poverty. SDA will be taking donations throughout the event.
This part is lifted straight off the page because I couldn't say it better myself X)
Special Events
During the marathon, we'll be holding several special events to keep things exciting:
Pianotoads - Watch and listen as Battletoads experts Emptyeye and DJ Mike Haggar race to Kareshi's piano accompaniment of the game's music!
Speedrun races - Root for your favorite speed runners as they battle it out. May the fastest win!
Runner interviews - After our runners finish obliterating classic games, they'll be sharing tips and tricks, all streamed live.
The TSCers involved are myself and stanski. My schedule is: Sonic 1 (racing stanski) [Jan 2, 3:49pm], Sonic 3 & Knuckles [4:45pm], Vectorman [6pm], Vectorman 2 [6:20pm], Donkey Kong Country 3 [8:27pm].
stanski's schedule is Castlevania: Bloodlines [Jan 2, 9:58am], Altered Beast (2p with mikwuyma) [3:41pm], Sonic 1 (racing mike89) [3:49pm], Sonic 2 [4:19pm], Donkey Kong [6:35pm], Toy Story [Jan 3, 8:55am].
So make sure you watch, and give generously to a worthy cause!
As of today, the marathon has a home page, which during the 54-hour marathon on January 1-3 (EST) will carry an embedded ustream link displaying the goings-on on-site.
The marathon is in support of CARE, a leading humanitarian organisation fighting global poverty. SDA will be taking donations throughout the event.
This part is lifted straight off the page because I couldn't say it better myself X)
Special Events
During the marathon, we'll be holding several special events to keep things exciting:
Pianotoads - Watch and listen as Battletoads experts Emptyeye and DJ Mike Haggar race to Kareshi's piano accompaniment of the game's music!
Speedrun races - Root for your favorite speed runners as they battle it out. May the fastest win!
Runner interviews - After our runners finish obliterating classic games, they'll be sharing tips and tricks, all streamed live.
The TSCers involved are myself and stanski. My schedule is: Sonic 1 (racing stanski) [Jan 2, 3:49pm], Sonic 3 & Knuckles [4:45pm], Vectorman [6pm], Vectorman 2 [6:20pm], Donkey Kong Country 3 [8:27pm].
stanski's schedule is Castlevania: Bloodlines [Jan 2, 9:58am], Altered Beast (2p with mikwuyma) [3:41pm], Sonic 1 (racing mike89) [3:49pm], Sonic 2 [4:19pm], Donkey Kong [6:35pm], Toy Story [Jan 3, 8:55am].
So make sure you watch, and give generously to a worthy cause!
7
Ban List / SonicRULEZ [Banned]
« on: May 24, 2009, 02:42:50 pm »
Date of ban: 24/5/09
IP: 92.24.86.93
Related users: N/A
Reason for banning: Posting obviously false times, spamming forum topic in which he had the opportunity to defend himself
Other evidence: http://www.soniccenter.org/forum/index.php?topic=4338.0
Forum permission status: Banned
Ban duration: Permanent
IP: 92.24.86.93
Related users: N/A
Reason for banning: Posting obviously false times, spamming forum topic in which he had the opportunity to defend himself
Other evidence: http://www.soniccenter.org/forum/index.php?topic=4338.0
Forum permission status: Banned
Ban duration: Permanent
8
Information Kiosk / The Comprehensive Guide to Understanding Level Abbreviations
« on: April 19, 2009, 12:16:24 am »
Alright, now this is an old concern (which has been re-raised many times, but most recently today) which I don't think we've done well to address in the past.
Basically, a newbie looks in the chatroom (or on the forum) and sees language like GM-Re. Now, the question is, what the hell does this mean?
Somebody who's been around for a long time, like me (and has played their fair share of Sonic Heroes, like me >_>) will recognise it without too much trouble. But in the interest of helping the new guys out, here's how it works:
Everything before the - symbol is an abbreviation of the level name (in this case, Grand Metropolis in Sonic Heroes). In cases where more than one level has the same abbreviation (eg. Metal Harbor and Meteor Herd) an additional letter can be added to remove the ambiguity, ie. MHa and MHe.
The first letter after the - symbol indicates the character (in this case, Team Rose). This works well enough, with one exception: in Sonic 06, all the characters start with S (Sonic, Shadow, Silver) and must again have an additional letter to remove ambiguity, but that messes with the third and final part a little.
As part of a legacy from the days when TSC was only about times, the default mode of thinking when you state a level-character combination is that it is being played for time. To indicate something else, add r for rings, s for scores (and in this case, Extra, you can use either e or x and the meaning is understood). As you can see, in the Sonic 06 instance above this presents a problem because you end up with something like FC-Sir. In this case it is advisable to put the r in brackets.
Finally, if two levels in separate games share an abbreviation (the obvious one being Casino Night/Carnival Night) then just add the game name at the end in brackets.
So, a couple of examples:
WC1 - Wild Canyon, mission 1, time, Sonic Adventure 2
DE-K - Death Egg, Knuckles, time, Sonic 2 (note Sonic 2 is implied - Sonic & Knuckles Death Egg has two acts)
TB2-Cs - Techno Base 2, Cream, score, Sonic Advance 2
CN2-S (S3) - Carnival Night 2, Sonic, time, Sonic 3
FiF-De - Final Fortress, Dark, extra, Sonic Heroes (to distinguish from Frog Forest)
TODO: list of level abbreviations
Basically, a newbie looks in the chatroom (or on the forum) and sees language like GM-Re. Now, the question is, what the hell does this mean?
Somebody who's been around for a long time, like me (and has played their fair share of Sonic Heroes, like me >_>) will recognise it without too much trouble. But in the interest of helping the new guys out, here's how it works:
Everything before the - symbol is an abbreviation of the level name (in this case, Grand Metropolis in Sonic Heroes). In cases where more than one level has the same abbreviation (eg. Metal Harbor and Meteor Herd) an additional letter can be added to remove the ambiguity, ie. MHa and MHe.
The first letter after the - symbol indicates the character (in this case, Team Rose). This works well enough, with one exception: in Sonic 06, all the characters start with S (Sonic, Shadow, Silver) and must again have an additional letter to remove ambiguity, but that messes with the third and final part a little.
As part of a legacy from the days when TSC was only about times, the default mode of thinking when you state a level-character combination is that it is being played for time. To indicate something else, add r for rings, s for scores (and in this case, Extra, you can use either e or x and the meaning is understood). As you can see, in the Sonic 06 instance above this presents a problem because you end up with something like FC-Sir. In this case it is advisable to put the r in brackets.
Finally, if two levels in separate games share an abbreviation (the obvious one being Casino Night/Carnival Night) then just add the game name at the end in brackets.
So, a couple of examples:
WC1 - Wild Canyon, mission 1, time, Sonic Adventure 2
DE-K - Death Egg, Knuckles, time, Sonic 2 (note Sonic 2 is implied - Sonic & Knuckles Death Egg has two acts)
TB2-Cs - Techno Base 2, Cream, score, Sonic Advance 2
CN2-S (S3) - Carnival Night 2, Sonic, time, Sonic 3
FiF-De - Final Fortress, Dark, extra, Sonic Heroes (to distinguish from Frog Forest)
TODO: list of level abbreviations
9
Leaderboard Disputes / ATTN: Thunderbolt
« on: April 07, 2009, 02:07:35 am »
Just a short notice to say that any proof of any of these times would be greatly appreciated.
I would also like to point out to the TSC general populace that I hate making these topics so cut it out. If you play nice... er... you get cake!
I would also like to point out to the TSC general populace that I hate making these topics so cut it out. If you play nice... er... you get cake!
10
Tournament Central / TSC Marathon #2!
« on: April 01, 2009, 09:28:03 pm »
OK, so I know this has been tried already. I have come to the conclusion that the reason it didn't take off is because RPG couldn't be trusted as an organiser... I mean, not even showing up to his own event? Also Miles's tirade turned a lot of people off trying again.
But that's all in the past now, I'm taking the reins. Marathon mkII will have a new organiser, and a new twist!
See, this will be a handicap race.
Based on the results of the last marathon, assorted single-game races, and sitewide ranking, some players will start ahead of others by varying degrees. The plan is to have as many people converging at the end of the race as possible to create high drama!
This also bypasses the issue with the last marathon... the start time. By staggering the start times, we can ensure that a repeat of the last marathon doesn't occur again.
As for timing, we've all got a four day break built into our calendars in a week's time, so it might be good to work somewhere within that. I dunno what everyone actually -does- for Easter but I think perhaps the Sunday evening (which works out to Monday on this side of the world) would work best? Give me some feedback here.
But that's all in the past now, I'm taking the reins. Marathon mkII will have a new organiser, and a new twist!
See, this will be a handicap race.
Based on the results of the last marathon, assorted single-game races, and sitewide ranking, some players will start ahead of others by varying degrees. The plan is to have as many people converging at the end of the race as possible to create high drama!
This also bypasses the issue with the last marathon... the start time. By staggering the start times, we can ensure that a repeat of the last marathon doesn't occur again.
As for timing, we've all got a four day break built into our calendars in a week's time, so it might be good to work somewhere within that. I dunno what everyone actually -does- for Easter but I think perhaps the Sunday evening (which works out to Monday on this side of the world) would work best? Give me some feedback here.
11
Leaderboard Disputes / ATTN: fireboy
« on: February 15, 2009, 01:30:22 am »
A few folks (including myself) would like an explanation of how this time goes down by 22 seconds. Especially by "following skylight's video".
Failure to supply at the very least, a strategy, will probably see this and your other Rush times removed in short order.
Failure to supply at the very least, a strategy, will probably see this and your other Rush times removed in short order.
12
Wikkity! / Ask anyone!
« on: January 21, 2009, 03:51:57 am »
Why bother with personalised topics when one centralised, easy-to-access topic is all you need? Simply dial 1800 ASK TSC (1800 275 873) and get all the answers you need from one of our trained, highly skilled, moderately sarcastic operators*!
* note: operators may not actually be sarcastic
* note: operators may not actually be sarcastic
13
News and Updates / And now for some good news!
« on: November 18, 2008, 12:50:21 am »
As many of you will be well aware, over the past year or two I've been using what cunning and guile I possess to try and make TSC a better place for the rest of you... and myself, too. I've already written up two news posts on the subject which you can look through the news forum if you're so inclined.
We're now up to about a year since I last did this, so it's once again time to go over the facts and draw some conclusions.
Here's this year's activity statistics:
November's incomplete, so ignore it. But even taking that away, and allowing for potential downtimes, it would seem that activity is going backwards. On the forum anyway.
A better measure would be statistics, since that's the part of the site that needs reviving, but I only have the amount submitted in the last week handy (376). I've seen periods where it gets as low as 250 though, which is definitely substantially lower than a year ago.
On the community side of things, though, TSC seems to be going better than it has in years! Why? I can only put it down to increased game playing! I'm not talking about Sonic, of course, I'm talking about our fads like Mafia and Settlers. This, in itself, seems to be a different means of achieving the end I detailed in my last such post: refueling our naturally competitive spirits through a different outlet. My outlet, of course, was the tournament structure which... is just lying idle, basically. I think it would be rash to draw a conclusion from this, but I would hypothesise that we're all just bored with Sonic right now. (Constant mediocre releases probably don't help in this regard.)
Nevertheless, I still have an idea to invoke a bit of competition! Here it is:
I (or someone else, but probably me) will start a topic with various games in it. Probably just the popular ones with heaps of charts to choose from. Every day (or maybe every two days, or maybe every week; this bit is very open to interpretation) I select a level on each of these games, and everyone plays it. I am particularly referring to the top-level players of each game playing it, of course, in order to bring the records down towards perfection. We've already seen from Paragod and that other guy on Final Rush how effective focusing on a single level can be. By formalising the process, we can hopefully bring the records down where they belong much quicker.
At the end of the day, the winner on that chart gets a point, and perhaps at the end of each month the leader on points gets an award for being awesome?
As usual, discuss. I'm eager to hear your thoughts.
We're now up to about a year since I last did this, so it's once again time to go over the facts and draw some conclusions.
Here's this year's activity statistics:
Code: [Select]
Monthly Summary New Topics New Posts New Members Most Online Page views
November 2008 29 540 15 22 77058
October 2008 49 829 15 27 131907
September 2008 55 1076 25 34 158155
August 2008 60 953 35 33 108713
July 2008 77 957 41 46 103356
June 2008 44 563 30 59 89758
May 2008 63 877 25 58 228222
April 2008 45 693 33 100 155656
March 2008 69 1121 27 108 139126
February 2008 85 756 33 29 126199
January 2008 96 1139 28 30 128415November's incomplete, so ignore it. But even taking that away, and allowing for potential downtimes, it would seem that activity is going backwards. On the forum anyway.
A better measure would be statistics, since that's the part of the site that needs reviving, but I only have the amount submitted in the last week handy (376). I've seen periods where it gets as low as 250 though, which is definitely substantially lower than a year ago.
On the community side of things, though, TSC seems to be going better than it has in years! Why? I can only put it down to increased game playing! I'm not talking about Sonic, of course, I'm talking about our fads like Mafia and Settlers. This, in itself, seems to be a different means of achieving the end I detailed in my last such post: refueling our naturally competitive spirits through a different outlet. My outlet, of course, was the tournament structure which... is just lying idle, basically. I think it would be rash to draw a conclusion from this, but I would hypothesise that we're all just bored with Sonic right now. (Constant mediocre releases probably don't help in this regard.)
Nevertheless, I still have an idea to invoke a bit of competition! Here it is:
I (or someone else, but probably me) will start a topic with various games in it. Probably just the popular ones with heaps of charts to choose from. Every day (or maybe every two days, or maybe every week; this bit is very open to interpretation) I select a level on each of these games, and everyone plays it. I am particularly referring to the top-level players of each game playing it, of course, in order to bring the records down towards perfection. We've already seen from Paragod and that other guy on Final Rush how effective focusing on a single level can be. By formalising the process, we can hopefully bring the records down where they belong much quicker.
At the end of the day, the winner on that chart gets a point, and perhaps at the end of each month the leader on points gets an award for being awesome?
As usual, discuss. I'm eager to hear your thoughts.
14
Wikkity! / itt MIKE'S WHIRLWIND TOUR OF AMERICA AND ENGLAND 2010
« on: September 09, 2008, 01:01:36 am »
Yes, that's right! I'd like to invite all of you to show me a part of your world for a day or two. Quick, I wanna book tickets before they get too expensive >_>
American itinerary:
Arrive (somewhere between Christmas and New Years)
MAGFest (Jan 1-4)
Meet people (more specifics coming when they confirm availabilities)
Depart (late January)
England itinerary:
Arrive (late January)
Meet people (availability pending)
Depart (some time in February)
American itinerary:
Arrive (somewhere between Christmas and New Years)
MAGFest (Jan 1-4)
Meet people (more specifics coming when they confirm availabilities)
Depart (late January)
England itinerary:
Arrive (late January)
Meet people (availability pending)
Depart (some time in February)
15
Ban List / sonicsuperstarprince [BANNED]
« on: September 07, 2008, 09:32:15 am »
All data relating to this ban follows below.
Date of ban: 7/9/08
IP: 71.66.235.200
Related users: N/A
Reason for banning: Clearly fake Circus Park times, poor attempt at explanation (see also this post)
Other evidence: N/A
Forum permission status: Currently active
Ban duration: Permanent
EDIT: Forgot you're meant to lock these topics immediately. Whoops. >_>
Date of ban: 7/9/08
IP: 71.66.235.200
Related users: N/A
Reason for banning: Clearly fake Circus Park times, poor attempt at explanation (see also this post)
Other evidence: N/A
Forum permission status: Currently active
Ban duration: Permanent
EDIT: Forgot you're meant to lock these topics immediately. Whoops. >_>
16
Ban List / silvermetal18 [BANNED]
« on: July 12, 2008, 12:28:04 pm »
All data related to this ban follows below.
Date of ban: 8/7/08
IP: 24.23.121.209
Related users: sasukesamurai01 (also banned)
Reason for banning: Unbelievable story surrounding GH2 14, which even if true would be against the rules. (see this topic for more information)
Other evidence: http://www.soniccenter.org/forum/index.php?topic=3518.msg36528#msg36528
Forum permission status: Banned for general stupidity (see this topic for more information). Had also been temporarily banned previously.
Ban duration: Permanent
Date of ban: 8/7/08
IP: 24.23.121.209
Related users: sasukesamurai01 (also banned)
Reason for banning: Unbelievable story surrounding GH2 14, which even if true would be against the rules. (see this topic for more information)
Other evidence: http://www.soniccenter.org/forum/index.php?topic=3518.msg36528#msg36528
Forum permission status: Banned for general stupidity (see this topic for more information). Had also been temporarily banned previously.
Ban duration: Permanent
17
Information Kiosk / TSC Timeline
« on: July 08, 2008, 10:10:22 am »
|-------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------|
23/10/03 8/7/05 8/7/08
TSC's beginning Great Downtime ends Today
WE MUST NEVER FORGET
23/10/03 8/7/05 8/7/08
TSC's beginning Great Downtime ends Today
WE MUST NEVER FORGET
18
Rules Revisions / Rules Committee topic
« on: June 15, 2008, 11:43:22 pm »
An idea I've been sitting on for some time is to compose a committee who would discuss rules issues, initially to rework the existing rules to make them consistent, but also to discuss new rulings as they should appear. Such a committee would have to have representatives from all kinds of games, so between the members there would be an understanding of everything that TSC covers.
I've thought about it for a while, and here are the five members I want on such a committee: SM, Stefan, Thorn, Douglas, and myself. Should some of the above not accept their positions, I have reserves in mind.
Any such decisions said committee makes will be posted in this topic. However, this forum should still be used to bring things to our attention.
I've thought about it for a while, and here are the five members I want on such a committee: SM, Stefan, Thorn, Douglas, and myself. Should some of the above not accept their positions, I have reserves in mind.
Any such decisions said committee makes will be posted in this topic. However, this forum should still be used to bring things to our attention.
19
Gaming and Grazing / Friend Code Megathread
« on: June 15, 2008, 01:47:09 am »
When posting be clear about what the code you're posting is for. ~Bui
(Okay, for some reason a lot of random posts all over the forums have just disappeared, including this first one.
Yay typing all this stuff again... :/
This is still a rough draftas I'm working on this on my lunch hour and don't really have much time to work on it. Maybe if I remember when I have more free time I'll format it better. This also means that everyone who edited this post directly instead of posting (including myself) had their codes deleted and their codes will not appear in the lists.
~Buizel)
To find your codes:
Wii System: From the Channel screen, click on the Wii Message Board button on the lower right. From this screen, click on the Create Message button, then click on the Address Book. The front of the Address Book shows your Wii Console Number.
Brawl: From the Select Mode screen (the main menu), click on Nintendo Wi-Fi connection and connect to Nintendo WFC. Once connected, click on the With Friends button, and then the Friend Roster button. Your friend code is listed on the top.
MKWii: Go to MKWii channel and at the top you should see your Mii along with your FC.
MKDS: From the main menu, press the Nintendo WFC button on the touch screen, then press the Friend Code button. Lastly, press the Confirm Friend Code button. Your friend code will be shown on the top screen.
SRA: Enter the main house on the map, go into the right-hand room, and check the arcade thing. Go to Nintendo WFC, then choose Friend Settings and Confirm Friend Code.
ACWW: Bring up the main menu. Go to the right-most tab (with the heart). Tap the key icon underneath the number 4.
AWDR: I don't know; I don't own it, so don't ask me.
Pokemon: Start your game, then go into your pack and go to the Key Items pocket. Find the Pal Pad and 'Use' it. Select <name>'s code where '<name>' is the name of your character.
SBK: From the main menu, choose Rankings. Your code will be in the top right corner of the screen.
Colors Wii: On the world map, go to the options satellite -> Go Back -> Go to the fourth one (Left to right.) -> select a finished level -> press update. Your friend code will be listed at the bottom.
Colors DS: Go to Versus mode >Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection > Friend Settings > Confirm Friend Code.
PBR: In Colosseum Mode, go to Nintendo WFC, then Friend Roster, and select [your character's name]'s Friend Code. (Note: First, you have to select "Wi-Fi Battle" and log on to Nintendo WFC at least once before you can find out what your Friend Code is.)
Wii System
Brawl
MKDS
MKWii
Diamond/Pearl/Platinum/HeartGold/SoulSilver/White/Black
SRA
Jump Ultimate Stars
SBK
Colors
Colors DS
DSi System
All-Stars Racing
3DS System
MK7
(Okay, for some reason a lot of random posts all over the forums have just disappeared, including this first one.
Yay typing all this stuff again... :/
This is still a rough draft
~Buizel)
To find your codes:
Wii System: From the Channel screen, click on the Wii Message Board button on the lower right. From this screen, click on the Create Message button, then click on the Address Book. The front of the Address Book shows your Wii Console Number.
Brawl: From the Select Mode screen (the main menu), click on Nintendo Wi-Fi connection and connect to Nintendo WFC. Once connected, click on the With Friends button, and then the Friend Roster button. Your friend code is listed on the top.
MKWii: Go to MKWii channel and at the top you should see your Mii along with your FC.
MKDS: From the main menu, press the Nintendo WFC button on the touch screen, then press the Friend Code button. Lastly, press the Confirm Friend Code button. Your friend code will be shown on the top screen.
SRA: Enter the main house on the map, go into the right-hand room, and check the arcade thing. Go to Nintendo WFC, then choose Friend Settings and Confirm Friend Code.
ACWW: Bring up the main menu. Go to the right-most tab (with the heart). Tap the key icon underneath the number 4.
AWDR: I don't know; I don't own it, so don't ask me.
Pokemon: Start your game, then go into your pack and go to the Key Items pocket. Find the Pal Pad and 'Use' it. Select <name>'s code where '<name>' is the name of your character.
SBK: From the main menu, choose Rankings. Your code will be in the top right corner of the screen.
Colors Wii: On the world map, go to the options satellite -> Go Back -> Go to the fourth one (Left to right.) -> select a finished level -> press update. Your friend code will be listed at the bottom.
Colors DS: Go to Versus mode >Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection > Friend Settings > Confirm Friend Code.
PBR: In Colosseum Mode, go to Nintendo WFC, then Friend Roster, and select [your character's name]'s Friend Code. (Note: First, you have to select "Wi-Fi Battle" and log on to Nintendo WFC at least once before you can find out what your Friend Code is.)
Wii System
Code: [Select]
Cruizer 4780-2634-4898-9225
donnashowl 5550-7702-4715-0247
Groudon 8558-0311-8581-3221
ieatatsonic 2841-0437-0466-8136
Manic593 5010-0408-4384-3388
Omega 4584-8267-3353-5226
Selphos 5986-4732-0443-3491
Venom 2775-6255-8146-1138
Brawl
Code: [Select]
Auriman1 4854-8500-5866
DBG 0388-0960-2790
EngiNerd 5284-1308-7929
Groudon 3867-2090-7437
ieatatsonic 3136-6275-3875
Omega 3652-1420-8352
PPA 0602-7714-3152
Selphos 2793-4722-3908
SonicDX17 0861-9100-8544
MKDS
Code: [Select]
Bertin 468212-676352
Cruizer 021605-826011
Uninspired 223424-353991
MKWii
Code: [Select]
Auriman1 5327-2965-3671
Bertin 3995-7481-6392
ieatatsonic 1118-0919-7926
Manic593 3311-0150-4317
Quartz 1806-5169-1067
SonicDX17 3524-8136-9185
Diamond/Pearl/Platinum/HeartGold/SoulSilver/White/Black
Code: [Select]
Bertin 3481-4791-0616 (HG)
Cruizer 2965-0030-6970 (D)
Cruizer 4555-9541-2425 (W)
DBG 0217-3561-0770 (HG)
DBG 1591-7304-3520 (Pt)
donnashowl 1118-6928-7513 (P)
FKE 4983-1403-0610 (D)
FKE 1720-3067-3860 (SS)
IsisDazs 0346-2061-0856 (HG)
SonicAD 0045-3984-6026 (Pt)
SRA
Code: [Select]
ChaoRC 498351-417334
Cruizer 322278-373387
Jump Ultimate Stars
Code: [Select]
ieatatsonic 3824-4628-8212
Uninspired 5455-5141-5534
SBK
Code: [Select]
Cruizer 0989-7577-1775
Groudon 2578-9482-8282
Colors
Code: [Select]
FKE 1549-1683-3493
Groudon 3868-5083-1821
SonicDX17 1420-3838-0372
Colors DS
Code: [Select]
Cruizer 3052-4903-4359
DSi System
Code: [Select]
Cruizer 2018-9432-1473-3000
All-Stars Racing
Code: [Select]
SonicDX17 0303-5864-1235
3DS System
Code: [Select]
CF 2423-3416-8075
Cruizer 2105-9092-9779
CyanRyan 3909-7514-5218
DBG 4167-5036-7995
FKE 0817-3763-0276
Groudon 1762-3458-3325
Psymar 5300-8455-9676
Selphos 3582-9743-0056
THC98 0130-2051-5520
Werey 5086-2384-1021
MK7
Code: [Select]
Cruizer 04-3250-3325-7068
20
Beef / The last straw
« on: May 07, 2008, 12:56:55 am »
So a couple of hours ago I walked into the chatroom to find TSC was down. Further probing showed that Stefan had made a statement about the current position TSC was in (something I have agreed with, and tried to put across, for some time, though Stefan was far more eloquent), and in response Gerbil pulled the site down.
While I would say that this is a slightly extreme response, I don't necessarily disagree with the action taken. It's what happened after that that concerns me.
I tried to calm everyone down and talk through the issues. Stefan had accused Gerbil of not caring for the integrity of the site, and in turn Gerbil had accused Stefan of having no understanding of the work he has to do behind the scenes (which is correct, I have admin powers and I still don't understand). What became apparent over the next ten minutes is that nobody but myself, Stefan and Paraxade (of those active) had any interest in working the issues out.
This is my concern. Every time an issue is brought up, I have tried to get it resolved as quickly as possible. An example I can easily cite is the issue of the rules, which have been problematically worded for some time. Nobody was interested in working through that, either. This isn't the TSC I remember.
If this is our brave new world, where problems are simply left to fester rather than be addressed, then I want no part of it. Yes, I understand there are external demands on our time, but I will not sit idly by and watch our self-destruction. TSC deserves better than this.
And one last important point, because I sincerely hope that something constructive will come of this rather than it being hijacked: Note that I am not talking about what Gerbil does with the coding or anything like that. I am talking about the lack of a conflict resolution process here.
That is all.
EDIT: removed myself from admin position.
While I would say that this is a slightly extreme response, I don't necessarily disagree with the action taken. It's what happened after that that concerns me.
I tried to calm everyone down and talk through the issues. Stefan had accused Gerbil of not caring for the integrity of the site, and in turn Gerbil had accused Stefan of having no understanding of the work he has to do behind the scenes (which is correct, I have admin powers and I still don't understand). What became apparent over the next ten minutes is that nobody but myself, Stefan and Paraxade (of those active) had any interest in working the issues out.
This is my concern. Every time an issue is brought up, I have tried to get it resolved as quickly as possible. An example I can easily cite is the issue of the rules, which have been problematically worded for some time. Nobody was interested in working through that, either. This isn't the TSC I remember.
If this is our brave new world, where problems are simply left to fester rather than be addressed, then I want no part of it. Yes, I understand there are external demands on our time, but I will not sit idly by and watch our self-destruction. TSC deserves better than this.
And one last important point, because I sincerely hope that something constructive will come of this rather than it being hijacked: Note that I am not talking about what Gerbil does with the coding or anything like that. I am talking about the lack of a conflict resolution process here.
That is all.
EDIT: removed myself from admin position.
21
News and Updates / The end of an era
« on: April 23, 2008, 10:57:30 am »
My last top ten is finished. In the interest of not spoiling anything, I'll make you click the link for yourself to find out.
Copied from a later post in the topic:
Some special thanks are in order. Firstly to RPG, who, even though he didn't always fulfil his quota, on time, has persevered with what was essentially my idea, generally agreed with my decisions (sometimes at the expense of the validity of the ranking itself), and taken on a share of the work that could reasonably have been thrown back on me, as it was this time.
Secondly, as already mentioned, to Rolken, without whom this idea would never have come to fruition because we'd all still be competing with each other by proxy.
Third, to SM who steadfastly corrected every single mistake I made during the course of the Top Tens' lifetime. And there were lots of them, particularly in this iteration because of the lack of a time machine.
And finally, to everyone who contributed to the fun of the Top Tens every six months by speculating, posting random gibberish in the topic, or just waiting with bated breath for the next selection.
I'll be taking "applications" for the right to "host" the next round of Top Tens for the fifth anniversary whenever you feel like enquiring. Until then, have fun and keep on trucking!
~yse
Copied from a later post in the topic:
Some special thanks are in order. Firstly to RPG, who, even though he didn't always fulfil his quota, on time, has persevered with what was essentially my idea, generally agreed with my decisions (sometimes at the expense of the validity of the ranking itself), and taken on a share of the work that could reasonably have been thrown back on me, as it was this time.
Secondly, as already mentioned, to Rolken, without whom this idea would never have come to fruition because we'd all still be competing with each other by proxy.
Third, to SM who steadfastly corrected every single mistake I made during the course of the Top Tens' lifetime. And there were lots of them, particularly in this iteration because of the lack of a time machine.
And finally, to everyone who contributed to the fun of the Top Tens every six months by speculating, posting random gibberish in the topic, or just waiting with bated breath for the next selection.
I'll be taking "applications" for the right to "host" the next round of Top Tens for the fifth anniversary whenever you feel like enquiring. Until then, have fun and keep on trucking!
~yse
22
News and Updates / The changing of the guard
« on: March 30, 2008, 02:50:26 am »
Ever since the inception of the Sitewide Rankings, and probably for some time prior, I have been proud to sit atop the tree as the most consistent player at TSC. I say that because I have encountered some especially fierce competition in my time here, and I do not by any stretch consider myself the best player at TSC in the face of that.
Today, we honour a new champion. One who has been put through all kinds of persecution: for being black, for using the standard controller to play Guitar Hero, for defending Sonic 06, for failing...
And yet, while staying true to who he is, he is the new champion. Stand up and cheer, even if it's for my demise.
Congratulations, DarkspinesSonic.
Today, we honour a new champion. One who has been put through all kinds of persecution: for being black, for using the standard controller to play Guitar Hero, for defending Sonic 06, for failing...
And yet, while staying true to who he is, he is the new champion. Stand up and cheer, even if it's for my demise.
Congratulations, DarkspinesSonic.
23
Competition Central / This has to be some sort of record.
« on: March 29, 2008, 07:28:53 am »
http://www.soniccenter.org/members/mike89
22 games, all 60% and above.
Also itt we discuss cool stuff in the rankings like that.
22 games, all 60% and above.
Also itt we discuss cool stuff in the rankings like that.
24
Competition Central / ITT your epic rivalries
« on: March 22, 2008, 09:03:44 am »
With the Top Tens coming up soon, I thought it might be a good idea to revisit this particular iteration.
Over the site's life there have been a number of truly great rivalries. Ten are in the list above, and more have emerged in the past year or so. And as I have said on many occasions, it is this part of TSC that is so compelling. Anyway, today a new rivalry emerged: Me and that upstart SDM. (Strictly speaking this rivalry is not "new", but that story has been told enough times that it doesn't need retelling.)
The war was not waged on the traditional battlefields, though. Instead, the battle was staged on two fronts. First, to the card table for a spot of Magic. SDM's playing a white/black control deck that couldn't get off the ground in game 1, and I'm playing Those Fucking Clerics (props to RPG for the name). So I offer a game 2 and the tension begins.
Early on, I play a few clerics including Dark Supplicant so as to threaten to bring Scion of Darkness out. Unfortunately, SDM's Dark Confidant pulls up Wrath so I dare not try. He wipes the board with Damnation instead, so I know he's got one spare.
Conveniently at this stage, I drew into a fifth land for Liliana Vess. However I've got no creatures and he has one, so building up to 8 is not going to be easy. After two more turns I forced him to discard his Wrath though.
Next turn, however, I have a decision to make. I've got two creatures in play (a Zombie token and a Sleeper Agent that SDM passed me) and I can't defend all of SDM's advances. Instead of trying to hold out until I hit 8 (which wasn't guaranteed at any rate), I change tack, attacking for 5 (a move later countered by his Children of Korlis) and using Liliana to search for Patriarch's Bidding. SDM had his own clerics in the deck so it ended up that we both had full strength lineups after the Bidding, but then SDM pulled out another Wrath (after sacrificing two Martyr of Sands for 6 life each) and we started again. The difference, though, was that I had Rotlung Reanimator in play, giving me a net gain of five Zombies. SDM's next move was to play a reclamation spell, bringing back a Children of Korlis and two Sleeper Agents (which went to me).
So as it stands, it's 21-7 to SDM. It's about to be 21-3 because of the Sleeper Agents. This effectively means I have to win in one turn. Luckily, I have a lot of firepower at my disposal - 7 creatures to 1. It's still not enough damage to win though. What do I do?
I have three cards in hand:
-Ambition's Cost - would do wonders for my card position, but would also lose me the game
-Corrupt - take out Children of Korlis and swing for 16, leaving it in my favour at 10-5? Tempting, but SDM could topdeck just about anything that could screw me over.
-Coat of Arms - I sought a clarification on whether SDM could somehow stack Children of Korlis's ability for any good. Apparently not, and this last play won the game.
One of the most epic Magic games I have ever been involved in. It took something like 45 minutes from start to finish.
And from there on to Sonic 3! SDM picks Knuckles and I pick Tails. The ploy works on Balloon Park (I don't know why, it just looked like SDM couldn't find the gap) and Chrome Gadget, despite four laps of spectacularly bad racing. Desert Palace, to date my one stronghold against SDM, fell just as Tails did through the sand bar. And so it came down to Endless Mine to decide proceedings.
The result was never really in question: SDM racked up 40"84, with Knuckles, with the lag. Far too good.
What next for this emerging rivalry? Stay tuned!
And yes, this entire topic is just an opportunity to show off the Magic game >_>
Over the site's life there have been a number of truly great rivalries. Ten are in the list above, and more have emerged in the past year or so. And as I have said on many occasions, it is this part of TSC that is so compelling. Anyway, today a new rivalry emerged: Me and that upstart SDM. (Strictly speaking this rivalry is not "new", but that story has been told enough times that it doesn't need retelling.)
The war was not waged on the traditional battlefields, though. Instead, the battle was staged on two fronts. First, to the card table for a spot of Magic. SDM's playing a white/black control deck that couldn't get off the ground in game 1, and I'm playing Those Fucking Clerics (props to RPG for the name). So I offer a game 2 and the tension begins.
Early on, I play a few clerics including Dark Supplicant so as to threaten to bring Scion of Darkness out. Unfortunately, SDM's Dark Confidant pulls up Wrath so I dare not try. He wipes the board with Damnation instead, so I know he's got one spare.
Conveniently at this stage, I drew into a fifth land for Liliana Vess. However I've got no creatures and he has one, so building up to 8 is not going to be easy. After two more turns I forced him to discard his Wrath though.
Next turn, however, I have a decision to make. I've got two creatures in play (a Zombie token and a Sleeper Agent that SDM passed me) and I can't defend all of SDM's advances. Instead of trying to hold out until I hit 8 (which wasn't guaranteed at any rate), I change tack, attacking for 5 (a move later countered by his Children of Korlis) and using Liliana to search for Patriarch's Bidding. SDM had his own clerics in the deck so it ended up that we both had full strength lineups after the Bidding, but then SDM pulled out another Wrath (after sacrificing two Martyr of Sands for 6 life each) and we started again. The difference, though, was that I had Rotlung Reanimator in play, giving me a net gain of five Zombies. SDM's next move was to play a reclamation spell, bringing back a Children of Korlis and two Sleeper Agents (which went to me).
So as it stands, it's 21-7 to SDM. It's about to be 21-3 because of the Sleeper Agents. This effectively means I have to win in one turn. Luckily, I have a lot of firepower at my disposal - 7 creatures to 1. It's still not enough damage to win though. What do I do?
I have three cards in hand:
-Ambition's Cost - would do wonders for my card position, but would also lose me the game
-Corrupt - take out Children of Korlis and swing for 16, leaving it in my favour at 10-5? Tempting, but SDM could topdeck just about anything that could screw me over.
-Coat of Arms - I sought a clarification on whether SDM could somehow stack Children of Korlis's ability for any good. Apparently not, and this last play won the game.
One of the most epic Magic games I have ever been involved in. It took something like 45 minutes from start to finish.
And from there on to Sonic 3! SDM picks Knuckles and I pick Tails. The ploy works on Balloon Park (I don't know why, it just looked like SDM couldn't find the gap) and Chrome Gadget, despite four laps of spectacularly bad racing. Desert Palace, to date my one stronghold against SDM, fell just as Tails did through the sand bar. And so it came down to Endless Mine to decide proceedings.
The result was never really in question: SDM racked up 40"84, with Knuckles, with the lag. Far too good.
What next for this emerging rivalry? Stay tuned!
And yes, this entire topic is just an opportunity to show off the Magic game >_>
26
Leaderboard Disputes / ATTN: ericthenau
« on: February 01, 2008, 09:37:04 am »
Alright. So these Flying Battery 2 ring counts.
You've had me and SkyLights stumped for ages.
We've tried everything. Anything and everything we could think of. I even tried starting the level with six emeralds. No dice!
But tonight eredani told us you put up a guide. So I went through it. These conflicting steps appear:
I actually came up with a theoretical way to do this. If you started a level with six emeralds, picked up the seventh, and continued on your merry way, you could theoretically get more rings and avoid the lack of flight/glide issue.
You don't do this though. you don't even go near the only other large ring in the stage!
I'm going to have to call BS on the legitimacy of these two.
You've had me and SkyLights stumped for ages.
We've tried everything. Anything and everything we could think of. I even tried starting the level with six emeralds. No dice!
But tonight eredani told us you put up a guide. So I went through it. These conflicting steps appear:
Quote from: guide
Go left until you are under the platform then fly up to the platform with Tails, or climb up to the platform with Knuckles.
...
When you see a passage going left, land on the passage then go left to get through a secret passage and collect a large ring for 50 rings.
I actually came up with a theoretical way to do this. If you started a level with six emeralds, picked up the seventh, and continued on your merry way, you could theoretically get more rings and avoid the lack of flight/glide issue.
You don't do this though. you don't even go near the only other large ring in the stage!
I'm going to have to call BS on the legitimacy of these two.
27
Competition Central / Future Top 20
« on: January 08, 2008, 07:14:30 am »
Another idea stolen from the Mario Kart community, we're going to predict what the top 20 sitewide will look like at the end of the year (or perhaps we'll make it the end of June by which time everyone will be bored with the concept?).
For reference, the current list resides here.
Scoring will take place as follows: If you manage a correct guess, its 0 points. One away is one point, two away is two points and so on. Add these scores up for all 20 eventual top 20-ers and you have your final score. Lowest score wins, of course.
And a key point: if anyone new joins the top 20, they'll be disregarded in the final count. So if someone reaches 12th position that wasn't a member at the end of January, everyone below them will be moved up one place for the purposes of this contest.
My prediction:
#1: mike89
#2: Thorn
#3: DarkspinesSonic
#4: SkyLights
#5: RPGnutter
#6: Shadow Jacky
#7: yoshifan
#8: Quartz
#9: eredani
#10: sdj6707
#11: Judgement
#12: Auriman1
#13: sonicam
#14: maggot
#15: smizzla
#16: GerbilSoft
#17: douglas
#18: sonichero
#19: Jawzun
#20: SprintGod
You have until the end of January to finalise your lists, then I'm saving them so there's no point changing them.
There's an award in it for the winner, too! Get predicting!
For reference, the current list resides here.
Scoring will take place as follows: If you manage a correct guess, its 0 points. One away is one point, two away is two points and so on. Add these scores up for all 20 eventual top 20-ers and you have your final score. Lowest score wins, of course.
And a key point: if anyone new joins the top 20, they'll be disregarded in the final count. So if someone reaches 12th position that wasn't a member at the end of January, everyone below them will be moved up one place for the purposes of this contest.
My prediction:
#1: mike89
#2: Thorn
#3: DarkspinesSonic
#4: SkyLights
#5: RPGnutter
#6: Shadow Jacky
#7: yoshifan
#8: Quartz
#9: eredani
#10: sdj6707
#11: Judgement
#12: Auriman1
#13: sonicam
#14: maggot
#15: smizzla
#16: GerbilSoft
#17: douglas
#18: sonichero
#19: Jawzun
#20: SprintGod
You have until the end of January to finalise your lists, then I'm saving them so there's no point changing them.
There's an award in it for the winner, too! Get predicting!
28
News and Updates / Where are we, where are we going?
« on: December 20, 2007, 07:43:58 am »
About six months ago there was a pretty serious discussion about the current state of TSC. It was generally agreed that TSC was in decline for a number of reasons, but it was similarly agreed that the decline was not terminal.
After six months, though, seems as good a time as any to review what's happened since then. It came up in IRC, and I made my views known there, and will do so again here. So here we go, a summary as best I can remember:
1. Tournaments got underway.
Starting out as an experiment to determine a format, I started a tournament and Thorn followed suit. I'm not sure this was the best idea, to have two tournaments running concurrently, but at the same time I could never have envisaged Thorn's tournament running for over three months. In terms of our stated objectives, however, it certainly did nothing to bring in new members, and it didn't really prove much we didn't already know.
2. Gerbil took a lot of control over coding aspects of the site.
Since this subtle transfer of power, a lot more has got done on TSC. This is not a slam at Rolken (who of course has a hot wife and therefore more important things to attend to more often than not), and indeed Gerbil's work has created its fair share of downtime, but on the whole getting things done both on-the-fly and in a reasonable time frame has been an improvement.
3. New members have remained steady.
While this seems okay on the surface, it must be said that the proportion of new members who have no intention but to cheat the system seems higher than usual. Or maybe I'm just taking into account that SS94 has registered no less than ten (yes, ten!) accounts. I've stayed a bit detached from this as I have returned to competing, but SM seems to have deleted more stuff than usual.
4. Activity is declining.
If you looked through New Stats, you wouldn't pick this, but that can be attributed in large part to Thorn, who has had the whole site in uproar against DsS for the last week. And it worked, activity is twice usual this week. Maybe I should make topics like that.
However, the prevailing trend is definitely down, and nobody I've talked to about it has any ideas about how to reverse this, without resorting to drawing in large quantities of the "undesirables" (you know the kind of people I'm talking about).
5. Sonic games still suck.
Most accentuated by the fact that Rivals 2 came out last month, and nobody seems to acknowledge it or else forget that it exists. (Which, on recent form, is probably the sensible course of action.) This is a key contributing factor to drawing in more of the "undesirables" spoken of earlier, because it's hard to find an intelligent person who can stand the drivel that Sega's churning out these days.
And I haven't even started on the largest problem, at least for me: the place is simply no fun to be around any more.
I do not deny that I have met some pretty amazing people through this site. I need not name them because they know who they are. (I will, however, put genus out of his misery by suggesting that he is not one of them.)
But for every witty remark or cool personality I come across, there are three of cynicism, mistreatment of newbies, arrogance, ignorance, or just plain annoyance. It is the kind of atmosphere that is self-destructive, and stands in the way of our goals.
I have always said that our diversity makes our community great, and I will stand by that, with one caveat: a certain degree of intelligence and common sense. That was what I loved about TSC... and that part of it seems to have steadily drained away.
I don't know what else to say. There's not really much else, I suppose.
After six months, though, seems as good a time as any to review what's happened since then. It came up in IRC, and I made my views known there, and will do so again here. So here we go, a summary as best I can remember:
1. Tournaments got underway.
Starting out as an experiment to determine a format, I started a tournament and Thorn followed suit. I'm not sure this was the best idea, to have two tournaments running concurrently, but at the same time I could never have envisaged Thorn's tournament running for over three months. In terms of our stated objectives, however, it certainly did nothing to bring in new members, and it didn't really prove much we didn't already know.
2. Gerbil took a lot of control over coding aspects of the site.
Since this subtle transfer of power, a lot more has got done on TSC. This is not a slam at Rolken (who of course has a hot wife and therefore more important things to attend to more often than not), and indeed Gerbil's work has created its fair share of downtime, but on the whole getting things done both on-the-fly and in a reasonable time frame has been an improvement.
3. New members have remained steady.
While this seems okay on the surface, it must be said that the proportion of new members who have no intention but to cheat the system seems higher than usual. Or maybe I'm just taking into account that SS94 has registered no less than ten (yes, ten!) accounts. I've stayed a bit detached from this as I have returned to competing, but SM seems to have deleted more stuff than usual.
4. Activity is declining.
If you looked through New Stats, you wouldn't pick this, but that can be attributed in large part to Thorn, who has had the whole site in uproar against DsS for the last week. And it worked, activity is twice usual this week. Maybe I should make topics like that.
However, the prevailing trend is definitely down, and nobody I've talked to about it has any ideas about how to reverse this, without resorting to drawing in large quantities of the "undesirables" (you know the kind of people I'm talking about).
5. Sonic games still suck.
Most accentuated by the fact that Rivals 2 came out last month, and nobody seems to acknowledge it or else forget that it exists. (Which, on recent form, is probably the sensible course of action.) This is a key contributing factor to drawing in more of the "undesirables" spoken of earlier, because it's hard to find an intelligent person who can stand the drivel that Sega's churning out these days.
And I haven't even started on the largest problem, at least for me: the place is simply no fun to be around any more.
I do not deny that I have met some pretty amazing people through this site. I need not name them because they know who they are. (I will, however, put genus out of his misery by suggesting that he is not one of them.)
But for every witty remark or cool personality I come across, there are three of cynicism, mistreatment of newbies, arrogance, ignorance, or just plain annoyance. It is the kind of atmosphere that is self-destructive, and stands in the way of our goals.
I have always said that our diversity makes our community great, and I will stand by that, with one caveat: a certain degree of intelligence and common sense. That was what I loved about TSC... and that part of it seems to have steadily drained away.
I don't know what else to say. There's not really much else, I suppose.
29
Leaderboard Disputes / ATTN: mew22
« on: December 17, 2007, 09:39:30 pm »
Among your current stats are the following which have been identified as fake:
Sonic Rush: Two of your six submissions
Sonic Adventure 2: 4 of your boss submissions
Sonic R: At least three (possibly up to five) out of eight submissions
Explanation requested.
Sonic Rush: Two of your six submissions
Sonic Adventure 2: 4 of your boss submissions
Sonic R: At least three (possibly up to five) out of eight submissions
Explanation requested.
30
Rules Revisions / Sonic 2 GG - Act 3s
« on: December 06, 2007, 01:48:29 am »
Having just completed my TAS of this game it occurred to me that the old proposal to add act 3s to the charts was never dealt with. There's two options here: either the time or the score can be added.
Some notes:
* There's no rings in any act 3, and Sky High 3 is the only act 3 with enemies in it
* The Game Gear version hides the timer when you get to the boss, but the time can be derived (down to the second until you reach 1 minute) from the time bonus. There's only one act 3 (Gimmick Mt.) where it's impossible to beat one minute.
With this in mind, track times, scores, or both? I can't see much merit to both but I'm interested to hear your thoughts.
Some notes:
* There's no rings in any act 3, and Sky High 3 is the only act 3 with enemies in it
* The Game Gear version hides the timer when you get to the boss, but the time can be derived (down to the second until you reach 1 minute) from the time bonus. There's only one act 3 (Gimmick Mt.) where it's impossible to beat one minute.
With this in mind, track times, scores, or both? I can't see much merit to both but I'm interested to hear your thoughts.
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