rootbear75 Posted June 20, 2007 Report Posted June 20, 2007 IT'S HERE, IT'S HERE! THEY FINALLY PUBLISHED IT! http://www.escapistmagazine.com/issue/102/18Heirs to an Empty Kingdom: The Continuum TeamReleased in '97, Virgin Interactive Entertainment's (VIE) SubSpace was a victim of its novelty. Just barely scraping the traditional MMOG qualifier (64 or more players on one server), the top-down space combat game - along with Meridian 59 and Ultima Online - laid the foundation for online gaming. The game played a bit like Counter-Strike or Team Fortress, only with spaceships: Players battled over flag capture points and for bragging rights, and thanks to a robust chat system, people didn't even need to log out to torment their victims. However, in 1997, those ancient times Before Broadband, back when some people were still paying by the hour for flaky internet access, the idea of paying an additional fee to log into a virtually non-persistent world with little record of your existence beyond a name and a win-loss record just didn't take. By 1998, VIE had lost its funding from parent company Virgin, and the SubSpace license went un-purchased, leaving the remaining community with little support. Players were able to create their own servers, but without a unified developer to patch the game in an official capacity, cheating ran rampant, which pushed the game even further underground. If SubSpace was going to survive, it needed something bold to happen. Enter Priit "PriitK" Kasesalu. Kasesalu, who would later go on to design Kazaa and Skype, reverse-engineered SubSpace and renamed it Continuum, the version of the game most people play today. Since then, Kasesalu maintains a few servers, but has handed over the day-to-day responsibilities to the community he saved. One of the leaders in the community is Scott "PoLiX" Binford. A nine-year SubSpace vet, Binford runs SSCentral.com and acts, in a way, as the game's publicist. "I am a lone man in some ways ... keeping what I can together while trying to get a new face and grow the site again." Binford says he, like many other of the game's diehard fans, grew up playing SubSpace. "I've known many of the players I consider friends since the time I began, and some I have worked with for years now building the websites." Sometimes, all the work he and the rest of the team does can be exhausting and frustrating. Binford admits he's thought about giving up his responsibilities "a few times. It has gotten frustrating being the last general site for the game ... But I still keep the sites up and running and keep my active user base happy. I know I am the media for the game, and without our websites, we would slowly die." But the death of SubSpace is the last thing on anyone's mind. Even they were hit hard by World of Warcraft's arrival, but the team plans on rolling out the PR wagon to draw new people to the game. They intend to focus on how varied the game can be - "In what other game can you go from playing an Unreal Tournament-style game to an Infantry-style game?" - as well as how working on a collaborative development can lead to paying jobs within the industry. "Many of our players ... have now gotten jobs in programming, or designing," he says, "and have said they found Continuum an easier jumping leap than any other game, as so much more programming is needed, and you're starting literally from bare scratch in many places." Whatever the marketing outcome, Binford is extremely confident in the team's lasting survival. "Honestly, this game will never die as long as we keep playing it and enjoying it, so I see it lasting until our 20-year anniversary and beyond." polix, your last name is binford? reminds me of Home Improvement... Binford Tools there's even a link to http://www.getcontinuum.com in the middle of the articlei tried to reproduce the style and links inside the quote... see the actual article.. its pretty cool
KoTD Posted June 20, 2007 Report Posted June 20, 2007 !@#$%^&* yeaz! Maybe SS will have a big jump in popularity =D
Chambahs Posted June 20, 2007 Report Posted June 20, 2007 mUAHAHAHAHH I LOVE YOU POLIX "In what other game can you go from playing an Unreal Tournament-style game to an Infantry-style game?"
PoLiX Posted June 20, 2007 Report Posted June 20, 2007 Joe: For our readers, who am I talking to? What's your background?Scott: My name is Scott Binford, I fly the alias 'PoLiX' and have for about 7 out of the 9yrs of my play time. I work for in a warehouse for Sears, nothing really technical bound, and spend a lot of my free time out enjoying myself. As I said, I have been playing for 9 years, and honestly have spent all 9 primarily with the home zone of Extreme Games. I run the last Main Generalized website for the game, SSCentral.com, and the last centralized forum system, Forum Central. Joe: What got you into the web community aspect?Scott: I have always loved working with html, was shown the basics by my cousin back in 1997ish, and when I saw there we're websites devoted to this game in need of help, it was a chance for me to expand my horizons, and learn. Which honestly, I have learned a lot, and know php better than I can keep up with all the new HTML standards sometimes. In time, I ended up working as one of the 3 main guys running all the websites, and managed SSCentral.com. Sadly, the others have since vanished, and I am a lone man in some ways, working along site SubspaceDownloads.com, and keeping what I can together while trying to get a new face and grow the site again. Joe: So how old were you when you got into the game?Scott: 13yrs old, as many of our community would agree they we're too. It really was a simple game that younger minds could endulge in, and still can. It is very simple to learn the controls, understand the way each zone works, and learn to communicate and build friendships. At that age, that is the biggest thing anyone looks for, and as some joke, Continuum is IRC with a game inside. Joe: So you pretty much grew up with Subspace, then.Scott: Honestly, yes. I've known many of the players I consider friends since the time I began, and some I have worked with for years now building the websites, and zones, and helping grow this game we love. I have even made one friend, as you might say, "In real life" from this game, and we're good friends, and built that over this game and it's forums. [ JoeBlan> Could you give me a brief history of Subspace? Well, as brief as 12 years can be PoLiX> http://www.sscentral.com/index.php?node=subspace PoLiX> if you don't mind me saving some typing JoeBlan> haha, no prob PoLiX> that is actually what we have on Wikipedia JoeBlan> oh cool, mulitple sources make my fact checkers happy Bty is your BOUNTY. This is how many points you are worth to kill PoLiX> it is a bit off here and there, but again, dates and history all depend on the eyes of the beholder in such an old game. JoeBlan> makes sense PoLiX> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SubSpace_(computer_game) JoeBlan> cool, i'll give 'em both a read PoLiX> yep ] Joe: You said you started playing when you were 13. What did you like about it? Can you put your finger on what got you hooked?Scott: As I said, it was a simple game, and very easy to learn and play. Extreme Games was very simple zones to catch onto, and I also found a slight love for Trench Wars at that time. I had tried zones like Chaos, and loved Warzone, but they we're harder zones to catch on to, and really didn't hold my attention long. The simplicity of it all, and the easy learning curve, it just got me hooked. Joe: What does SS mean to you? When you think about it, what pops into your mind?Scott: SS means Subspace, heh. Nah, SS is a game where I can go when things got me down, and just talk to hundreds of people all over the world, and fight them, and kill them. Our slogan has always been "Meet people from all over the world... And then kill them." That is one aspect that keeps me coming back. Joe: What's kept you interested after all this time? Is it momentum? The friends you've made? Still love the game? I mean, after 12 years, anything has to lose a bit of its novelty, right?Scott: I hate to keep repeating myself, but it is honestly the simplicity of the game. You can modify this game so much, and still keep it very neat, clean and simple. I have raised many zones from nothing to something, and had many players enjoy them throughout my years, and it is just fun to do. I also love using the skills and knowledge I learned to help out others, and watch them grow and prosper their own zones. Honestly, in 12yrs, the only thing that has changed, is we run ourselves, and some new features with the Continuum client. I still love the game, yes. I always come on and find people I know to talk to, and try to hop in a game or 2 in Extreme Games or occasionally Powerball or Metal Gear CTF. Honestly this game will never die as long as we keep playing it, and enjoying it, so I see it lasting til our 20yr anniversary and beyond. Asteroids on Steroids, that's the best way to explain why. Joe: You said WoW cut your numbers in half. Have you seen any new faces since WoW? Before WoW, were you growing?Scott: Before WoW, the game will still on a population rise. Not as big as when we we're featured on ZDTv mind you, but still growing. Many of our players had begun to lose their addiction to other games like Everquest and Quake, and returned to us, and we held their addiction for a long time. But once WoW came around, as many games will agree, the entire population was literally cut in almost half just in a few months time. Out of all the games I play, the greatest loss I had seen. Honestly, anyone can agree we we're not the only ones hurt, but it was a big blow to us, and something we are still recovering from. Joe: What do you plan on doing to generate interest? Do you think the game's age may detract some players from trying it out? Scott: Our main focus in PR has always, and probably will always be how much you can customize this game just on the player side. Everything from the skin, to the in game graphics, to even the fonts can be customized. Zones however like Metal Gear CTF who have their own customizations will sometimes override some of the minor in game ones, still don't keep you from doing a lot of it on clientside for yourself. I mean, in what other game can you go from playing a Unreal Tournament style game to a Infantry Style game, just by clicking a different Zone (Server). A lot of our programming development is open source, pretty much all besides the client itself. Our game is heavily client side based, so it allows us to do a lot of modifications to the servers, and create bots with ease. There is even an open source Linux/Windows server for the game now, and it has sparked a lot of interest in the community of developers. Many of our players began developing just for a zone, and have now gotten jobs in programming, or designing, and have said they found Continuum an easier jumping leap than any other game, as so much more programming is needed, and your starting literally from bare scratch in many places. The way any company's products are developed are from scratch, not something pre-made or laid out for you. Joe: What do you like best about the community surrounding the game? What do you like the least?Scott: The best thing I like about the community, is how everyone stepped up and worked together, and we still work together to keep the game alive. There is some spots lacking at the moment, but we do the best we can, and keep the game stable and running. The worst thing is that in the last few years, the centralization of the face of this game has fallen apart. Every zone has their own site, and that is fine, but none really advertise or give any help to the more generalized sites for the game. That in my opinion, has been the biggest blow to our incoming population. Joe: Have you ever thought of giving up on the game, or at least your role in its development?Scott: Yes, sadly, I have a few times. It has gotten frustrating being the last general site for the game, and sometimes I feel the zones don't give as much support or care as they use to. They have kind of written us off, and forgotten where their population comes from, and who gets people into this game and their zones. But I still keep the sites up and running, and keep my active user base happy. I know I am the media for the game, and without our websites, we would slowly die. Joe: Have your goals for the game and the community changed at all since you got involved?Scott: Yes, as the game changes and grows, so do our goals. I don't have any personal goals left but to keep my sites up, but my staff are always helping me set new goals for the sites and our projects. We don't have a company doing this all for us, so we have to keep setting our own goals to keep pushing ourselves forward. Joe: When I started looking around for people to talk to about the game, I got a couple responses from people suggesting there is a rift in the community. Is there anything to that, or did I manage to stumble upon a couple drama queens?Scott: Drama Queens, yes, and no. There have been some issues lately, and they have been being worked on, and most have been fixed or cleaned up. It is a play ran game, so of course people feel left out, and want this magical "Power" they think there is to running the game. They don't understand everything we do, and all the commitment we have to keeping it alive. It isn't about personal gains, it is about the gain of the community as a whole. Most of these issues are ones held by people who don't understand or know what is fully going on. We have a council, and people feel they should be part of it, not knowing the point of it is mostly an e-mail group for the zone owners, site owners, and network admins to share information and talk. It doesn't really persay run the game, it is just all the people who do run it in a small way, sharing information and making choices that effect the part they take care of. Joe: So, is everyone who plays involved in some manner, or are there people who still just log on, do their thing, and log off?Scott: Probably % of the community doesn't know about a lot of what goes on to keep this game alive, and many don't know much outside of their home zone. So there is a huge base of just players, and people who just get on to play. Others, like myself, get on, handle issues, messages, and other chores, and then once done, we can join in and play or chat as we please.
Samapico Posted June 20, 2007 Report Posted June 20, 2007 woooot... with cool!@#$%^&* pictures throughout the article... awesome WOOT, Freespace is in there too... that game owns
L.C. Posted June 20, 2007 Report Posted June 20, 2007 Heh. That article is somewhat encouraging and brightening.
Dav Posted June 20, 2007 Report Posted June 20, 2007 I am kind of freightened at the aspect that I'm actually a member of all three mentioned communities...and then some even more... You am nerdy! But seriously, nice article! I hope more find our small corner of the Internet after this.
rootbear75 Posted June 20, 2007 Author Report Posted June 20, 2007 (edited) i think magazines are the only way to get new players here.online posting is just not helping.but if a known magazine posts an article on it, it has to be somewhat decent.so the readers will go and try it out One question on the article though... where did they get that awesome pic? Edited June 20, 2007 by rootbear75
Reaver Posted June 21, 2007 Report Posted June 21, 2007 (edited) Great job Polix. How about we digg that website? But instead of tossing it up there right now, start spreading the word around all the zone's communities that it's going to be digg'd, giving non-digg members time to register, but make everyone aware, that way we can get 300-600 digg's and get the word out even better. P.S. If you could use some help with anything Polix let me know, I'm interested in helping continuum not just promoting TW alone. Edited June 21, 2007 by Reaver
»freakmonger Posted June 21, 2007 Report Posted June 21, 2007 Also, freeinfantry just died. What happened? Nice job polix
PoLiX Posted June 21, 2007 Report Posted June 21, 2007 On another note, even though SSCentral.com was mentioned, the main site is still only pushing in the 15,000hit/day range... no changes really at all. The forums on the other hand have dropped a tiny bit, but that is probably just do to summer vacation, nothing related.
Ophie Posted June 21, 2007 Report Posted June 21, 2007 (edited) I highly disagree with the article. I do not recognize PoLiX as one of the leaders of our community. And his saviour-like-martyrdom "lonewolf" portrayal disgusts me. ... Edited June 21, 2007 by Ophie
Dav Posted June 21, 2007 Report Posted June 21, 2007 I highly disagree with the article. I do not recognize PoLiX as one of the leaders of our community. And his saviour-like-martyrdom "lonewolf" portrayal disgusts me. ... ok reread this bit One of the leaders in the community is Scott "PoLiX" Binford. A nine-year SubSpace vet, Binford runs SSCentral.com and acts, in a way, as the game's publicist He runs the main SS community website making him top dog of it. This is a part of the community making him a leader of it. Try thinking before you post next time.
Gravitron Posted June 21, 2007 Report Posted June 21, 2007 Giving the vast dissonant nature and dynamic state of "SubSpace", running (even the main/left over) website of SS is debateable as to whether or not it turns someone onto a leader of the SS community.At the very most minutia it is required to lead and have those who are being led.
Footballstar8583 Posted June 21, 2007 Report Posted June 21, 2007 (edited) So, What im seeing here is you asking people to put something on there websites about Continuum/Subspace so the population will get bigger?......? Edited June 21, 2007 by Hamm
Gravitron Posted June 22, 2007 Report Posted June 22, 2007 ROFL!He deleted all the posts!Haha. Wait...I have the entire thread saved.Lose.Concealing your deeds instead of owning up to your act doesn't change anything, it only makes matters worse.
PoLiX Posted June 22, 2007 Report Posted June 22, 2007 !@#$%^&*, Reply to grav gone...? Eh. Well.... I guess that ends that... Seems thread got cleanerized... -------------------------------- Grav... The point of the spotlight in this is the game. So lets just leave it at that. Pretty much what my long !@#$%^&* post said, beyond defending myself... -------------------------------- The Rest... Spread the word. As Grav pointed out, I have found it on no other forums. People have contacted me in game, saying Good Job, so it is spreading somehow, but not really enough. Honestly, don't care if it spreads in game either, advertise the entire article on forums, spread word about it, get knowledge about the game out, the best we can do.
Gravitron Posted June 22, 2007 Report Posted June 22, 2007 Aww, !@#$%^&* Polix, didn't got to see your reply. If you recall to retype, send it to PM. To the delete-happy mod, I recommend this very good movie: Tripping the Wire: A Stephen Tree Mystery. The lot of the masses of the dumb ASSS that roam this game could also benefit from reading the main Richard Garriott feature as well.I love that man. He believes in instilling values through games. Something many people, especially here, could learn about. My prime, ever, criticsm about SS or rather its community's handling be the stench from the lack of morals within it.
PoLiX Posted June 22, 2007 Report Posted June 22, 2007 ROFL!He deleted all the posts!Haha. Wait...I have the entire thread saved.Lose.Concealing your deeds instead of owning up to your act doesn't change anything, it only makes matters worse. Me? No. I've only deleted one of my own, someone else cleaned house. Trust me, after the long as reply I just typed, why would I delete it? Edit: NVM, read your reply now.
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