User:Durango/reviewAugust12

Yay reviews!

Thanks a ton to everyone who took time out to be a part of this Very Special One-Year Anniversary Review Session!

Here we go...

'001 Haven't had the pleasure of seeing one of your TPs in ages. Partially my online times, but it does feel as though they are less common than they used to be. This is a shame as they were always enjoyable, hopefully whatever is keeping you busy IRL lets up a bit (unless it is a good thing, in which case well... enjoying your RL is more important than running TPs right?).'

Anyway, hopefully see you IC sometime, and hope to see more TPs from you.

Yeah. Here's the scoop with my online times. I work evenings. :( It used to be a fairly manageable schedule that switched up between daytime/evening workloads, but since being promoted back in March or so, I've been constantly on evenings, and days off are usually spent catching up. More on this as we go, as it's a common theme...

'002 Okay, this is a tricky one. On the one hand, I completely love you. I pretty much hold you responsible for holding the mush together last year when the rest of staff seemed content to sit in their little bubble and play NPC soldiers with each other, you were the only guy who got out there with the actual players, and ran scenes. You saved the MUSH Durango, well done! Every scene you've run is pretty much gold and you are an absolute joy to play with.'

'That said, you really haven't been about the past six months or so at all. I do think that is a huge pity, stuff that's going on has been some of the most vibrant and exciting that I've seen, and you really should be a part of it. Don't be 'one of those guys' Durango! Rediscover your love, go and be rockin! I saw you were a great help in the scene on Junk the other week, lets see more like that!'

For the first paragraph...thanks. I have to note that many current staff were on during that period, and holding this place together was much more of a group effort than it might have even seemed at times; as Galvablitzwing mentioned in his last review, there are always more hands on the wheel than the one seen driving. That aside, it's always reassuring to hear that work hasn't gone unnoticed. Even then, I have the dread feeling that I've been coasting on past laurels, and that's something that I'm hoping to rectify.

As far as the second paragraph...I hope that no one has gotten the impression that my love for this place is gone or diminished. In fact, it's my love that keeps me logging on at random-ass hours, even when I can't be around for scenes. It's my love for this place that leads me to do stupid stuff like log on raw telnet from my work (at a restaurant!) to make a background pose at the Olympics, just so I can feel like I'm not missing out on the awesomeness that is 2k5. This place has gotten me through more than any of you will ever know. The love is very much still there... I just gotta find a way to show it...

'003 I've always loved you, Durango. I miss the TNFs, but the Muffin Man? Not so much. I believe in a balance between silly and serious, but The Muffin Man was too wacky, too surreal, even for once a year. It felt the way I imagine an acid trip would. Have you thought about resurrecting the TNFs or introducing another scheduled kind of scene?'

Muffin Man... yeah, this year wasn't my best work. It was a little more thought out than it should've been, but not nearly as thought out as it should've been if I was going to think it out. As for wacky vs. serious, Muffinage has never been intended to be anything but just that. I even gave fair warning on +rp-coordination. ;) So I'll apologize if I misrepresented, but the once-a-year Muffinage is my little indulgence in what really goes on inside of my head. I try to shy away from that level of crazy for the rest of my work.

TNFs...I miss TNF, too :(. In response, check back with review 001...I have no regular schedule anymore, sadly. It makes TNF very, very difficult. At one point the idea was that I'd orchestrate it behind the scenes and make sure that someone ran something on a scheduled night, but then, lo and behold, it was kind of rendered moot by a solid six months of kick-assery on the part of the rest of TPstaff. There were plenty of weeks where I couldn't have fit a TNF in edgewise with a crowbar and an atom bomb. Initially, TNF was instituted as a sort of guarantee, a way to make sure that something was going on that people could look forward to, even as staff reshuffled and TPs were backburnered. Now that TPstaff is at full-tilt, I'm not sure TNF is needed. Feel free to tell me I'm utterly, utterly wrong, and we'll see what we can do as a staff. :)

'004 I really hate to give a negative review... ...my parents always taught me if I didn't have anything nice to say... ...But I am unsure what Durango has done as far as advancing TP's or anything else. I usually just see the alts connect shortly, then disconnect after five minutes. As for Durango, I can't really say. I haven't seen enough of the admin to give a fair account of their going ons of TP and whatnot. So if this review has any point whatsoever, it's more active time for Durango.;)'

Negative? That's not negative. That's observant. The alts don't stick around if I'm not in an RP mood because I don't want to deal with the chan spam and clutter WHO with idlemonsters. And yeah. You haven't seen much from me. This is the truth. Other than the lauded/hated Muffin Man sequel, I've been fairly limited to supporting roles, such as the scene on Junk last week and other such appearances. This is my MO anymore; nights when I find myself free, I log on. If nothing's going on, I run something, otherwise, I try and help out as much as I can. It's not much, I know. I'm working on a way to make better use of the times I can be on. A general note in my defense, because I just thought about it: I've been averaging about 10-20 hours a week on 2k5. Unfortunately, most of that has been in off-peak hours. This is no excuse for my lack of involvement. Now, how to use that off peak time...hrmm..

'005 Durango, you're always fun to talk to/RP with. I know you don't get a lot of online time, but I can't hold it against you because you do pop up once in a while and when you are on, you rock. I have one suggestion for you which is to temp chars like crazy. You've been good at RPing any FC I've ever seen you as, and DC once was talking about having TPstaff temp characters to get them exposed and 'flesh out' the IC world, and maybe even get people interested in them. I can't thin kof anyone better than you to do this. Anyway, as far as TPstaff stuff, your TPs are fun for everyone and original (in that they're different than what's currently going on not that they're something that's never been done before, HELLO MUFFIN MAN ;). That's everything we could ask for in a TP. I also like how you're a calming influence and always willing to listen to our moaning...not that you can always do anything about it but it's nice that you listen. :)'

One vote for, one vote against the Muffin Man! It's a draw!

As for temping FCs... I love FCs, because they are all giant balls of potential just waiting for their voiceactor to be replaced with a soul. I'd love to be a part of whatever Charstaff dreams up about getting temps out onto the board. I'll talk to them about it. Thanks for the kind words on my characterizations.. I'm an actor/director/playwright by trade. I try and use all of those skills when engaging a character on 2k5; sometimes it works better than others. I loved my stint as Blaster, I just rarely have the ICtimes needed to sustain having an FC of my very own :(

As far as listening goes...I see that as my primary contribution over the last few months, and one that I hope can continue. I am always available via page/channel/or even @Mail if I'm not on, and I do take things to heart and try and solve them, I'm not just listening to provide an ear (although I understand how beneficial even that can be sometimes).

'006 Durango, I've enjoyed RPing with you lately and overall you're a great addition to the staff. My only complaint is that I felt the recent muffin man TP was seriously out there in terms of silliness and felt very, very out of place. On the other hand, you were pretty fun to have help Wreck-Gar out during that Junkion Gladiators scene. So my best suggestion is to try to limit the extreme wackiness stuff and try focus on some more meaningful TPs with just a hint of humor to them, nothing so over the top that it feels like we're going against the theme.'

Aww..2 against Muffin Man :(. I'll admit it was out of place. It's kinda supposed to be. Think of it like those times when Marvel would randomly send a UK storyline instead of a US storyline, and you're the eight year old kid going "WTF, mate? Who's this giant red robot and what is he doing in my continuity?" They're escapes. Once a year, and I try to do them in such a way that they don't affect anyone who doesn't want to be a part of them.

If anyone ever has a bottle of scotch and a few hours to kill, I can explain, in detail, how I've worked the Muffin Man into theme. The legwork is all there, despite its apparent wackiness. I am a huge fan of theme.. in my time on TPstaff, I've moved from being to the far-wacky on theme to kind of being a centrist leaning on the side of conservatism, not so much by my own shift in ideals but in the shift of the overall makeup and focus of our staff. I'm okay with this. Theme is what keeps the MUSH together through years and years of shifting admin, plotlines, character base and real world contexts. It is the core of the MUSH, more so, I'd say, than any other single part of the experience. I think we all had a bad taste in our mouths about theme back when the first birthpangs of the 'newer' way of doing things were being felt, but now that the baby's here and wailing away, I'm all for returning to a little tighter understanding of what our theme is and the makeup of the world in which our giant space robots with lasers live. I think we can do this without losing any of our current momentum, and, honestly, if theme is applied correctly, I believe it can drive forward ideas rather than holding them back. It should not be a roadblock, but a modifier--

Theme should not be the hell into which ideas are sent to die, but rather the refining fire in which they are molded into something greater.

-- Muffins included.

Because they're delicious.

p.s. I loved that Junkion Gladiator scene. Sheer brilliance on Cliff's part. I'm honored to have gotten to be a part of it.

'007 While I've not seen much in the way of plottage aside from the recent Muffin Man sequel from last year, I'm sure that there's plenty of stuff going on behind the scenes that we, as players, don't get to see -- speaking from experience, having been TPStaff last year, myself. I've been rather impressed with seeing you out and about in RP lately, though, so I suppose that means all is good.'

There is, in fact, something going on behind the scenes...woooOOOooOOOoo. Expect it to arrive after the Olympics. (Oddly, you've all seen the first parts of it, already! Over the course of MONTHS! It's MyStErIoUs like that.)

Behind the scenes, I've been doing a little bit of the legwork for Hazard's new combat system, essentially going line by line and checking the globals on the MUSH for compatability and/or obsolescence. I, along with Airwolf, also recently re-desced and tightened up the grid on Junk..if you haven't been up there in the past six months, I encourage you to re-visit and let me know what you think.

Speaking of other things happening behind the scenes...read on..

'008 Same as it always is when your review cycle comes up: I wish we could see you around more. You're like the mad professor in the game's basement. When you do spring up, though, you're always helpful and eager to make sure people are having as much fun as possible! A+ for effort, C- for attendance. :('

That averages out to...a B? You're a far more lenient grader of myself than I am :( I'll take it, though.

I always thought Hazard was the mad professor in the game's basement. This means we must DUEL.

I wish we could see me around more too :(.

'009 Durango=Durango has been a very active player in the past. I know right now that REAL LIFE is eating him but at least he tries to log in and make everything fun for as many people as possible. Like doing Muffin Man. Really doing Muffin Man. ): I hope to see him more active soon but I understand. It's also greating having TP staffers who can rotate due to real life issues. I know I can count on Durango to become active when the time is right. :)'

Wha? 2vs2 on Muffin Man.. Game On!

Yeah, seriously, let's hear it for the rest of TPstaff, who have been covering my absent butt for MONTHS now, with more brilliance than I could ever hope to muster. Folks, I think that 2008 has been a golden age for TPstaffery, and I can say that unbiasedly because I've done jack twaddle. The people around me are all so varied and brilliant in their own ways that the whole comes out smelling like roses...what I'm most proud of, though, is the recent upspike in player initiative. Apocalypse Box, Poker Nights, Argosy, etc...all of these have been player driven. We've often said on staff that we'd rather run one player-submitted or player-run TP than five of our own, so please, keep following those nagging feelings of inspiration that manifest in your minds. We'll be there to provide the muscle.

'010 As far as Durango goes, he's a great player, but he hasn't done much, scene-wise. I would like to see him try a TP that is a bit more serious. Transformers got pretty dumb, I know, but Transformers was usually dumb in a way that is revelant to Transformers. For example, the Carwash of Doom. A lot of Transformers are cars. A carwash scheme would make sense to them. Also, Child's Play spoofed how Transformers are really just toys. I know that a lot of people felt that Muffinf Man II was TOO silly, and they also felt railroaded. How do I know this? Because they complained to me, for some reason. So try some more serious, open-ended stuff, please.'

2vs3, Muffin Man loses :(

I apologize, again, if anyone felt put out by Muffin Man. In all honesty, though, it was a one-off scene that didn't really effect anything else outside of its continuity. Intentionally. So that people could skip it/not have to deal with it. I believe in doing things in a respectful manner towards the playerbase. That said, I'll stop defending it. It was what it was. I hope that those who had complained to you are those who voiced their concerns in reviews, or else I hope that they'll come to me, via gripe or in person, to let me know their feelings.

As far as more serious TPs are concerned, we've got something in the works. I've also been known to do serious scenes in the past, albeit granted, probably before your grandfather was born, it's been that long since I've been active :(

For more on this topic, see earlier responses on this page.

'011 Durango seems like an okay sort of guy! He's easy to get along with and if he doesn't run very often, when he does run it's usually pretty fun. Anyhow it's not like he takes up too much space or anything. We should keep Durango around. :)'

Seriously, I'm 5'4". I live in Scrapper's locker, underneath his Code Book of Doom and his Anti-Matter Ray, right next to his Puffkin collection.

Well...at least, that's where I lived.

I have an announcement to make, folks.

As of today, I'm moving out of Scrapper's locker, and into Sneak Peek's.

I'm not leaving TPstaff; I am switching to a half-time basis, however. The other half of my adminbit will be spent on Charstaff, assisting (and covering for) Hazard as he implements the Combat System of Awesomeness. Hopefully my presence will allow him to devote his time to the combat system as it reaches its final stages.

What's this mean for me? Well, it means that I can do more things during my odd-aft hours, as Charstaff work can be done *gasp* in the mornings and late at night! It also means I'll officially be out of the way of the TPstaffers who have the time and initiative to run with their ideas, but not so far gone that I can't still help out with scenes and run the occasional scene myself.

I cannot tell you how excited I am for this opportunity. Character work (as hinted at earlier) is my real, true love when it comes to my time on 2k5, and I can't wait to be able to help you all (and new players!) with developing your own characters and takes on characters. It's what I do in my professional life, and now I can port that onto 2k5.

I look forward to working with you all in this new capacity.

Also, I look forward to returning to my former pastime of making Sneak Peek's life miserable.

Thanks again for all of your reviews...if you feel like I haven't addressed something, or there are other concerns, please feel free to speak to me, use the +gripe system, or speak to another staffer, who will relay your messages to me anonymously. We're only as good as we make each other, folks.

Game on.