OngoingWorlds blog

News & articles about play-by-post games, for roleplayers & writers

Aug
25

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We’re Now Accepting Host/Chair Applications for FallFest 2016

Category: Behind the scenes - running RPGs, Events, Play-by-post discussion, Roleplaying community Tags: , , Leave a Comment

Fall Fest 2015

FallFest 2015 logo
Image by Jalana Rajel

That’s right, it’s time once again to plan the online roleplaying community’s premier event: The Simming Fall Festival (aka FallFest).  This will be the 6th festival since our beginnings back in 2011.

For those who may be new to the Ongoing Worlds blog, FallFest is a one-day online convention held annually in IRC chatrooms for anything and everything simming and online role playing.  We remember our past and look to our future.  It generally runs for about seven hours and includes multiple discussions, trivia games, and live role plays.  Originally intended to be a mini-SciWorld more friendly to European timezones, FallFest has since grown into much, much more.

We need a host & chairperson to make it all happen…

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Jun
27

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Forget the Brexit! What about the Squexit? Top 10 Splits in RP History

Category: Roleplaying community Tags: , , 14 Comments

brexit

On Thursday, June 23rd, voters in Great Britain elected to withdraw from the European Union (EU) with 51.9% of the ballots cast.  This event received wide media coverage and led to the resignation of United Kingdom Prime Minister David Cameron.  The political, economic, and social repercussions of the “Brexit” (British Exit) continue to be debated by pundants.

OngoingWorlds logo - an alien holding a world

The Squiddie voted to remain our mascot, preventing a possible Squexit.

While the world tuned into the unfolding Brexit decision last week, the media missed another important vote: The Squexit!  Fortunately for us, our very own Squiddie elected to remain the Ongoing Worlds mascot for the foreseeable future.  With both the Brexit & Squexit still very much on our minds, here are the top 10 (+1) splits from simming and online role playing history.

Top RP Splits in Chronological Order

  • 1995: Tigra Tigress, the Chief Editor of Starfleet Online’s (SFOL) official newsletter, is forced to resign by club leadership.  A significant portion of SFOL’s membership then follow Tigress to form Continuum Online.  This is one in a line of multiple splits for SFOL, which struggled to transition from its place as a leader in AOL simming to an Internet-based club.  SFOL is eventually absorbed by Federation Sim Fleet (FSF) in 2005.  It is unclear when Continuum Online went defunct, but it is believed to have occurred circa 2000. Read More

Jun
21

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The 2016 Squiddie Award Winners

Category: Awards, Competition, Events, Roleplaying community Tags: , , , 3 Comments

Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Role Playing

Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Role Playing

Last month, we asked for nominations for our top award, the Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Role Playing (aka the Squiddie).  You responded with 29 absolutely outstanding nominations.  For anyone who missed those posts, the Squiddie is presented annually to one person, one game, and one club.  Each of the three winners is awarded for one of the following respective areas:

  • Excellence in Role Playing
  • Originality & Innovation
  • Facilitating the Community Experience

As you can imagine, narrowing the list of 29 nominees down to 3 winners was extremely difficult as there were many top-notch people, games, and clubs recommended.  But we had to do it!  Without and further ado, here are your 2016 winners… Read More

Jun
15

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SciWorld 2016. June 23-24. Be there.

Category: Behind the scenes - running RPGs, Events, Play-by-post discussion, Roleplaying community, Trivia Tags: Leave a Comment

2016 SciWorld Online Convention

2016 SciWorld Online Convention

SciWorld 2016 is almost upon us!  Indeed, the 14th iteration of the original simming and online role playing convention will be held in chatrooms at www.sciworldonline.com on Thursday, June 23rd and Friday, the 24th.  We plan to kick things off at 5:30pm EST (10:30pm BST) on Thursday and at 4:00pm EST (9:00pm BST) on Friday.

For those of you who may not be familiar with the SciWorld Online Convention, it’s an extravaganza held annually in IRC chatrooms for everything that is simming and online roleplaying.  Typical events include discussions and workshops on issues within the greater simming community, interactive trivia games, and live-action role plays.  There’s something there for everyone!  As always, SciWorld is open to all simmers and online role players, regardless of rank or club affiliation.  The first SciWorld was held in 1999 and sponsored by the Simming League.  Past SciWorlds have also been sponsored by other great organizations, including Ongoing Worlds and SimEnc.  This year’s convention is sponsored by Roleplay Wiki, which also sponsored the previous two.

So what does this all mean for you?

  • First, plan to attend yourself.  What better place to share your own ideas and learn the latest and greatest from the rest of the community?
  • Second, invite your friends.  Let them join in on the fun too!
  • Finally, if you would like to host a one-hour discussion, trivia game, or role play, contact Zania Ja’arda with this form.  But don’t wait too long–the schedule fills up quickly!

See you in a little over a week at SciWorld 2016.

Jun
1

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Congratulations to our 2016 Squiddie Nominees

Category: Awards, Competition, Events, Roleplaying community Tags: 1 Comment

Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Role Playing

Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Role Playing

The nomination window for the 2016 Squiddies (aka the Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Role Playing) closed yesterday.  As some of you will recall, we asked the entire simming & online role playing community to nominate the best people, games, and clubs for the highest honor bestowed by this organization.  You answered with nominations for 29 outstanding people/games/clubs.  And what a fantastic list it is!  Without any further ado, here are your 2016 Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Role Playing nominees in no particular order… Read More

May
5

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The Awards Season Continues: Squiddie Time!

Category: Awards, Competition, Events, Roleplaying community Tags: 1 Comment

Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Role Playing

Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Role Playing

We recently concluded the Tournament of Simulations (ToS) and presented two more Ongoing Worlds Community Honors (OWCH).  However, it’s now time for the pinnacle award bestowed by Ongoing Worlds: The Squiddie!  (Officially, the Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Roleplaying.)  If you’re not familiar with the award, check out our past winners:

Here’s how it works:  Each year we present Squiddies to three different entities: one person, one sim/game, and one club.  Prior winners are not eligible for future awards.  Squiddies are bestowed for exemplifying one or more of the following characteristics, primarily during the previous calendar year:

  • Excellence in role playing
  • Originality and innovation
  • Facilitating the community experience

Nominations may be made by anyone using the form below. Read More

May
1

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Introducing the Two Newest Ongoing Worlds Community Honor Recipients

Category: Awards, Events, Roleplaying community Tags: , 3 Comments

The OWCH awardWith the Tournament of Simulations completed, it’s time for us to honor the individuals behind another absolutely fantastic role play:  Rhiannon (aka Emily Wake) and ryjones are hereby awarded the Ongoing Worlds Community Honor (OWCH) for their outstanding service as moderators of the 2778 A.D. sim.  Indeed, founded less than a year ago in August 2015, the game has seen an astounding 2177 posts since!  It has not only exceeded all expectations in terms of quantity, but it has also set the pace for Ongoing Worlds sims in the flash or short form posting style.  This has allowed for many fascinating and unexpected turns in the story.  If you’re looking for an adventure, this game is where it’s at!  Congratulations to both Rhiannon and ryjones!  Well done! Read More

Apr
30

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2015 Tournament of Simulations Winners

Category: Awards, Competition, Events, Roleplaying community Tags: 8 Comments

simcup2015It’s time to introduce the winners of the the 11th Tournament of Simulations (ToS)!  In case you missed it, ToS is an annual event where role play games of different clubs and genres compete against each other in a friendly manner for several awards.  The first tournament was held all the way back in 1999.  This year, each participating sim submitted 10 posts that were written sometime during 2015.  The posts were then evaluated by three judges in three different categories on a 1-10 scale: Story, Characters, and Readability/Grammar.  The games receiving the highest marks are now recognized.

As I say every year, evaluating sims is a subjective art and this is especially true with ToS.  We’re not here to identify the best games as this is impossible.  Instead, we’re here to identify what we think are outstanding role plays that exude excellence.  A different set of judges may very well chose a completely different set of winners.

Without an further ado, here are your winners…

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Mar
24

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Interview with Mike Bremer

Category: Behind the scenes - running RPGs, Interviews, Play-by-post discussion, Roleplaying community Tags: , 4 Comments

Mike Bremer

Mike Bremer

Last week I had the opportunity to ask simming legend Mike Bremer a few questions.  Mike needs no introduction as he’s arguably one of the most important leaders in simming and online role playing history.  Mike started his career in Allied Electronic Simulations (AES) way back in 1996.  After moving over to Tango Fleet later that year, he then co-founded Bravo Fleet with Pat Weber in 1997.  Mike served as Bravo Fleet Commanding Officer (BFCO) from 1998 to 2004 and grew it into one of the first true mega-clubs of the Internet era.  Mike has received numerous accolades over the course of his career, including the 2011 Simming Prize and, most recently, the 2015 Ongoing Worlds Medal for Superior Online Role Playing (aka the Squiddie).  Mike also hosts the Starbase 400 sim (SB400, previously known as the USS Pegasus), which is incidentally one of the sims he joined back in 1996!  Starbase 400 has won multiple awards for its high-quality and longevity.  With that, I present to you, Mike Bremer in his own words… Read More

Feb
29

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How will the Simming & Online Role Playing Universe End?

Category: Roleplay Systems, Roleplay-related projects, Roleplaying community Tags: 16 Comments

NASA's 9 Year Microwave Sky Image

NASA’s 9 Year Microwave Sky Image
“The Face of God”

Much like the origin of the universe, the beginnings of the simming and online role playing community remain shrouded in mystery.  Sure, we know that it developed out of fan fiction on primordial online services of the late 1980s and early 1990s, but we lack specifics, and many of the details we do have are quite vague.

Records exist for many of the major players and significant historical events, but we miss a lot of the nuance.  It is also highly likely that there are pockets of our cosmos that we don’t even know about it, and now may never know about.

In the approximately 25 years since our creation, clubs, much like stars, have come and gone.  And role-plays, much like planets have come and gone too.  The community is much different now than it was then.  Indeed, just as the physical universe is more mature and less volatile than it was during its early days, our demographic is older and our universe more stable as well.  But how will it all end?  Here are three possibilities:  The Big Freeze, The Big Crunch, and The Big Bounce.
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