Tis the season to be jolly, and what better Christmas attire than shiny mace or a shiny sword?! Because remember, Santa Clause is a part of the red team, the mortal foe of any blue team; his unit of choice, deer. His IGZ rating? Well, let's just say that 2010 isn't *only* the date the Earth will end... assuming it will, if we're to believe those crazy Mayans! And on that paranormally high note, welcome again to the battlefield, our Road to Christmas Edition. The 24th is coming soon and we're almost in a brand new year! And I know you've been waiting for it -- a Christmas post from your humble dictator, *Aro*! Well, it's here! Yay! Uh... absolutely splendid! ... positively! ... *tip-toes away*
In our endless persuit of trying to spot the most creative members of our community (for record-keeping purposes, I assure you), us here at Age of Kings Heaven have decided to go and host our own short story contest, otherwise known as
Like the awesome Librarians we are, we're making sure to keep our
As mentioned in a news post a few days ago, CrispyGamer.com has posted an excellent article series on the history of Ensemble Studios, the creators of our beloved Age of Kings. There have been three articles in the series, two we already covered:
Former Computer Gaming World editor Jeff Green gives voice to many in his disbelief that Ensemble and its games will be separated. "I still can't quite get over the fact that Ensemble is gone or that Microsoft would do this to them. For many PC gamers, Ensemble was the jewel in the crown, the proof that Microsoft still gave a damn about PC gaming. For me personally, Age of Empires remains the RTS series I've played more than any other, and is also the one I've used most as a gateway to turn others on to the genre. Non-hardcore gamers who were afraid of StarCraft's sci-fi or WarCraft's fantasy could more easily accept Age of Empires' more 'realistic' setting, which right from the start was always beautifully realized in terms of art, animation and sound. And I will forever love them for introducing the 'idle peasant' button, which everyone else copied later."
As always, we're ending the year with a bang! Hosted this year by Scuddles, our Heaven's mighty
Another Community Event still going on is the the Jatayu-hosted
There will be no "This Coming Fortnight" this week because we'll be stepping it up a notch; on January 1st, you'll get a "This Coming Year" from yours truly! See you on the battlefield soon comrades, and happy holidays!
[This message has been edited by Aro (edited 12-22-2008 @ 04:17 AM).]