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Kongregate is Games2.0

Kongregate is a Web2.0-like game site, so let's just say it's Games2.0.  Haven't quite given it a full test ride, but I have good confidence in this site.  It just feels right, as this screencap shows:

Kongregate is great for gamers.

By wrapping user-submitted Flash games with various community features, Kongregate's site serves as a unique way for users to play great web-based games alongside friends.

And Kongregate is also great for developers.

Kongregate operates with an understanding of how difficult it can be for talented game developers - from the aspiring gamesmith to the independent studio - to get the recognition and compensation that they deserve. That's why Kongregate shares microtransaction and advertising revenue with contributing developers, who retain the full rights to their games.

My Proximity Game Resolution

My favorite game is Proximity.  My goal has been to break into the Top 100 high scores, which would be pretty good since millions have played.  Well, I've done it with a score of 10,380 armies which is good for a ranking of 21st on the list.  I'm currently documenting why I did so well - and it appears I've just been lucky and can tell when to run and when to hide.  When I get around to reporting the results, I can say that they are not obvious.  For the most part, take what you think would give you a high score and then do the opposite.

OK, so I had been thinking on how to better my earlier scores (typically 1000-4000 on Expert level).  I thought about creating a computer program that would help me learn optimal strategy.  But when I estimated that this could take 50+ hours and the optimal strategy might be "take advantage of good luck", I decided it's best just to play games quickly.  Obviously, this worked.

Usability comment about ElfYourself.com - Problems with "Send to a Friend"

I love Elf Yourself.  It's a fun site that lets you upload your face (and up to 3 other faces) for a little Christmas card funtime.

I hate to be a Grinch or Scrooge, but I have an issue with their "Send to a Friend" feature.  It must be based on a mailto link which requires integration with an email program.  But not all people can take mailto links, so clicking on this can mean no action for these people.

I use Gmail and have some sort of add-on that lets my Gmail take mailto links, but even that didn't seem to work all that well.  I had to ditch Firefox and jump over to Internet Explorer.  Then I noted it called my my old Outlook (yuck) and I had to copy and paste from that message back into Gmail.

So in short, lots of steps.  But I still say Elf Yourself is cool.  Just wanted to warn you that "Send to a Friend" may not work for you.

About Proximity High Scores

I just discovered the Proximity high scores list at the website of the games creator, Brian Cable.  My assumption was that the maximum high score would be 2,400 since there are 120 game cells and the maximum points per cell is 20.  120 x 20 = 2,400.

So I posted a question on Brian Cable's discussion forum about Proximity last night and he's already replied:

I hesitate to give out the exact algorithm for my high score, as someone could immediately use tools to cheat and give themselves whatever the max score is supposed to be, but a score of 16k is definitely possible. The score is determined by the difference between the winner's and the loser's army count, multiplied with a multiplier based on A.I. level as well as another multiplier.

I've only been playing Beginner level to day, which makes sense given that I've only been playing for a week.  Here's hoping I'll be able to break into the Top 100 scores list where #100 is a score of 7,900 by Arnaud recorded on 9.11.06.

Just won Proximity strategy game 863 to 561

My Red Army just beat the Blue Army 863 to 561 in Proximity (66 to 54 in terms of piece count).  This is a fun and free lash game.  Highly strategic game.  Armies take turns playing.  You win over the opponent's piece(s) of any piece lower than you.  Putting your piece against your own increases each touching piece of yours by 1 point.

The game is interesting because sometimes the best moves aren't obvious:

• Sometimes it is best to bypass an obvious "winning" move to play defensively
• Don't underestimate the power of bumping up your own values by placing pieces next to your own
• My best games seem to come when I think "What the worse thing that can happen to me now?"
• "Analysis paralysis" can be overcome by hoping that the opponents next piece will be low

Hey, taking that screenshot and getting it into this blog takes a lot of work.  I wish it were easier. :)

914 Score on Proximity Game

OK, to my millions of fans out there that like to here my Proximity scores, I just hit 914 after being down some 200 or so in the early goings.  I'd be interested in hearing any high scores that anyone else out there has.

927 score in Proximity

Just won Proxmity 927-684 (66-54 in cells), besting my prior best score in Proximity (863-561) by 64 points.

Explore mysteries of the universe at VideosOfTheUnknown

Here's a great collection of videos clips for anyone interested in things such as UFO's, Bigfoot, Loch Ness Monster, Ghosts, Bermuda Triangle, and the Da Vinci Code.  The site is called Videos of the Unknown.

Theme park numbers revisited

TheDisneyBlog has taken some data released by AmusementToday.com which lists estimated attendance at theme parks and adjusted the data on a "per operating day" basis.  Here are the top parks:

1. Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Orlando, 44,110
2. Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif. 39,725
3. Paramount Canada's Wonderland in Maple, Ontario, 28,350 (127 days)
4. Epcot at Walt Disney World in Orlando, 27,125
5. Disney-MGM Studios at Walt Disney World in Orlando, 23,560
6. Disney's Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Orlando, 22,465
7. Paramount's Kings Island in Kings Island, Ohio, 21,855 (151 days)
8. Morey's Piers in Wildwood, N.J., 21,680 (143 days)
9. Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, 21,380 (145 days)
10. Hersheypark in Hershey, Pa., 21,260 (127 days)
11. Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Ill., 20,440 (137 days)
12. Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, N.J., 17,900 (162 days)
13. Universal Studios in Orlando, 16,715
14. Disney's California Adventure in Anaheim, Calif., 15,890
15. Busch Gardens, Williamsburg, Va., 15,855 (164 days)
16. Islands of Adventure at Universal Orlando, 15,780
17. SeaWorld Orlando, 15,345
18. Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk in Santa Cruz, Calif., 14,020 (214 days)
19. Universal Studios Hollywood, 12,950 (363 days)
20. Adventuredome at Circus Circus in Las Vegas, 12,330
21. Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, 11,780
22. SeaWorld San Diego, 11,235
23. Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, Calif., 10,220 (274 days)
24. Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., 9,960 (231 days)
25. Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, Calif., 9,535 (364 days)

According to this data, there are about 115k people at Walt Disney World in Florida each day.

Gravity - The Game

Here's a cool game called Gravity.  Driven by the concept that mass has gravitational forces, the game expands on that by having multiple forces of gravity via multiple "planets".  The idea is to release your ship (or whatever else you want to call it) and to let the ship float around the system for as long as possible.  It's pretty fun to watch, but fairly difficult to master.